# NHTSA vehicle safety complaint



## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

I'll add my experience, but know this. The NHTSA did find VW lied about it's high rate of HPFP failures causing very costly repairs, but then did not order any recall, because they did not find an example where such a failure caused an accident! So, to bolster this case, we need to find people who have had a clutch fail that got into an accident as a result. Sadly that is what it has come to. I filed a complaint about the stupid bright reverse camera display that will not dim at night, and sometimes the display stays bright on the 7" MyLink, that is a clear safety issue as it affect visability.. and yet I do not think anything has happened on that one, and there has been no fix from GM. I use gravity to back into my driveway to avoid being blinded when parking at night. I'm lucky to have a hill where I can do that, but it should not blind me and destroy night vision to use the reverse gear at night, and yet it does.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

From the site: "NOTE: When describing what happened with your vehicle, tell us specifically if the vehicle was stationary, in motion, on a city street or a highway, turning, braking, etc. Describe the fault or problem that created the unsafe condition. If you know, state the component part or system that you believe may be the cause of the safety risk. If you are uncertain, simply state UNKNOWN and provide your best assessment of the incident and cause in your description. If you have other information - repair invoices, police accident reports, insurance claim forms, etc. - scan them electronically and upload them along with your complaint. If your complaint is about a recall and you have the recall number available, please provide it. Additionally, if you later obtain information and evidence related to your complaint, please retain it for at least five years, in the event that we contact you for further information. " Here is my write up, I tried to stress the potential safety aspect of a clutch failure: "With only 12,100 miles on the vehicle, the dual mass flywheel and clutch suddenly failed upon a false start and then made the vehicle unsafe to drive. Repairs required a new flywheel and a clutch hydraulic component replacement. The failure appeared to happen quicly with the false start while parked, but subsequent driving on the highway the clutch was unreliable and caused an unsafe condition where the vehicle could stall in traffic. I was able to limp into the dealership for repairs, because it was a short drive from where the failure had occured. "


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

MRO1791 said:


> So, to bolster this case, we need to find people who have had a clutch fail that got into an accident as a result.


A bigger lurking issue (my opinion) is that the Opel/Vauxhall safety recall in the EU/UK was because of braking issues. The recall campaign states that debris from the slave cylinder was shedding into the hydraulic oil that is shared with the clutch and brakes. The problem caused is that gentle application of the brakes did nothing because of some hydraulic leak in the brake system (don't know where, maybe the master cylinder) but if you gave a firm or panic application of the brake pedal they would function normally. The recall is two steps:
1. The brake and clutch fluid is drained and replaced.
2. When parts are available at the dealership, the car is in the shop for 2 days to replace the slave cylinder, hydraulic hose and connectors, master cylinder, and ABS controller module.

Opel/Vauxhall seem to think that the debris in the hydraulic system can negatively impact the ABS controller module. That's scary that they are recalled in the EU/UK but not in the USA.

When I talked about this recall with the dealership service manager that handled my car, he wondered why that was a safety recall in the EU/UK but not here. I had to remind him: HAVE YOU SEEN WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE USA IN THE LAST FOUR YEARS?! The EU/UK actually has functioning government agencies looking out for the health and welfare of their population. The USA is a third-world dump of a country with a government that doesn't really function right now.


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

MRO1791 said:


> I filed a complaint about the stupid bright reverse camera display that will not dim at night, and sometimes the display stays bright on the 7" MyLink, that is a clear safety issue as it affect visability..


My car does/did that from time to time. I'd put it in reverse and everything was like FULL BRIGHTNESS. Then, a couple of times the entire dash and display was turned up to maximum. I'd turn the car off and restart and it went away.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Barry Allen said:


> A bigger lurking issue (my opinion) is that the Opel/Vauxhall safety recall in the EU/UK was because of braking issues. The recall campaign states that debris from the slave cylinder was shedding into the hydraulic oil that is shared with the clutch and brakes. The problem caused is that gentle application of the brakes did nothing because of some hydraulic leak in the brake system (don't know where, maybe the master cylinder) but if you gave a firm or panic application of the brake pedal they would function normally. The recall is two steps:
> 1. The brake and clutch fluid is drained and replaced.
> 2. When parts are available at the dealership, the car is in the shop for 2 days to replace the slave cylinder, hydraulic hose and connectors, master cylinder, and ABS controller module.
> 
> ...


Great points, and my servicing dealership made it a point to say that all the clutch hydraulic parts were updated part numbers. GM knows it's an issue, but they also know low number of cars, and thus low number of crashes, thus easy to aviod a recall in the US. Sad, but that seems to be the reality of the situation.


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

MRO1791 said:


> Great points, and my servicing dealership made it a point to say that all the clutch hydraulic parts were updated part numbers. GM knows it's an issue, but they also know low number of cars, and thus low number of crashes, thus easy to aviod a recall in the US. Sad, but that seems to be the reality of the situation.


