General Motors officials continue efforts to navigate the fallout from its delayed recall of 1.6-million vehicles with faulty ignition switches. The flaw, which has been linked to 31 crashes and 12 deaths, has been traced to vehicles made as long ago as 2001.It was the subject of communications between GM and the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administrationas far back as 2007. However, the automaker did not issue a recall of the vehicles until late January of this year. That was also the first time that CEO Mary Barra says she was made aware of the issue.
On Tuesday, Barra pledged that such an episode “never happens again” and took full responsibility for the work going forward. In the meantime, General Motors has been named in at least four lawsuits involving the defect and Congressional lawmakers are planning an inquiry.
To review some of the latest developments, Current State talked with Detroit Free Press reporter Alisa Priddle, who has been writing about the episode. Priddle says dealing with this problem is a top priority for Barra.