[RavenAvi]

In one of the biggest recalls in the Indian auto sector, GM India has announced that it has issued a recall for around 1,60,000 cars comprising of it's hatchback offerings - the Spark and the Beat - and it's MPV offering - the Enjoy - over a faulty battery wiring harness.

The Hindustan Times reports:

A defective wiring harness could lead to a short circuit in the car and carries a potential risk of fire. The recall is restricted only to those vehicles fitted with remote keyless entry accessory provided by component maker AutoCop. The cars would be fixed at designated outlets for free and the process would take 2 hours.

“We have identified the requirement of modifications on battery wiring harness in Beat vehicles manufactured between January 2010 up to June 2014,” according to a letter sent to a customer that is in possession of HT. “Chevrolet is undertaking a voluntary product safety recall to reach out to these vehicle owners and repair/ replace the parts free of cost.”

The letters sent to the consumers are signed by Anand Kumar, director for after sales at GM India.

“The remote keyless entry accessory meets all the relevant regulatory standards. However, GM India has been made aware of some isolated cases where certain Chevrolet Spark, Beat and Enjoy vehicles were fitted with a faulty accessory,” the company said in its response to a questionnaire sent by HT. “As a result, the impacted Chevrolet Spark, Beat and Enjoy vehicles could experience damage due to inappropriate routing. The recall affects 160,000 vehicles in India manufactured between 2007 and 2014.”

HT

[mi2n]

Needs clarification!

So only owners that opted for the Autocop keyless entry / central locking "accessory" at dealers' end is part of the recall? I do not think Beat/Spark comes with keyless entry from the factory. I had installed the same Autocop model sold by the dealership from Autocop themselves for a fraction of the cost. Need I worry? Why would GM make a recall for a faulty third party accessory installed at dealership level?

[i_see]

Just called up Chevrolet toll free number to enquire about the recall. They in turn transferred my call to the nearest dealer.

The person from the dealer did not have any information about the recall! When I told him about it, his tone of voice was like not another recall! When I told him that it may be a recall of up to 1.6 L cars...he was shocked! He told me he will find out the details and will call me back

[aniketi]

This is it i guess. Its a end of the story for Chevrolet in India i guess. Already for last few months its going down every month, no stopping in that. Such news of recalling more than 1.5 Lacs cars is disater for them. It will make sure speed of downfall is increased more now. Anyways GM was not doing anyting to survive. Sad to see its going down.

[Latheesh]

Originally Posted by mi2n

Needs clarification!

So only owners that opted for the Autocop keyless entry / central locking "accessory" at dealers' end is part of the recall? I do not think Beat/Spark comes with keyless entry from the factory. I had installed the same Autocop model sold by the dealership from Autocop themselves for a fraction of the cost. Need I worry? Why would GM make a recall for a faulty third party accessory installed at dealership level?

Even I have Autocop keyless entry/central locking system for my Spark, but it is branded as GM accessory. Check behind the key and see if there is a" GM accessory" written.

Mine is July 2009 manufactured Spark, will check with dealer once I am back in India.

[i74js]

This seems to be a compatibility issue with GM co-branded Autocop central locking system.
- It is linked to India and few developing markets, wherein GM- Autocop co-branded locking mechanism is sold through dealers
- In case of mal-function; manual / physical key override does not respond properly and the vehicle relocks automatically
- As a remote possibility, the locking mechanism may result in a short circuit causing collateral damage

Last, though recalls are considered to be good, in this case it has already damaged GM's reputation in India (and not much would happen to Autocop similar to Takata Airbag issue with several manufacturers)

[yamaniac]

I had this issue on my beat diesel. The Central Lock never used to work sometimes. Especially when the car was parked in hot day light and mostly at noon. This was fitted by the dealer itself. I got a recall letter, but then I had sold off the car. I have had horrible experiences with the dealerships, I vow never to buy a chevy in this lifetime.

