Faulty Tabs in GM Ignition Switches being Replaced

 General Motors is replacing 542 ignition switch kits with a faulty tab, the company announced on Wednesday. None of these replacement parts, however, will affect the 2.6 million cars recalled over a faulty ignition switch. GM said that the faulty tabs will also receive an additional visual inspection at a Delphi Automotive plant in Mexico where the parts were manufactured.

GM spokesman Alan Adler said that some parts built on July 1^st had broken tabs that were part of the anti-theft system, The Detroit News reports. The company states that the tabs do not affect vehicle safety. A New York state auto dealer said that GM contacted him and told him not to install two of 12 versions of kits it received to fix the faulty ignition switches and ignition lock cylinders. The parts do not meet the company’s specifications, the dealer said.The ignition switch and ignition lock cylinder were included in the kits sent to dealers.

Only some of the replacement parts made it to dealers, according to The Detroit News. None were used to fix the 2.6 million vehicles recalled worldwide due to a potentially-fatal faulty ignition switch. The majority of the cars, 2.19 million, were recalled in the United States. The problem is that the ignition switch can switch out of the “run” position into the “accessory” position while driving, cutting access to features such as power steering, power brakes and air bags. GM is aware of at least 13 deaths and 54 crashes related to the defect. As of June 25^th, the automaker’s recall completion rate is up from over 296,000 repairs.

A compensation fund has been created for the families of victims who died as a result of the ignition switch defect. Kenneth R.. Feinberg, a compensation expert hired by GM, said that these families are entitled to at least $1 million with no cap.