When General Motors realized the ignition switches in a few of its cars was a liability, it had the switches redesigned in 2007. However, GM and Delphi Automotive never bothered to change the part number of the unit. Now, with 1.62 million cars being recalled, GM is being faced with the task of determining which switches are safe.
According to GM’s filings with the National Highway Travel Safety Administration, General Motors and Delphi Automotive added a shorter, tenser spring to the switch seven years ago to prevent them from being twisted, but the part number was never changed for the new switch—not an uncommon practice. Dealers now have no way of knowing which switch is in their inventory. Parts dealers aren’t believed to be the recipient of the newer switch.
According to GM spokesperson Jim Cain, the investigation into the replacement parts came at the request of NHTSA. The company knows about the issue is “cooperating fully with NHTSA,” Cain said.
Repairs to current vehicles sidelined by the recall will begin on April 4th, with the process expected to finish by October.
View Comments (4)
"not an uncommon practice"
I think you meant "an uncommon practice".
Part Number should have changed. Someone is going to be in trouble because the number did not change. Once the part went past the quality control group (cannot remember the name but it probably changed since I worked there anyway) and the supplier got the OK to ship virtually all changes require a new part number that change the workings of the part. And what is going to happen to parts in service? Without a number change there would be mixed stock and no idea whether a car got the latest or an old part.
Someone snuck this change through. For GM's sake and the DRE I am hoping it was the supplier because the DRE said he never approved the change.
Ex DRE
Nope, meant what I wrote, based on several sources.
I have to agree that generally it is common to change the number when a part is modified in most cases even at GM.
I have seen it and had to deal with it for years.
Hell GM too often has the same part with more than one part number with different prices. The Suppliers used to rip them off selling the same part to Chevy and then to Cadillac at a higher price because the purchaser at Cadillac had no idea Chevy used the same part and got it cheaper. That is just how messed up things were inside.
"Not assigning the new part number would have been highly unusual, according to three people who worked as high-level GM engineers at the time. None of the engineers was involved in the handling of the ignition switch; all asked that their names not be used because of the sensitivity of that matter"
http://www.autonews.com/article/20140324/OEM11/303249959/cardinal-sin-former-gm-engineers-say-quiet-06-redesign-of-faulty