[ani_meher]

Why is a recall being hailed as a 'nail in the coffin' by above posts?! Like GM will now shut down chevy, and what not. As per the graphic in the first post, Maruti, Ford and Honda too have recalled more than 1 lac cars at some time.

What with calling names to cars, such as 'cheap chinese' ones? Sail is a good car, though plain looking. And that's not even the point. In 8 of the 9 posts above, there is no solid info about the recall.

[phamilyman]

This thread is full of GM hate and outright trolling. There's nothing here that suggests that they acted less than prudently or that they were deliberately cutting corners.

I think GM is doing a good job here by doing a reasonably proactive recall. Such recalls are neither cheap nor easy.

The infographic shows almost every manufacturer has done recalls recently. Yet no one says anything bad about Toyota or honda etc?!

[vnabhi]

Good move by GM, IMO. Similar large-scale recalls were carried out by other manufacturers too.

It is good that GM is taking the initiative, though Autocop remote is an accessory sold by many manufacturers. They could have washed their hands off saying it is not their product.

While on this, I remember that a Beat owned by the spouse of a senior executive in our company caught fire at Begumpet last year, while on the move. Luckily she stepped out with the driver when they smelt fumes in the cabin. They had no clue as to what had caused the fire. Could it be due to this issue?

[arunphilip]

I have been critical of GM India previously, because they seemed to be doing engine swaps and other under-the-covers remedial measures instead of performing a publicized recall. So for them to go and announce a recall is a big plus in my books, good of GM to perform this of their own volition.

• Remember, there are no lemon car laws in India.
• Moreover, given that we've not heard of widespread problems, financial losses or injuries due to this issue for the models specified, it doesn't even sound like the risk of litigation prompted GM India to do this recall.

I'm a hopeless romantic and an eternal optimist - maybe GM are turning over a new leaf? Hope springs eternal.

[Carpainter]

I believe GM have done the right thing in this context. I hate when manufacturers know that there is a problem going on in their products and they are getting complains of some issue, yet they refuse to issue a recall in the name of market goodwill. The way they are heading the company or their product portfolio is a different matter altogether. I believe GM is struggling all over the world and not just in India, except US ofcourse.

[GTO]

Whenever any car catches fire, the first thing that manufacturers scream is 'after-market accessory'. The irony .

I smile whenever a company announces a recall. Come out in the open, correct the fault and your owners will thank you for it. It's a good thing that recalls are becoming commonplace. Car owners have started accepting them and no manufacturer is afraid of his reputation (as everyone else is recalling too).

Originally Posted by arunphilip

I have been critical of GM India previously, because they seemed to be doing engine swaps and other under-the-covers remedial measures instead of performing a publicized recall. So for them to go and announce a recall is a big plus in my books, good of GM to perform this of their own volition.

An engine swap here and there can be brushed under the carpet. But a fire hazard is serious! It can cost lives. That has national & international repercussions.

Mod Note: Request to please stick to the topic. We have other threads to discuss GM's weak market position. Let this one focus on the recall only.

[raju2512]

With no strong traceability system in place most car manufacturers play it very very safe in recalls. ie they recall more vehicles to be on the safer side. The cost of the recall is mostly borne by supplier of the part (who has no say in the decision making process.) The car manufacturer hence suffers no financial loss. Very rarely you will see a car maker doing recall for in house defects.

Now the tier I suppliers are slowly making their sub suppliers (mostly SMEs) responsible. One such recall can totally bankrupt a SME which its owner would have built over a few decades.

Even in this case why should vehicles made over a period 7 years be recalled. When did GM receive the first complaint and on what basis this window was fixed. Just like our government commissions probe, no one will ever know the factual truth

[i_see]

Today I got a call from Chevrolet dealer. They confirmed that a recall has indeed been initiated, but they did not have all the details as of now. They are awaiting further details from Chevrolet.

They asked me if there has been a change in ownership or contact address. Since there was a change in my correspondence address, they updated it and promised to intimate me when they receive any information.