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Category Archives: quality
GM Recalls 1.14 Million V8 Engines for Failures and Fires
General Motors is recalling more than a million V8 engines used in 2021 – 2024 model year Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Suburban, and Tahoe, and GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles equipped with the 6.2L V8 gas engine (RPO L87). The connecting rod and/or crankshaft engine components in these vehicles may have manufacturing defects that can lead to engine damage and engine failure. This safety defect recall follows years of GM investigating the problem and concluding that no problem existed. However, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) continued its investigation based on persistent complaints from users, NHTSA had an active engineering analysis open when GM made the recall decision.
In the required safety defect recall filing – only some of it was made public by NHTSA, GM said “Engine teardown analysis identified two primary root causes, both of which are attributable to supplier manufacturing and quality issues: (1) rod-bearing damage from sediment on connecting rods and crankshaft-oil galleries; and (2) out of specification crankshaft dimensions and surface finish.” The supplier will remain publicly unknown until all the documents are made public, which is likely next Monday in AutoInformed’s experience. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, litigation, manufacturing, news analysis, quality, recalls
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, GM 6.2-liter L87 V8 engine failure recall, GM recall number N252494000, Ken Zino, NHTSA Campaign 25V274 or 24V-274, X @KenAutoinformed
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Seat Belt and Electrical Recalls from Mercedes-Benz USA
Mercedes-Benz USA is recalling a previous recall for fuse boxes, electronic stability control programming and driver’s side seat belt covers, according to documents made public this morning by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. First, an incorrect fuse box that was not designed for the vehicle may have been installed. Second, the vehicle’s electronic stability program (ESP) may display an incorrect warning light during an ESP system failure. Third, the driver-side seat belt cover may not be properly installed on the seat belt tensioner, which can cause the seat belt anchor to come loose.
All told ~6700 vehicles are affected. NHTSA recall campaigns are 25V255 or 25V-255, 25V254 or 25V-254, 25V253 or 25V-253. Planned owner notification dates are not until June 2025. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, electronics, engineering, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety, software recalls
Tagged 25V253 or 25V-253, 25V254 or 25V-254, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Bosch Engineering GmbH, Ken Zino, mbusa, Mercedes-Benz NHTSA recall campaigns 25V255 or 25V-255, Mercedes-Benz recalls in the United States, Mercedes-Benz USA, X @KenAutoinformed
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Tesla Tanking as Musk Leaves DOGE
Tesla said late yesterday that 2025 profits during Q1 plunged from $1.39 billion to $409 million. This was a drastic drop from analyst guess-timates as the Elon Musk’s DOGE chainsaw kicked back on the company and slashed revenue from $21.3 billion to $19.3 billion. Amidst the carnage of lower customer deliveries, lower margins and lower profits, Elon Musk also claimed that he was leaving DOGE behind as his major work there was finished.
“So at Tesla, we’ve gone through many, many of crisis over the years and actually been through many near death experiences. Like, we probably were on the ragged edge of death at least on maybe a dozen times,” Musk claimed. “This is not one of those times.” Continue reading
Posted in auto news, electric vehicles, financial results, news analysis, quality, results, sales, Trump Truth Tests
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, DOGE, elon musk, Ken Zino, Tesla Q1 2025 Financial Results, X @KenAutoinformed
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Audi Airbag Recall – RS E-TRON GT and E-TRON GT
Audi, part of Volkswagen Group of America, is recalling ~4000 2022-2023 model year RS E-TRON GT and E-TRON GT vehicles. The passenger occupant detection system (PODS) may experience a fault in the wiring and deactivate the front passenger air bag when the seat is occupied.
“A manufacturing error may cause the passenger occupant detection system(PODS) to detect a malfunction and switch off the passenger airbag even though the seat may be occupied. As designed, a warning light in the instrument panel comes on together with an acoustic warning sound and an error message is displayed in the instrument cluster. The airbag indicator light shows Passenger Airbag OFF,” Audi said in the mandatory safety recall filing made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Continue reading
Ford Recalls Expedition and Navigator SUVs for Bad Brakes
Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is recalling ~124,000 model year 2017-2018 F-150, Expedition, and Lincoln Navigator SUVs. The brake master cylinder may allow brake fluid to leak from the front wheel circuit into the brake booster. Customer complaints to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration prompted this latest expansion of a previous safety defect recall.
