On May 3, 2010, General Motors Co. (GM) announced a safety recall that affects more than 40,000 Chevrolet Corvette sports cars. A defect in the steering column can cause unintentional braking and the activation of the electronic stability control in the vehicles if the steering is repeatedly adjusted by the driver. If this unintentional braking occurs, the sports car may pull to the left or right while in motion.
The defect was discovered in some model year 2005 and 2006 Corvettes with a tilting and telescoping steering wheel. If the steering problem occurs, the message “Service Active Handling System” will appear in the gauge cluster.
GM described the problem as “observable but controllable” in a letter to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, explaining that drivers will be able to keep the car under control with slight steering correction if the unintentional braking occurs.
“The [electronic stability control] system will come back on once the car is turned off and back on again,” said a GM spokesperson.
GM will notify owners if their vehicle is affected by the recall so that repairs can be made. Owners can also contact Chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438 for more information.
Sources:
- http://www.corvetteblog.com/archives/corvette-safety-corvette-recall-announced.html
- http://usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/cars-trucks/daily-news/100504-Recall-2005-2006-Chevrolet-Corvette/