New GM Recall Addresses Trucks; Dealers Selling Chevy Cruze Again

Recall-weary General Motors issues another callback to fix a potential oil leak in its redesigned large trucks and wants to fix a potentially defective axle on the Chevrolet Cruze that halted sales of the small car last week.

According to GM, dealers can resume selling Cruze after performing an inspection or necessary repairs to the right front axle shaft. The problem potentially affects 171,521 Cruze units from the ’13 and ’14 model years sold in the U.S. and outfitted with a 1.4L turbocharged 4-cyl. engine.

GM Canada will recall 25,806 units of the Cruze to address the issue.

If the Cruze’s half shaft fractures and separates while driving, the vehicle would lose power and coast to a stop, the automaker says in a filing with NHTSA. If a vehicle with a fractured half shaft is parked without the parking brake applied, the vehicle could roll away, the filing says.

The truck recall affects a combined 490,200 units of the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 pickups from the ’14 model year, as well as ’15 models of the Chevy Suburban, Tahoe GMC Yukon and Yukon XL large SUVs sold in the U.S.

The truck recall addresses a transmission oil cooler line in the 6-speed automatic gearbox that may not be securely seated in its fitting. If oil leaks, it could contact a hot surface and catch fire.

GM redesigned both truck lines for ’14 and ’15, and the oil leaks marks the fourth recall for the pickups. GM earlier fixed problems with the pickup’s airbags, head restraints and exhaust.

In the last two months, GM has recalled 4.8 million vehicles. The biggest of those was 2.6 million Chevrolet, Pontiac and Saturn small cars and CUVs for faulty ignition switches linked to 13 deaths and 31 crashes.

The ignition-switch recall has prompted the automaker to step up its safety efforts, including naming a new safety czar. GM CEO Mary Barra will speak later this week before two congressional panels on the issue.

[email protected]