Fed Wants More Recalls And Faster Repairs - How Much Is This Going To Cost You In The Long Run?

The Obama administration and some members of Congress want to give the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration sweeping new authority to get unsafe cars off the road quickly. And they want higher fines to deter automakers from delaying recalls.

Some in Congress want to go further: They have promised big hikes in NHTSA’s budget and to add dozens of investigators. A separate measure would subject auto executives to up to five years in prison for failing to disclose dangerous safety defects within 24 hours.

The nation’s auto safety agency has taken a much more aggressive role in recent years. It began after criticism in 2010 that NHTSA didn’t do more to prod Toyota Motor Corp. to address sudden acceleration complaints before a fatal crash near San Diego. It stepped up its role even more this year as a result of delayed General Motors Co. recalls for defective ignition switches linked to at least 13 deaths.

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Agent009 - 7/21/2014 12:13:44 PM

+1 Boost

Those companies plagued with recalls (IE: GM and Toyota) will need to double down on quality parts and keep the penny pinching to a minimum.

Look at companies such as Subaru, and VW. The cars are more expensive, but recalled a heck of a lot less.

leej - 7/22/2014 8:06:37 AM

+1 Boost

Subaru is in a lawsuit NOW with the feds over claims of dangerous auto defect:
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/subaru-sued-claims-dangerous-auto-defects-24626044

I wonder how these families of people who died at the hands of a GM vehicle feel about the assessment of 'fairly good'...

TomM - 7/21/2014 6:26:56 PM

+1 Boost

Actually - when compared to actual cars sold - over the last 30 years - Subaru has recalled at a rate of about 2 of every three cars - slightly worse than GM.
Volkswagon actually has a rate of over 1 recall per car - Ford is about 93% of the sales- and even BMW has recalled about 90% of sales numbers.
Toyota is about 80% of sales.

Yes - Subaru has recalled a lot less cars - but then they sold a lot less too.

So - when you look at REAL comparison statistics - GM does better than most.

Agent009 - 7/21/2014 6:48:32 PM

+1 Boost

I did see a study a few months ago showing GM was fairly good overall, however million more have been added to the mix since then. The issue is millions made vs millions recalled. Big numbers get all of the press.

Honda actually had a recall last year for a misprint in the owners manual.

BTW in 2010 GM recalled only 500,000 cars. Obviously they were sandbagging.