General Motors (GM) filed a petition asking the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for permission to delay the recall of one million vehicles with Takata airbags. To date, there have been 14 deaths and more than 100 injuries linked to defective Takata airbags. However, GM's petition claims that the vehicles with these airbags installed are not at risk of rupturing because of special design features. GM also notes that there were 44,000 airbag deployments in this group of vehicles, yet none of the airbags ruptured. GM hired an investigator to begin a year-long study in an effort to prove the company is right that these airbags are not dangerous. The company hopes to save millions by not repairing affected vehicles, unlike other major automakers. For affected GM vehicle owners, one year is a long time to wait to determine if GM’s investigator deems the vehicles safe. Thousands of vehicle owners could be at risk for severe injury or death if their airbags become unstable and deploy, spewing metal shrapnel into vehicle cabins.
Affected GM Vehicles
The 2007-2012 GM vehicles affected by the massive recall include:- GMC Yukon
- Cadillac Escalade
- Chevrolet Suburban
- Chevrolet Tahoe
- GMC Sierra
- Chevrolet Silverado
