The hood may be missing the secondary hood latch?
GM is recalling more than 118,000 model year 2010-2012 Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon pickup trucks because they may be missing the secondary hood latch. As a result, the hood can open unexpectedly during driving and block the driver’s view of the road.
The hood latch supplier, Van-Rob of Tennessee, did not have a quality control process in place that prevented parts from missing a welding station on the apparently unmonitored assembly line. How this problem went undetected since 2009 was not explained in the required filing from GM to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Nevertheless all Colorado and Canyon pickups made from 9 November 2009, through 28 August 2012 are now recalled for failing to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard Number 113, “Hood Latch System.”
General Motors will notify owners and ask them to inspect their vehicle for the presence of a secondary hood latch. Dealers will install secondary hood latches on any affected vehicles, free of charge, as required by U.S. safety regulations. The recall is expected to begin on 17 January 2013.
Owners may contact General Motors at 1-800-458-8006. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 or go to www.safercar.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.