“In some of the affected vehicles, a seal in the rear of the brake master cylinder may become compromised, allowing brake fluid to leak into the brake booster. If the brake fluid reservoir is depleted below a predetermined level, the driver will be alerted that brake system service is required by a combination of an audible chime, a full screen message center alert, and illumination of the red brake warning indicator,” Ford said in the mandatory safety defect recall notification made public this morning by NHTSA. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, manufacturing, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Ford Expedition brake recalls, Ford Expedition recalls, Ford Motor brake recall 25S37, Ford Motor recall, Ken Zino, Lincoln Navigator brake recalls, NHTSA recall 25V236 or 25V-236, X @KenAutoinformed
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Porsche Taycan Hybrid Airbag Recall
Porsche Cars North America is recalling ~10,000 2022-2023 model year Taycan hybrid EVs. An occupant classification system error may deactivate the front-passenger air bag.
“The occupant classification system for automatic airbag activation/deactivation in the front passenger seat can trigger a fail-safe mode due to a manufacturing error, which deactivates the airbag in the front passenger seat,” Porsche said in the mandatory recall filing made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this morning. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, manufacturing, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Ken Zino, Lear Corporation recalls, NHTSA Porsche Taycan recall 25V221 or 25V-221, Porsche Taycan recall ASA2, X @KenAutoinformed
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Blank Screen – Audi Instrument Panel Software Recalls
Audi (Volkswagen Group of America) is recalling more than 44,000 model year 2021 SQ8, A6 SEDAN, A7, A8, Q7, Q8, RS6 Avant, RS7, RSQ8, S6 SEDAN, S7, S8, A6 Allroad, and SQ7 vehicles. Because of a software error, the instrument panel display may fail.
“A vehicle’s virtual cockpit instrument cluster may shut down because of detection of an internal fault. When this occurs the engine speed (RPM), vehicle speed and gear/mode indicators will not be displayed. In addition to this, other information, such as time, date and mileage are also not displayed,” Audi said in the mandatory filing made public this morning by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Continue reading
Posted in customer satisfaction, manufacturing, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety, software recalls
Tagged 2021 A6 Sedan A7 A8 Sedan recalls, Audi recall 90VC, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Ken Zino, NHTSA Recall Number 25V201 or 25V-201, Q7and Q8recalls, Robert Bosch GmbH recalls, RS6 Avant recalls, RS7 and RSQ8 recalls, S6 Sedan recalls, S7 S8 A6 Allroad and SQ7 recalls, X @KenAutoinformed
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BMW North America Recalls 2025 xDrive Models
BMW of North America is recalling more than 4000 model year 2025 330i, 330i xDrive, 530i, 530i xDrive, 4 Series Coupe (430i, 430i xDrive), 4 Series Convertible (430i, 430i xDrive), 4 Series Gran Coupe (430i, 430i xDrive) and X3 30 xDrive vehicles. The electrical connection between the Chinese-made starter-generator and battery may come loose. The supplier is Shanghai Valeo Auto-Elec System Company.
“This safety recall involves the power connector component of the starter- generator which may not have been produced by the supplier according to specifications. During the supplier production process, a gap could form at the connector location. If a gap exists, this could cause a loose connection between the connector and the positive battery cable (or wiring harness). As a result, resistive heating could start to occur,” BMW said in the required safety defect recall filing made public this morning by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, electric vehicles, electronics, manufacturing, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, BMW of North America recalls, BMW xDrive recalls, Ken Zino, NHTSA 25V-202 or 25V202, Shanghai Valeo Auto-Elec System Company recalls, X @KenAutoinformed
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More Ford Motor Recalls – Fires, Power Loss, Seat Belts
Numerous Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) recalls covering a wide variety of serious Ford and Lincoln brand safety defects were publicly released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this morning. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, electronics, engineering, manufacturing, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety, software recalls
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Expedition or Navigator recall25S31 or NHTSA 24V099 or 24V-099, Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator Recalls 25S30 or NHTSA 24V099 or 24V-099, Ford Transit recall 25S32 or NHTSA 25V196 or 25V-196, Ken Zino, NHTSA 25V198 or 25V-198, X @KenAutoinformed
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Annals of Marketing – Rolls-Royce Phantom Cherry Blossom
Cherry blossoms are celebrated in the centuries-old Japanese tradition of “Hanami” or ‘”flower viewing.” During Hanami, families and friends gather beneath the delicate pink blooms of cherry trees for picnics and celebrations, enjoying the transient beauty of the season, Rolls Royce noted today. A client in Japan wished to capture their cherished Hanami memories, spanning childhood and parenthood. Thus is the backstory of the latest custom or bespoke Phantom Cherry Blossom. This is a one-of-one Phantom commission said to be inspired by the fleeting beauty of the Sakura blooms and a Japanese client’s formative memories of this natural spectacle. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, design and styling, milestones, mobility company, people, quality, shows and events
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Bespoke Design at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars, Ken Zino, Martina Starke, offset tatami stitch, Rolls-Royce Phantom Cherry Blossom, X @KenAutoinformed
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Tesla Airbag recalls on Model S and X Vehicles
Tesla is recalling a small number of 2021-2024 model-year S and 2021-2025 X vehicles. An air bag with the incorrect horn pad from TRW Steering Wheel Systems de Chihuahua, Mexico may have been installed, preventing the horn from sounding.
