Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx told two U.S. Senators that his department would not force GM to issue a park-it-now order for 2.6 million recalled vehicles.
Despite the persistent efforts of two U.S. Senators, the federal government will not force General Motors to issue a “park-it-now” order for the 2.6 million small cars subject to recall for faulty ignition switches.
“Such an action is not necessary at this time,” said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx in letters to Senators Edward Markey (D., Mass.) and Richard Blumenthal (D., Conn.). The two had asked last month for that warning.
It marked the second time in two months that GM has dodged an order to park the vehicles immediately. A federal judge in Texas denied a request in April for an emergency order that GM tell owners to quit driving the cars, saying that only the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) had the power to issue such a mandate.
The ignition switches that can unexpectedly move out of the “run” position, shutting off the engine and disabling airbags, are linked by GM to 32 accidents and 13 deaths in the U.S. and Canada.
Foxx noted that the both NHTSA and GM have performed “extraordinary tests” to ensure that GM’s recommendation of using only the key in the ignition while driving makes the vehicles safe. In the meantime, GM and its supplier, Delphi Corp., have been scrambling to get the replacement parts to dealers so they can begin making the repairs.
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The recall was initially issued on January 31, but it was expanded twice as GM discovered it couldn’t determine what vehicles had the original ignition and what vehicles had an updated version that would be safer so the company elected to recall every vehicle.
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The action seemed to begin an avalanche of recalls. In addition to the 2.6 million vehicles affected by faulty ignition switch recall, the maker has recalled nearly 2.4 million other vehicles for problems ranging from power steering issues to gas tanks that give faulty readings.
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Fortunately for the automakers, the recalls appeared to have no affect on its sales last month. Overall, GM posted a 7% increase on a year-over-year basis.