Motoring
GM recalls 2.42 million vehicles more
NEW YORK – General Motors Co.’s recall saga continued Tuesday with the beleaguered automaker recalling another 2.42 million vehicles in the U.S. for four separate issues.
None of the four recalls is related to GM’s faulty ignition switches. That issue, which has been linked to at least 13 deaths and recalls of 2.6 million vehicles, has prompted federal fines and several investigations into why GM neglected to issue the recalls for more than a decade.
Tuesday’s recalls bring the total number of GM recalls in 2014 to 13.7 million vehicles in the U.S alone. It also means GM will take a $400-million charge against second-quarter earnings.The continuing recalls stem from an internal review of the automaker’s pending safety issues, announced by GM Chief Executive Mary Barra in the wake of the first ignition switch recalls. It represents a culture change at GM, said Dave Sullivan, manager of product analysis for consulting firm AutoPacific Inc.
“We never would have seen a lot of these issues addressed because they weren’t being brought to the right level of management’s attention,” Sullivan said. “I don’t think they’re done yet.”
The most serious issue in Tuesday’s recalls involved 1,402 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESVs from the 2015 model year. The hulking luxury SUVs have front passenger air bags that were not properly attached to the instrument panel. As a result, they may only partially deploy in a crash.Demonstrating the gravity of the problem, GM sent letters, emailed, and called owners of the vehicles and warned them not to drive with a passenger in the front seat until the vehicles can be fixed. No accidents or injuries have been reported as a result of this issue, GM said.
The automaker also recalled 1,339,355 of its new and used full-size crossover SUVs from the 2009-14 model years. These include the Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse and GMC Acadia. The Saturn Outlook from 2000-10 is also included.
These vehicles have a cable in the front seat belt that can wear out prematurely and break. If this happens, the seat belt may not work as designed. GM has asked dealers not to sell new or used models of these vehicles until a fix can be made.
A third recall on Tuesday expands on an earlier recall from April 29. GM is now calling for fixes to 1,075,102 of its Chevy Malibu, Malibu Maxx and Pontiac G6 vehicles. The cars affected are from the 2004-08 model years.A shift cable in the four-speed automatic transmission can break. If this happens, drivers may not be able to change gears, remove the key from the ignition or put the car in park. The issue has led to 18 crashes and one injury.
The fourth recall was of 58 Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD heavy-duty pickup trucks from 2015. These trucks are at risk for fire if the clips that attach a fuse block to the trucks come loose and the block moves. GM is not aware of any accidents or injuries as a result of this issue.
The $400-million charge against earnings is a doubling of the $200-million figure GM announced last week. This brings the total cost of GM’s recalls alone to $1.7 billion so far in 2014.
This latest round of recalls puts 2014 on track to be the busiest recall year ever for the auto industry. With nearly 23 million vehicles recalled already, the auto industry will almost certainly break the previous record of 30.8 million vehicles recalled in 2004.
GM accounts for by far the largest share of those recalls. In February, the automaker started recalling cars with the faulty ignition switches, which drivers can inadvertently turn off, disabling the air bags and steering. Internal documents show GM knew about the problem as early as 2001 but didn’t issue a recall until 13 years later.
This has prompted a flurry of lawsuits by consumers and investigations by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Congress and the Department of Justice. On Friday, NHTSA issued a $35-million penalty against GM for the delays, the maximum fine the safety agency could levy.Critics dismissed the amount as no more than a slap on the wrist, though the fine probably is not the end of GM’s financial woes. Just this year, Toyota was slapped with a $1.2-billion fine by the DOJ to settle a four-year criminal investigation into the company’s handling of sudden-acceleration complaints and recalls.
GM also faces 79 lawsuits from customers seeking up to $10 billion in lost value of the 2.6 million cars with faulty ignition switches.
But the plaintiffs may have a hard time proving their vehicles have lost value. ALG, which tracks vehicle values, said Tuesday that while there was a small dip in short-term values of the affected cars, they probably wouldn’t be affected in the long term.
“We expect GM’s values to mimic what happened to Ford and Toyota after their mass recalls, with the affected vehicles hurting little more than GM’s reputation for several years,” Eric Lyman, ALG vice president, said in a statement.
Despite the high volume of recalls, many analysts don’t expect all the negative attention to have a meaningful effect on GM’s long-term fortunes.
Because many of the models tied to GM’s more serious recalls aren’t in production anymore, there’s little risk of a particular model’s reputation being tarnished. And since GM doesn’t actually sell cars under its own nameplate, many potential buyers may not even be aware that a Chevy or Buick is made by GM.
GM’s future is also helped by the fact that people don’t buy new vehicles frequently. The average age of cars on the road today is about 11 years, which means many consumers will have forgotten about the GM recalls by the time they go to dealerships to buy their next car.
