The automatic transmission indicator can be in park even if the transmission is in neutral.
Chevrolet is recalling more than 200,000 Cruze compact cars for two safety related defects caused by improper manufacturing that can result in Cruze models rolling away while in park or the driver losing control of the steering.
The latest Cruze recalls follows one in April also for a potentially deadly steering defect where the steering wheel could detach from the steering column leaving the driver helpless. (Chevrolet Recalls Cruze for “Steering Wheel Detachment”)
Some Cruzes have been assembled with the transmission shift linkage improperly installed. The driver can remove the key even though the transmission is not actually in park and the car could roll away. The other Cruze defect comes about from an improperly installed bolt that attaches the steering shaft to the steering gear. Loss of steering is possible.
Cruze owners may contact Chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com about Chevrolet safety recall number 11094. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov for information about NHTSA campaign numbers 11V270 and 11V273.
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, publisher (kzhw@aol.com), 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.
Zino is at home on test tracks, knows his way around U.S. Congressional hearing rooms, auto company headquarters, plant floors, as well as industry research and development labs where the real mobility work is done. He can quote from court decisions, refer to instrumented road tests, analyze financial results, and profile executive personalities and corporate cultures.
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 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.