Vauxhall has a link to the recall on their website: Astra K Recall | Vauxhall

Opel has emailed the following in response to my inquiry:

*It does seem, from your description and from the information I got from a very quick search regarding the Cruze, that the issue is similar to that covered by a safety recall launched in Europe. The recall on Astra addressed a condition where the clutch pedal would stay on the floor once depressed to change gear.*
_*
Components of the clutch and brake hydraulic systems required replacement due to contamination of the fluid which, in turn, could affect the master cylinder, slave cylinder, pipework and brake ABS control modulator. However, please understand that we cannot release the requested documents as they are specific to Opel and Vauxhall vehicles and are intended for internal use only.
*_
*The Chevrolet Cruze is not released here in Ireland and we are unable to confirm any similarities it may have with the Opel Astra, but there certainly do seem to be symptoms common to both models.*

I've attached the EU recall document here.


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## Snipesy (Dec 7, 2015)

MRO1791 said:


> Great points, and my servicing dealership made it a point to say that all the clutch hydraulic parts were updated part numbers. GM knows it's an issue, but they also know low number of cars, and thus low number of crashes, thus easy to aviod a recall in the US. Sad, but that seems to be the reality of the situation.


As a counterpoint, you would be paying a lot more if these issues were recall worthy.

While yes the car maker, software developer, toy maker, phone maker, etc. has an obligation to not sell ticking time bonds.... That’s about where it ends.

You want continued service. Lease it. But no one leases outside factory warranty. And if they do.... Run, do not walk, to the nearest exit.


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

Snipesy said:


> As a counterpoint, you would be paying a lot more if these issues were recall worthy.
> 
> While yes the car maker, software developer, toy maker, phone maker, etc. has an obligation to not sell ticking time bonds.... That’s about where it ends.


Well, you see, we have government agencies that require companies to see safe products. That literally includes the recall process when something is unsafe.

Opel/Vauxhall don't seem to have any problems recalling their cars for rework to fix a safety issue. No owner of those cars is being charged more (because it is a safety recall).


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Snipesy said:


> As a counterpoint, you would be paying a lot more if these issues were recall worthy.
> 
> While yes the car maker, software developer, toy maker, phone maker, etc. has an obligation to not sell ticking time bonds.... That’s about where it ends.
> 
> You want continued service. Lease it. But no one leases outside factory warranty. And if they do.... Run, do not walk, to the nearest exit.


That is a valid point, but the Cruze was very affordable due to its high MPG and helping GM meet CAFE standards, as it is I'd be they were lucky if they broke even, and not shocked at all if they lost money selling the Cruze. FCA gave up trying and decided to pay EPA fines, and/or Tesla for CAFE standard offsets.. because making cars at a loss is just not good business, and they make money on the larger SUV and Trucks, which are quite over-priced to cover that cost. By the shear economic reality of CAFE regulations and the market, you get a cheaper small high MPG car, subsidized by the guy buying a gas guzzler. FCA's CEO once very bluntly explaining on the Fiat 500E that he was losing money on that car, just to meet the CA requirements, and to be able to sell cars that make money in that state, so every person buying a 500E was being subsidized by people buying SUVs and trucks, literally. This is also true for Tesla, since the make money by other OEMs buying offsets from them, the cost of the Tesla is partly covered by that process. It's a bizarre influence on the market.


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## Snipesy (Dec 7, 2015)

MRO1791 said:


> That is a valid point, but the Cruze was very affordable due to its high MPG and helping GM meet CAFE standards, as it is I'd be they were lucky if they broke even, and not shocked at all if they lost money selling the Cruze. FCA gave up trying and decided to pay EPA fines, and/or Tesla for CAFE standard offsets.. because making cars at a loss is just not good business, and they make money on the larger SUV and Trucks, which are quite over-priced to cover that cost. By the shear economic reality of CAFE regulations and the market, you get a cheaper small high MPG car, subsidized by the guy buying a gas guzzler. FCA's CEO once very bluntly explaining on the Fiat 500E that he was losing money on that car, just to meet the CA requirements, and to be able to sell cars that make money in that state, so every person buying a 500E was being subsidized by people buying SUVs and trucks, literally. This is also true for Tesla, since the make money by other OEMs buying offsets from them, the cost of the Tesla is partly covered by that process. It's a bizarre influence on the market.


Another issue. But long term support is super expensive. 10 year support would easily double the cost of the Cruze. Those are resources that could otherwise be spent on newer cars. Which also means people will be buying less new cars which means higher prices.... Which means more resources on older stuff.... Which again means higher prices.


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## MRO1791 (Sep 2, 2016)

Snipesy said:


> Another issue. But long term support is super expensive. 10 year support would easily double the cost of the Cruze. Those are resources that could otherwise be spent on newer cars. Which also means people will be buying less new cars which means higher prices.... Which means more resources on older stuff.... Which again means higher prices.


The consistent part: higher prices.. which in turn also drives higher used car prices, which also drives people to keep cars longer, which cycles back to higher prices.. a vicious cycle indeed. The irony is the higher prices are almost completely on the larger more in demand vehicles. Adjusted for inflation, my Gen 2 Cruzes, nicely equipped, were similar in cost as my new 1996 SL base model Saturn sedan. That only happens due to the CAFE standards forcing OEMs to almost give away the high MPG cars so they can sell the profitable gas guzzlers that people are willing to pay stupid money for.


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## Barry Allen (Apr 18, 2018)

MRO1791 said:


> they lost money selling the Cruze


WOW, you sound like every car salesman I've ever dealt with! 

"We lost money selling you this car." 

[insert animated Jennifer Lawerence OKsure.gif]


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