Wheels: Toyota to Recall 803,000 Vehicles for Air Bag Problem

Wheels: Toyota to Recall 235,000 Vehicles Over Stalling Problem

Wheels: Volvo to Recall Nearly 7,800 New Vehicles for Electrical Problems

Wheels Blog: New Federal Rule Requires Vehicle Recall Information to Be Searchable by ID Number

G.M. Dismisses Executives as India Begins Investigating Recall of Vehicles

G.M. said on Friday that it had dismissed the employees for violating unspecified company policies. One of the executives was Sam Winegarden, a vice president in charge of engine programs, who retired this week after 44 years with G.M., the nation’s largest automaker.

The management shake-up came after the Indian government began an investigation into the recall this week of 114,000 Chevrolet Tavera utility vehicles sold by G.M. in India.

Indian news reports said the government was investigating whether G.M. had improperly manipulated the weight and engine performance in the Tavera during emissions testing and certification.

A G.M. spokesman, Greg Martin, declined to say whether the employees had been forced to leave because of the government investigation.

“General Motors’ investigation into our recall of the Chevrolet Tavera, which is built and sold exclusively in India, identified violations of company policy,” G.M. said in a statement. “G.M. subsequently dismissed several employees.”

One person briefed on the dismissals, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said at least 10 employees, mostly in India, were involved. The highest-ranking employee was Mr. Winegarden, who is based in the United States and is the top engineer for the company’s engine operations worldwide.

The company, which said it was voluntarily recalling the vehicles, acknowledged that the Indian government was aware of “an emissions issue” with the Tavera, one of G.M.’s mainstream models in the country.

“G.M. India informed Indian government authorities of an emissions issue involving the Tavera BS3 meeting certain specifications on July 19,” the company said.

The company stopped production of the Tavera in India this month. It said it would make changes to vehicles built as far back as 2005 and perform the required engineering validation. It gave no timetable for notifying customers and doing the work.

The recall is a setback for G.M.’s growth plans in India, particularly if it damages the reputation of the American automaker.

“Our customers are at the center of everything we do,” said Lowell Paddock, head of G.M. India, when he announced the recall.

On Thursday, G.M. reported that its net income in the second quarter dropped 19 percent, partly because of smaller-than-expected profits in Asia.

G.M.’s chief financial officer, Daniel Ammann, said on Thursday that India was among the international markets where G.M. struggled during the quarter.

The decision to oust executives is in keeping with a zero-tolerance policy about violation of corporate ethics led by G.M.’s chief executive, Daniel F. Akerson.

“We take these matters very seriously and hold our leaders and employees to high standards,” the company said. “When those standards are not met, we will take the appropriate action to hold employees accountable.”

Last year, Joel Ewanick, G.M.’s chief marketing officer, was forced to resign after questions were raised inside the company about his handling of a sponsorship deal with a British soccer team.

Wheels: N.H.T.S.A. Investigates Hyundai Santa Fe and the Adequacy of a G.M. Recall

Hyundai The 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe. 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating possible axle failures on 2013 Hyundai Santa Fe models, as well as whether a recent General Motors recall for a potential fire hazard in its eAssist fuel-economy system was adequate.

In a report posted on the agency’s Web site, investigators said they received two reports of front axle-shaft failures on the 2013 Santa Fe “resulting in a loss of motive power” within the first 5,000 miles. The investigation covers about 50,000 vehicles.

The General Motors investigation is called a recall query and shows that the safety agency is concerned about the adequacy of a recall. The recall this year covered about 43,000 vehicles with the eAssist system from the 2012-13 model years because the generator control module could cause engine stalling and a fire inside the trunk. The models affected are the 2012-13 Buick LaCrosse and Regal and the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu Eco.

In a new report posted on the agency Web site, N.H.T.S.A. investigators said they learned that General Motors had dealers conduct a test on unsold vehicles to see if the control module was working correctly. Vehicles that passed the test were not recalled, which would have involved replacing the generator control module.

But the investigators say they have learned that before the recall was announced G.M. knew of one fire on a vehicle that had passed the dealer test and was thought not to have a problem. The agency says that the fire draws “into question whether or not the procedure can effectively identify a defective Generator Control Module.”

Alan Adler, a G.M. spokesman, said in a statement that the automaker was cooperating with the agency. He said that the company was unaware of any injuries related to the problem. This is the fourth time this year that the agency has questioned the adequacy of a General Motors recall.

Wheels: Aston Martin and Dodge to Recall Cars

Aston Martin The 2014 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Coupe is one of the models affected by a recall issued for faulty accelerator pedal parts.

Aston Martin will recall about 689 of its 2012-14 models in the United States and another 2,100 globally because the accelerator pedal may break, according to a report the automaker filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Chrysler has also issued a recall of nearly 13,000 2013 Dodge Darts because of a temperature-related stalling problem.

It was a case of unfortunate timing for Aston. The report says the first failure occurred at an event for journalists. The automaker investigated and discovered that a supplier had used parts the report described as “a plastic material that was not in accordance with the Aston Martin design specification” in some models’ pedal assemblies. Aston Martin also said it suspected “the broken parts had been subjected to heavy use.”

The models affected are the DB9, DBS, Rapide, V12 Vantage Coupe, V8 Vantage Coupe and Virage. Aston Martin said if the pedal broke the engine would return to idle.

The company described the recall as voluntary but once a manufacturer is aware of a safety problem it has no choice but – within five business days – to inform N.H.T.S.A. of its plan for a recall or face a civil fine.

