Nine months after GM recall, drivers wait for a fix

CASTLETON TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — Kelly Root has been wondering for nearly nine months whether it’s safe to drive her 2017 Chevrolet Traverse.

“I don’t know what to do,” Root told News 8 Sunday. “I’m just kind of angry.”

General Motors issued a voluntary recall last May over concerns of the airbag exploding during deployment and sending metal shrapnel into the cabin, potentially seriously injuring or even killing those inside. The recall affected more than a million GM vehicles, including more than 457,000 Chevy Traverse vehicles plus GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave vehicles from the 2014 through 2017 model years.

GM said the recall was issued out of an abundance of caution. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, GM learned in March 2023 that a 2017 Traverse was involved in a crash where the front-driver airbag exploded during deployment. The driver suffered facial injuries as a result, according to the NHTSA. GM was also aware of at least two prior incidents where the airbag inflator inside a 2015 Chevy Traverse ruptured during deployment, NHTSA said.

When Root received the recall letter from GM in June 2023, she was told certified dealers would be able to replace the airbags free of charge once the parts are available. Since then, Root has gone to local dealerships and GM itself to ask for a fix.

More than 30 million US drivers don’t know if they’re at risk from a rare but dangerous airbag blast

“They said, ‘Yeah, you’re not the only one, we have no fix for it,'” Root said.

GM confirmed to News 8 that parts to replace the airbags are still not available.

“GM is working with its suppliers to produce replacement parts and make them available to dealers for the necessary repairs as soon as possible,” a company spokesperson said. “Registered owners will receive notification by mail when parts are available for their vehicles.”

The company is also investigating the issue with a third-party engineering firm. GM could not tell News 8 when it expects the fix to be ready but said it continues to look for a solution.

“While we cannot confirm resolution timing, we can say that the safety of our customers is our highest priority, and we are committed to working with our suppliers to get replacement parts to our dealers as soon as possible,” GM said.

In the initial recall letter last May, GM said it would send vehicle owners another letter once parts are available telling them to take their vehicle to a Chevrolet dealer. The GM spokesperson added that vehicle owners can check the GM Recall and Warranty Center website and enter their Vehicle Identification Number for the latest recall information.

The GM recall was related to a much larger recall last May involving ARC Automotive, the maker of these airbags. The National Highway Traffic Safety called on ARC to recall more than 67 million airbag inflators for similar concerns. NHTSA cited several incidents that it said resulted in injuries, plus a 2021 crash in Michigan involving a 2015 Traverse that led to the driver’s death.

“It’s gotta be fixed,” Root said. “You can’t just let us drive around in a car where the metal fragments can come out of the airbag if it’s deployed and hit you in the neck and the face (or) the kids in the back seat.”

ARC Automotive did not comply with the larger recall, and in a 17-page response, it denied that there is a systemic defect in the airbags. In December, GM, Toyota and Volkswagen joined ARC Automotive and another manufacturer, Delphi Automotive, in saying the larger recall was unnecessary.

Root doesn’t know what to do while she waits for a resolution. She is far from the only one: a 2022 analysis by Consumer Reports found that more than two million people nationwide had their car recalled that year without the option of an immediate repair.

“It’s a very large problem,” Root said. “There are many people who have the same problem.”

Root lives on a farm in Woodland, on the edge of Barry County. She needs the vehicle to get around, and she also worries about driving long distances in the car.

“(It’s) 40 minutes to Grand Rapids,” she said. “Probably 30 to 40 minutes to Lansing. We don’t have those major stores out there.”

When she has to drive, she says she drives defensively.

“This is my car,” she said. “If the kids need to be picked up at daycare, the grandkids, I usually get that call and I will pick them up. You just don’t feel good about it anymore.”

“We go a lot of places, now I just feel like I can’t,” Root added.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com.