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   From: failed-bailout@barackobama.com   
      
   General Motors announced on Saturday morning that it was   
   recalling 490,000 trucks and 172,000 compact cars, meaning the   
   automaker has now recalled about 4.8 million vehicles in the   
   United States during the first three months of the year. That is   
   about six times the number of vehicles it recalled in all of   
   2013.   
      
   This year’s recalls involve many of G.M.’s most popular and best-   
   known models.   
      
   The recall announced on Saturday morning covers the 2014   
   Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 pickups, as well as   
   the 2015 Chevrolet Suburban and Tahoe and the GMC Yukon and   
   Yukon XL with six-speed automatic transmissions. G.M. said a   
   loose fitting for the transmission’s oil cooler line could allow   
   oil leaks and possibly lead to fires. The automaker said it was   
   aware of three fires but no injuries linked to the defect, and   
   officials decided to recall the vehicles within a week of   
   learning of the problem, said Alan Adler, a G.M. spokesman.   
      
   The compact cars being recalled are the 2013-14 Cruze models   
   with 1.4 liter four-cylinder engines. G.M. said the right-front   
   axle half-shaft could break, cutting power to the front wheels,   
   although the engine would continue to run and the steering and   
   brakes would still function. The company said it was aware of   
   several dozen episodes but was not aware of any crashes or   
   injuries related to the problem.   
      
   This year started well for General Motors. It had emerged from   
   bankruptcy and had a new chief executive, Mary T. Barra, the   
   first woman to become the head of a major automaker. It had   
   introduced a series of well-received vehicles, including from   
   the Cadillac CTS and the Chevrolet Silverado.   
      
   But then came seven major recalls, the most prominent one   
   involving a defect with the ignition switch on the company’s   
   compact cars, including the Chevrolet Cobalt, that has been   
   linked to 13 deaths. The automaker expanded that recall on   
   Friday when it added about 971,000 of the compact cars from   
   later model years, including about 824,000 in the United States.   
   The wider recall was needed, G.M. said, to find about 90,000   
   defective ignition switches installed as replacement parts on   
   the newer vehicles.   
      
   The expanded recall now includes six models: 2005-10 Cobalts,   
   2006-10 Pontiac Solstices, 2007-10 Pontiac G5s and Saturn Skys,   
   2006-11 Chevrolet HHRs and 2003-7 Saturn Ions.   
      
   Having so many recalls, particularly in such a short period of   
   time, is a problem for General Motors, which is still trying   
   rebuild its reputation and is more vulnerable than an automaker   
   like Toyota, said Kevin Lane Keller, a professor of marketing at   
   Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business.   
      
   “One of the advantages of having a strong brand is that it helps   
   you weather a crisis more easily,” he said.   
      
   G.M. has recalled about 2.5 million of its small cars, including   
   2.2 million in the United States. The automaker has acknowledged   
   that it knew about the defective ignition switches for more than   
   a decade but did not recall the vehicles. That has prompted   
   governmental investigations, including a congressional inquiry   
   that will start on Tuesday with Ms. Barra scheduled to testify.   
      
   On Friday, the automaker also said it was aware of a 13th death   
   related to the faulty ignition switches. It said the crash   
   involved a 2007 Cobalt and occurred in Quebec, Canada.   
      
   G.M. recalled about 758,000 vehicles in the United States in   
   2013, ninth among automakers, according to the National Highway   
   Traffic Safety Administration. Toyota was first, with about 5.3   
   million vehicles, followed by Chrysler with 4.7 million and   
   Honda with almost 2.8 million.   
      
   http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/30/business/total-of-gm-vehicle-   
   recalls-in-2014-hits-4-8-million.html?hpw&rref=automobiles&_r=0   
      
             
      
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