Government Motors puts its accelerator in its mouth
posted at 9:48 am on March 2, 2010 by MadisonConservative
Hey, remember how the US government went after Toyota for their terrible, horrible, no-good very bad recalls?
General Motors (GM) is recalling 1.3 million small cars in North America because of a power steering problem that has been linked to 14 crashes.
The firm said four models were affected – the Chevrolet Cobalt, Pontiac G5, Pontiac Pursuit and Pontiac 4.
It said the fault meant that at low speeds “greater steering effort may be required”, but that the cars could still be “safely controlled”.
Greater steering effort? Absolutely unacceptable. How can you expect drivers to be responsive while driving? That would be like expecting drivers to replace crappy floor mats that bunch up behind pedals. Oh, and here’s the kicker:
GM blamed the fault on a supplier partially owned by Toyota.
GM vice-chairman Bob Lutz told the BBC at the Geneva Motor show: “This is a case where, yes, we would blame a partially Toyota-owned supplier.”
Of course. After all, where would the government-owned car company be if it admitted fault?
Blowback
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I bet that “Toyota owned” supplier is really just a company that also supplies parts to Toyota.
Which would make this statement true:
uknowmorethanme on March 2, 2010 at 10:25 AM
Great post Madison.
Quite ironic.
Toyota has a problem, has to recall some autos, and blame lies with Toyota, not the supplier.
GM has a problem, has to recall some autos, and blame lies with the supplier, not GM.
Back in the handout line?
rukiddingme on March 2, 2010 at 10:26 AM
Like the Soviet Union of old … You can’t believe a thing they say anymore.
tarpon on March 2, 2010 at 11:01 AM
What the heck kind of problem can they have with power steering that makes it OK at low speeds and hard to turn at higher speeds? Once you are moving, the steering gets easier. I’ve moved enough cars with bad pumps or broken belts to know that much.
Unless it has to do with that nutty variable assist system GM has been using for a few years. Supposed to even out the amount of assist needed for different speeds.
JamesLee on March 2, 2010 at 11:39 AM
It was also noted that the vehicles in question came with accessories called ‘tires’ that were also supplied by companies that provide these same items to Toyota. So it’s obviously all Toyota’s fault.
jon1979 on March 2, 2010 at 11:54 AM
Trust me; I’m from the government!
Hey! Would I lie to you? Would I ever lie to you?
Ace ODale on March 2, 2010 at 11:56 AM
and the greatest thig of all GM is a large stockholder in toyota
larry harris on March 2, 2010 at 2:56 PM
Its not just that the company sells to Toyota, they Toyota actually has ownership % in it. As part of Toyota’s purchasing process, they do buy stakes in some key suppliers to garner mostly guaranteed supplies (very unlikely a company will sign exclusive w/ GM, etc. if Toyota sits on the board).
kerncon on March 2, 2010 at 3:22 PM
When will the owners of GM be forced to testify to Congress about this terrible situation??!?
Obama should be booked for the hotseat post haste!
Midas on March 2, 2010 at 5:24 PM
Let’s see if their will be congressional hearings about government motors.
Dhuka on March 2, 2010 at 7:11 PM
At some point very soon, we have to buy another car. I think it will be a Ford or Honda, because I don’t trust government entities to make rational business decisions. As for Toyota, they kinda shot themselves in the foot with their behavior about the acceleration problems.
We live in interesting times.
alice on March 5, 2010 at 1:47 PM