General Motors is recalling 2021-2022 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with third-row seats. The safety defect covers 2021-2022 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with third-row seats. These six product lines, of course, are among the most popular and profitable SUVs sold in North America.
“The rivet that retains the buckle to the mounting bracket in the left- or right-side third-row seat belt buckle assembly may have been improperly formed,” was the defect cited in a mandatory NHTSA filing made public today. GM had reports of the problem going back to October of 2020. Workers at GM supplier ZF Occupant Safety Systems manufacturing plant in Mexico may have not properly followed processes and inadvertently missed the rivet forming operation.
ZF initiated containment efforts on May 18, 2022 and changed their manufacturing process to add optical scan confirmation of the rivet head formation on July 1, 2022. Containment efforts were initiated at GM’s assembly plant on 25 May 2022, GM said in the filing. GM said is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to this safety defect.
Chronology
- On May 14, 2022, a GM dealership received a customer report of a third-row seatbelt buckle assembly that separated in a 2021 Chevrolet Suburban.
- GM’s District Service Manager submitted the issue to GM’s Speak Up For Safety program on May 18, 2022.
- GM opened a formal investigation on May 31, 2022.
- GM’s field data analysis identified seven additional field reports potentially related to the safety defect.
- Those reports were received by GM between October 2020 and June 2022.
- GM’s investigation determined that operators at the seatbelt buckle assembly supplier’s manufacturing plant may have not properly followed manufacturing processes and inadvertently missed the rivet forming operation.
- On July 11, 2022, GM’s investigator met with ZF to determine the scope of potentially affected parts.
- On August 4, 2022, GM’s Safety Field Action Decision Authority (SFADA) decided to conduct a safety recall.
Dealers will inspect the rivet head formation on both the left and right side third-row seat belt buckle assemblies and replace them as necessary, free of charge as required by US regulations. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed September 26, 2022.
Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM’s number for this recall is N222372380. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
GM Recalls 500,000 2021-22 SUVs for Bad Seat Belts
General Motors is recalling 2021-2022 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with third-row seats. The safety defect covers 2021-2022 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with third-row seats. These six product lines, of course, are among the most popular and profitable SUVs sold in North America.
“The rivet that retains the buckle to the mounting bracket in the left- or right-side third-row seat belt buckle assembly may have been improperly formed,” was the defect cited in a mandatory NHTSA filing made public today. GM had reports of the problem going back to October of 2020. Workers at GM supplier ZF Occupant Safety Systems manufacturing plant in Mexico may have not properly followed processes and inadvertently missed the rivet forming operation.
ZF initiated containment efforts on May 18, 2022 and changed their manufacturing process to add optical scan confirmation of the rivet head formation on July 1, 2022. Containment efforts were initiated at GM’s assembly plant on 25 May 2022, GM said in the filing. GM said is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to this safety defect.
Chronology
Dealers will inspect the rivet head formation on both the left and right side third-row seat belt buckle assemblies and replace them as necessary, free of charge as required by US regulations. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed September 26, 2022.
Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM’s number for this recall is N222372380. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.