GM orders sales stopped on some Cadillacs

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

General Motors has told dealers to stop selling some Cadillac models because there is not yet a fix for their defective ignition switches.

The company has halted sales of some models of the Cadillac CTS, according to Reuters.

The CTS was part of a recall effort July 2 that was updated July 8; there was a total of 554,000 vehicles. This recall related to the 2003-2014 CTS and 2004-2006 SRX, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration documents filed by GM.

In this instance, GM reported it was discovered that the recalled vehicles’ engines could be shut off if the driver’s knee bumps the ignition key.

“The order is still in effect for the foreseeable future,” said GM spokesman Alan Adler. “GM engineers are looking at one common solution for all the recalled Cadillacs, but they don’t have it yet.”

The redesigned 2014 CTS eliminates the ignition- switch problem by switching to a push-button start system. However, some older CTS vehicles, including the wagon, were carried over into 2014 and were included in the recall, according to Reuters.

In GM’s report to the NHTSA, the problem with the ignition switch remains the possibility of heavy keys or jarring the vehicle such as bumping the ignition switch or hitting a pothole can move the key out of the run position.

Like with other vehicles recalled by GM, if the key is knocked from the run position, the engine can shut off causing a loss of power steering and prevent the air bags from deploying in a crash, according to the NHTSA.

GM has stated it intends to fix the problem for Cadillac by giving owners a new key with a small hole instead of a slot, which it says makes it more challenging to pull or jar from position.