Dodge, via Associated Press Nearly 13,000 Dodge Darts have been recalled due to a computer-related stalling problem.

In other recall-related news, Chrysler will recall about 12,900 of its 2013 Dodge Dart models in the United States – and 1,900 in Canada – because of a stalling problem, the automaker said in a news release. The recall covers models with the 1.4-liter 4-cylinder engine and dual-clutch automatic transmission.

Chrysler said it discovered the problem after a vehicle had been parked for eight hours in a climate-controlled chamber with its temperature set at 20 degrees Fahrenheit. The automaker later learned that some dealers had received complaints from owners about the same issue. Chrysler says it is not aware of any accidents linked to the problem and that it will reprogram the powertrain modules.

Wheels Blog: Consumer Advocacy Group Calls for a Recall of 5 Million Jeep Grand Cherokees

Chrysler The Center for Auto Safety wants Chrysler to recall five million Jeep Grand Cherokees made from 1993 to 2004 for a potential fire hazard from their gas tanks.

The Center for Auto Safety is asking top officials at the Chrysler Group and its parent company, Fiat, to recall about five million vehicles. The nonprofit consumer advocacy group said, “Children are dying in Jeeps in rear-impact fires.”

In a letter to John Elkann on Wednesday, Fiat’s chairman, the center cited the deaths of three children since 2006 in fires that occurred when the Jeeps in which they were riding were struck from the rear.

The Center for Auto Safety has also been urging, since 2009, a recall of 1993-2004 Jeep Grand Cherokees, saying the vehicles have two problems. The first is a gas tank behind the rear axle and somewhat below the bumper, in an area that safety engineers call a crush zone. Chrysler moved the tank in front of the rear axle when it redesigned the vehicle for the 2005 model year, but a company spokesman said the move was not related to concern about fires.

The second problem is a fuel filler pipe positioned so that it can rip away from the tank in a rear impact, allowing gasoline to escape from the tank, the center said. Chrysler has repeatedly denied that the Grand Cherokee posed a fire risk, noting that the vehicles met federal safety standards.

On Wednesday, the automaker issued a statement reconfirming its own analysis of the Grand Cherokee models called into question by the center, saying the S.U.V.’s “are neither defective, nor do their fuel systems pose an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety in rear impact collisions.” However, almost a year ago, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said its investigation of the center’s allegations were reason enough for the agency to upgrade its investigation to an engineering analysis.

In what appeared to be a direct rebuttal of Chrysler’s continuing claims, the traffic safety administration said its study found that “rear-impact-related tank failures and vehicle fires are more prevalent in the J.G.C. (Jeep Grand Cherokee) than in non-Jeep peer vehicles.” At that time the safety agency said it was expanding the investigation to include 1993-2001 Jeep Cherokees, as well as 2002-7 Jeep Libertys.

In 2011 the center released the results of crash tests it commissioned, showing that other S.U.V.’s of the same vintage fared far better in rear-impact crashes than did the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

The center says it has reports of 157 deaths in which Grand Cherokee crashes resulted in a fire. That tally includes rear impacts as well as rollovers in which the filler hose might have ripped loose, Clarence Ditlow, the center’s executive director, said in an interview. The safety agency listed 15 fire deaths, but Mr. Ditlow said it was strictly looking at rear-impact crashes.

One of the child deaths mentioned in the center’s letter was that of Cassidy Jarmon, a 4-year-old who was riding in her family’s 1993 Grand Cherokee in February 2006 in Cleburne, Tex. Her mother was stopped on a two-lane highway, trying to make a left turn, when her Jeep was hit from behind by a 2001 Chevrolet Lumina, according to the police report. Cassidy, who was in a child restraint, survived the impact but couldn’t be easily freed from the seat because the fire happened so quickly, said Detective Kelly Summey, who arrived at the crash while the rescue was under way. She died two days later from burns and smoke inhalation.

Detective Summey said her investigation concluded that the gas tank had been punctured by the Jeep’s trailer hitch. The deaths of the two other children occurred in 2011 and 2012. The safety agency’s investigation is still under way.

Wheels Blog: Cadillac to Recall SRX Models for Wheel Problem; Triumph and Nissan Issue Recalls

Cadillac Cadillac said it will recall 19,000 SRX models for a problem with wheel lug nuts that could increase crash risk.

General Motors will recall almost 19,000 2013 Cadillac SRX models because the lug nuts on its 18-inch wheels may loosen, the automaker told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

In a report posted Friday on the safety agency’s Web site, the automaker said it traced the problem to “wheel nuts with a blue tint Teflon content topcoat, a nut torque at the lower end of the acceptable range and a rarely occurring rotor dimensional characteristic.”

The combination means “one or more of the wheel lug nuts could detach” possibly causing a crash. However, the automaker said it found the problem on vehicles in its fleet and was not aware of any wheels coming off or crashes related to the defect.

In other actions:

• Triumph says it will recall about 279 of its 2012-13 models because an indicator light might show that the transmission is in neutral when a gear has been selected, according to a report posted on the N.H.T.S.A. Web site. The action covers Triumph’s Speed Triple, Speed Triple ABS, Speed Triple R, Speed Triple R ABS, Sprint GT, Sprint ST, Tiger 1050 ABS and Tiger Sport models.

• Nissan’s worldwide recall of 841,000 vehicles does not include any in the United States or Canada, Steve Yeager, a spokesman for the company wrote in an e-mail. Mr. Yeager said the recall affected Cube, March and Micra models sold in Japan, Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa, Latin America and Middle East, where the automaker will tighten the steering wheel fixing bolt to the correct torque.