Don't Piss Down My Back and Tell me It's Raining

On December 31, 2007, my wife and I went car shopping. Hers had become more expensive to keep up than it was worth.

And, it being December 31, we found some pretty good deals. Dealers wanting to get old stuff off the lot before the new year.

She choose a 2006 Chevy Cobalt with very low mileage. Excellent little car with a good MPG for her 1/2 each way commute.

A month or so after she bought it she had it back at the dealer. The car was shaking uncontrolably from the front end when approaching highway speeds (40-50 mph ish). They said they adjusted something or the other (I no longer recall, it was minor) and away she drove.

Mid June it was back at the dealer again for the same symptom. This time they replaced tie rods. And away she drove.

A week later daughter #2, a college Junior at the time and without a ride of her own, borrowed the car to visit her boyfriend in Connecticut for the weekend.

She's driving home late on a Sunday afternoon. The car starts shaking again. She slows down, gets her mom on speakerphone (the kid does NOT like to talk and drive). She's asking her mom what she should do just as the car settles down. She's going about 50 mph, mom still on speakerphone, when suddenly the car starts shaking violently, she starts screaming says she can no longer steer the car, the steering won't work. She's screaming "Mommy! Mommy!"

when the line goes dead.

I got the call from my wife at the gun club after an hour of shooting and having just ordered a beer. Which someone else got to drink.

By the time I got home (5 minutes) a lady that had seen the wreck had called us on her cellphone. She was with the kid who was mostly okay but badly shaken and in a bit of shock. The car was toast.

As it turns out the steering had completely quit, the car spun violently doing several 360s before slamming into a stone wall. Twice. And crumpled and fell apart around her as (I'm told) they build them to do these days (I'll take the heavy gas guzzling all-steel of my truck anyday).

We made a midnight run to Connecticut and spent the next day talking with insurance and 1. finding where in New York they took the car 2. Getting to the wrecking yard 3. cleaning out the car 4. Wondering how in the hell the kid managed to walk away from that.

The insurance company did not assign "blame" to the kid, it was obviously a mechanical malfunction. They tried addressing it with both GM and the dealer, then went so far as to pull the car's equivalent of a black box to see if it could tell them anything.

Nothing.

So, we had an extremely panicky night, nearly lost a daughter who is still afraid to drive to this day (but does so anyway) and are out a car (the insurance paid what was left ont he laon and little more). And no way to redress it.

And then I read the article below. A year and a half later.

Now, in the case of the Toyota recall there may be something a driver can do to help themselves if they find the car accelerating and Pastorius may want to speak more to that. But it seems more than negligent to me that something like The New York Slimes is more interested in trashing Toyota (when there may not actually be a problem) than in educating the public about how to save themselves in this situation. They have their eye more on the sensationalism and maybe destroying a company than on the safety of John Q Public.

But in the case of the Cobalt recall, and my daughter, once you are in that situation there is NOTHING you can do but hang on, hope and pray.

And nor are we seeing the trashing of Government Motors over this, as dangerous or much more so, a situation as the Toyota problem like we did with Toyota.

I think maybe I need to contact my insurance company again.

And maybe my lawyer.

MSNBC

GM recalls 1.3 million cars over steering fault
Power steering problem in Chevys, Pontiacs linked to 14 crashes, 1 injury

updated 5:58 a.m. ET, Tues., March. 2, 2010
DETROIT - General Motors Co is recalling 1.3 million compact cars in North America to address a power steering problem that has been linked to 14 crashes and one injury, the company said on Tuesday.

U.S. safety regulators opened an investigation on Jan. 27 into approximately 905,000 Cobalt models in the United States after receiving more than 1,100 complaints of power steering failures.

The recall covers the 2005-2010 model year Chevrolet Cobalt and 2007-2010 Pontiac G5 in the United States; 2005-2006 Pontiac Pursuit sold in Canada, and the 2005-2006 Pontiac G4 sold in Mexico, GM said in a statement.

GM said it told the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about the voluntary recall on Monday after concluding its own investigation that began in 2009.

GM said the affected vehicles can be still be "safely controlled" but it may require greater steering effort under 15 mph. Drivers will see a warning light and hear a chime if the power steering fails.

"After our in-depth investigation, we found that this is a condition that takes time to develop. It tends to occur in older models out of warranty," GM Vice President of Quality Jamie Hresko said in the statement.

"Recalling these vehicles is the right thing to do for our customers' peace of mind," he said.

GM said it is currently developing a remedy to fix the problem and will notify customers when the plan is finalized.

GM spokesman Alan Adler said Monday it will take time for the automaker to get 1.3 million new power steering motors from the supplier, JTEKT Corp., and GM will notify car owners when the parts are available.

Heightened scrutiny after Toyota recalls
The recall comes at a time of heightened public and regulatory scrutiny over vehicle safety issues in the wake of massive recalls by Toyota Motor Corp.

Toyota global quality control chief Shinichi Sasaki and North American President Yoshimi Inaba are scheduled to appear before a Senate committee on Tuesday for a third hearing on its handling of consumer complaints about sudden acceleration.