“Consumers are not buying a new car very often,” Sullivan said. “It’s not like we have a huge recall at McDonald’s for poisonous meat in the food today, and everybody stops going there immediately.”
– LA TIMES
Motoring
FCTA Pulls Plugs On Taxi Rank, Terminal Services Contracts
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has ended contracts with taxi rank and terminal operators due to their failure to meet engagement terms and conditions.
Mr. Ubokutom Nyah, the Mandate Secretary of the Transportation Secretariat, FCTA, made this announcement during a meeting with managers of these terminals and taxi ranks in Abuja.
Nyah clarified that due to the operators’ failure to fulfill their engagement terms, the FCTA had to terminate their contracts.
He instructed them to transfer control of the ranks to the Administration within three months, starting from Nov. 21.
He lamented the presence of unauthorized motor parks in the city and assured the readiness of the Administration to establish proper taxi ranks and terminals in the capital.
He revealed that personally visiting the city’s taxi ranks, terminals, and unauthorized motor parks gave him direct insight into the poor condition of these facilities.
He emphasized that as the federal capital city, Abuja deserves better, highlighting that the poor condition of these facilities attracts various criminal elements.
He said “We must rid Abuja of all these. I have gone round the taxi ranks, and of all the places I visited, not one is worthy to be called even a village motor park.”
The Mandate Secretary stressed that the intention wasn’t punitive; rather, it aimed to revamp the sector, introduce new engagement terms, and modernize taxi ranks and terminals in the federal capital.
He also highlighted the plan to increase the number of terminals and ranks where necessary, which would positively impact the administration’s revenue.
He emphasized that this measure was part of a broader effort to eliminate illegal motor parks in Abuja and curb the associated criminal activities.
In response, Mr. Adebisi Lawal, the Operator of Jahi Taxi Rank, praised the administration’s initiative to modernize the taxi ranks and terminals.
Lawal urged the administration to prioritize current operators’ involvement in the selection of new developers for the modernization of the taxi ranks and terminals.
Motoring
Power Show Sees Soldiers Batter LASTMA Officer
It was a show of power at the Ojota area of Lagos on Monday as soldiers pummeled an officer of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, (LASTMA).
Eyewitness accounts claim that the ugly scene played out around 8am, and saw about eight soldiers pounce on the yet to identified LASTMA official, while his colleagues took to their heels.
The video of the melodrama has gone viral, where the LASTMA official was appealing to the soldiers, who appeared bent on ‘teaching him a lesson’.
This onslaught comes on the back of a reported assault of a soldier at the same location by LASTMA officials last week.
It would appear that what played out today was the army asserting its authority and defending their khaki as the armed soldiers carried out what looked like a revenge mission.
Eyewitnesses further averred that the victim was rushed to a nearby hospital, after the soldiers left the scene.
It was gathered that the authorities at LASTMA has reported the incident to the military authorities who are said to be looking into the matter.
Meanwhile many members of the public are rejoicing that the soldiers have taught the crude LASTMA official that power is stronger than power, for all their atrocities against motorists on Lagos roads.
Motoring
Intra-City Fares Skyrocket By 98% Month-On-Month – NBS
The impact of the removal of subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, has seen the pump prices of the product skyrocket with a corresponding increase in the cost commercial transportation in Nigeria.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), intra-city bus transportation fares across Nigerian cities, measured between May and June 2023, increased from N649.59 to N1,285.41 in June 2023.
This translates to 98 percent growth or N635.82 within the month in view.
The NBS made the data available in its Transport Fare Watch report for June 2023.
In the report, the NBS also shared the breakdown of bus journeys within the cities per drop for constant routes; bus journey intercity (state route); charges per person, amongst others.
On a year-on-year basis, the report has it that bus fares rose by 120.63 percent from N582.61 paid by commuters in June 2022.
The average fare paid by commuters for bus journey intercity per drop rose to N5,686.49 in June 2023 compared to N4,002.16 in May 2023 indicating an increase of 42.09 percent, month-on-month.
The report read, “The average fare paid by commuters for bus journeys within the city per drop increased by 97.88 per cent from N649.59 in May 2023 to N1,285.41 in June 2023.
On a year-on-year basis, it rose by 120.63 per cent from N582.61 in June 2022.
“In another category, the average fare paid by commuters for bus journey intercity per drop rose to N5,686.49 in June 2023, indicating an increase of 42.09 on a month-on-month basis compared to N4,002.16 in May 2023.
“On a year-on-year basis, the fare rose by 55.25 per cent from N3,662.87 in June 2022.”
Biztellers reported that the twin forces of forex pressure and increasing price of Brent in the global market would likely see the pump prices of petrol, increased again in no distant time in Nigeria.