GM Recalls 1.4 Million 1997-2004 Cars for Fire Risk

Today General Motors announced that it was recalling 1.4 million cars due to the risk of a catastrophic fire.  According to ttac.com, the recalled calls are in the following years, makes and models which span most of GM's divisions.

According to Reuters, the affected cars come from the following makes and models:

• 1997-2004 Pontiac Grand Prix
• 2000-2004 Chevrolet Impala
• 1998-1999 Chevrolet Lumina
• 1998-2004 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
• 1998-1999 Oldsmobile Intrigue
• 1997-2004 Buick Regal

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/10/27/us-gm-recall-idUSKCN0SL1PO20151027

These cars are the bread and butter of the buy-here/pay-here lots, and BHPH customers are probably the least likely to take the cars in for recalls. That's unfortunate, because other than their lives, they have the most to lose.  The owners rarely have true full coverage insurance, and a fire loss to their cars will usually be the straw that breaks the financial camel's back.

About a year ago, I saw a Chevrolet Impala that I guessed to be about a 2004 model catch fire while stopped at a busy intersection near my home in Indianapolis.  That car burned to a smoldering heap in the two minutes between the time it started smoking stopped at the light and the time the fire department arrived.  The driver got out safely but if there had been two kids in child seats, there may not have been time to get them out.  I was too far a way to help or even take pictures, but the video below of a Monte Carlo on fire looks very similar to what I saw but the fire I saw spread faster. 

Here's a video of a Chevrolet Impala catching fire during a routine oil change.

For most of these cars, the new recall is not the first recall due to fire risk.  In 2009 there was a recall that was deemed to be so urgent that GM advised owners not to park the vehicles in their garages until the recall work was done.    

If you see dark smoke, or any smoke coming from the hood of your car, immediately stop, get everybody out of the car then call 911. DON'T RAISE THE HOOD.  That will bring more oxygen to the fire and may cause it to flare up.  

If you have a car that caught on fire.  Make sure you report it to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.  https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/VehicleComplaint/.  If your car is destroyed in a car fire that wasn't caused by an accident, talk to a NACA lawyer near you.  Find one at www.naca.net.