“On affected vehicles, a service operator may have installed an airbag with a non-mechanical horn pad in a mechanical steering wheel or an airbag with a mechanical horn pad in a non-mechanical steering wheel, resulting in a loss of horn functionality. Airbag functionality is unaffected,” Tesla said in the mandatory safety defect filing made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this morning. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, manufacturing, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Ken Zino, NHTSA Tesla Recall 25V172 or 25V-172, Tesal Models S and X recalls SB-25-20-001., X @KenAutoinformed
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Nissan and Infiniti Brake Caliper Failure Recalls
Nissan North America is recalling 1430 model year 2025 Murano, Pathfinder, and Infiniti QX60 vehicles. One or both front brake-caliper assemblies from Hitachi Astemo Mexico may have reduced strength and could break. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 135, “Light Vehicle Brake Systems.” Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, manufacturing, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 135, Hitachi Astemo Mexico caliper recall, Infiniti QX60 recalls, Ken Zino, Nissan brake caliper recalls PD137 and PD138, Nissan North America recalls, X @KenAutoinformed
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Ford Recalls Improperly Fixed Explorer Recalls
Explorer vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under NHTSA recall numbers 23V-199 or 22V-255. The rear axle horizontal mounting bolt may fracture and cause the driveshaft to disconnect. This is another Ford Motor recall caused by software errors and its inability to ascertain if the prior recall was implemented correctly. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, electronics, engineering, news analysis, quality, recalls, safety, software recalls
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Ford Motor Recalls 23S16 and 22S27, Ken Zino, NHTSA recall 25V166 or 25V-166, Powertrain Control Module or PCM, software, X @KenAutoinformed
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Ford Recalls Previous Bronco and Escape Fire Recalls
Ford Motor Company (NYSE: Ford) is recalling ~34,000 model-year 2020-2022 Escape and 2021-2023 Bronco Sport vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under NHTSA recall numbers 22V-859 or 24V-187. A fuel injector may crack and leak fuel inside the engine compartment risking a fire. It’s the latest in a growing series of Ford recalls that were not properly repaired the first time because of software programming errors, requiring a recall of the recall, so to speak. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, electronics, engineering, news analysis, quality, recalls, software recalls
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Ford Bronco and Escape fuel injector fire recalls, Ford Bronco and Escape recalls of previous recalls, Ford Recall 25S21, Ken Zino, NHTSA Recall 25V165 or 25V-165, powertrain control module software, X @KenAutoinformed
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Latest Ford Recalls – Bronco SUVs and F-150 Pickups
Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is recalling 2022-2023 model year Bronco SUVs, 2023 F-150 Lightning pickups and 2025 F-150 pickups for The 360-degree view camera; the high-voltage battery pack; and the air bag warning label, respectively. All told ~129,000 Ford products are affected – a relatively small number for the automaker.
“Missing or loose retention nuts on the high voltage battery junction box bus bars in the high voltage battery pack may result in electrical arcing, which can increase the risk of fire. In addition, a ‘Stop Safely Now’ message may occur in the instrument cluster followed by loss of motive power, which can increase the risk of a crash.” Ford said in the mandatory safety defect recall filing mad public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this morning about what appears to be the most serious recall.
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