GM's Joint Venture in China Relapses into a Major Recall

On December 1st, AQSIQ released information showing that SAIC General Motors Co., Ltd. had implemented the "Defective Automobile Product Recall Management Regulations" and "Defective Automobile Product Recall Management Regulations" in the event of a defect inspection initiated by AQSIQ. The request was filed with the AQSIQ for the recall plan.

SAIC GM has decided to recall 806,000 vehicles from December 29 this year, mainly Chevrolet Cruze models.

Among them, part of the Chevrolet Cruze vehicles from 2012 to 2016 amounted to approximately 797,000 vehicles. Due to the durable corrosion of the electronic power steering gear harness connector pins, the electronic steering assistance system may report fault codes for some vehicles after prolonged use. In extreme cases, It may lead to the failure of the electronic steering assistance of the vehicle and there is a potential safety hazard.

Another 9415 Cruze due to the problem of harness detection technology of the electronic power steering supplier may cause the electronic steering assistance system to report fault codes while some vehicles are driving. Under extreme circumstances, the electronic steering assistance of the vehicle may fail, and there are potential safety hazards.

SAIC General Motors will apply grease on the electronic power steering gear harness connectors of vehicles within the recall range, install rubber blocks under the power steering auxiliary motor, and replace the electronic power steering harness to eliminate potential safety hazards.

For some time, AQSIQ's defective product management center has received complaints from consumers about this issue. After receiving the complaint, AQSIQ immediately deployed the Defective Product Management Center to carry out defect investigation and assessment of the above issues. Due to the investigation, SAIC General Motors Co., Ltd. decided to adopt recall measures to eliminate potential safety hazards.

At the same time, SAIC-GM-Wuling also filed a recall plan with the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) and decided to recall about 939,000 vehicles starting from December 1, mainly involving the Baojun brand 730 and 560 models. This means that SAIC GM will recall a total of 1.745 million cars in the Chinese market.

SAIC-GM-Wuling’s problematic vehicles are due to suppliers’ manufacturing reasons. Some tank vent hoses may experience ageing and cracking after long-term use. In extreme cases, when the fuel tank is full of fuel, there may be fuel vapor leakage and there is a safety hazard.

SAIC-GM-Wuling will replace qualified fuel tank ventilation hoses for vehicles within the recall scope to eliminate potential safety hazards. In the past two years, the Baojun 730 and 560 made great contributions to SAIC-GM-Wuling's sales growth, but SAIC-GM-Wuling has recently been controversial due to the quality problems that have been exposed.

It is worth noting that the recall of this large-scale recall from SAIC-GM's Gaotian airbags due to safety defects was recalled by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine for only two months.

On July 5 this year, the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) law enforcement inspection team collectively interviewed General Motors, Volkswagen, and Mercedes-Benz on the issue of gas generator ruptures and requested that relevant measures be taken as soon as possible to fulfill the legal obligations of defect recalls and effectively eliminate potential safety hazards.

At that time, 8 production companies such as General Motors and other three brands only recalled small batches of vehicles for trial and analysis and did not propose effective recall measures. In September this year, SAIC GM began a passive recall and issued three recall announcements in a row, announcing the recall of approximately 2.516 million vehicles, causing public concern.

Sustained large-scale passive recalls, as the top three of the SAIC Motor Corporation of China, should also reflect on how to protect the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese consumers while obtaining huge profits. Otherwise, consumers will vote with their feet in the long run.