Half a million new replacement ignition switches had been ordered by General Motors almost two months before the carmaker disclosed the safety issues to federal safety regulators.
The move is in line with the carmaker's new round of recalls that involve more cars. The current number of affected vehicles has already reached millions.
According to sources, the carmaker placed an "urgent" order for replacement switches totaling 500,000 in order to fix issues with the Chevrolet Cobalt and other small cars. The job order was finalized on Dec. 18, 2013 following the meeting of the company's senior executives.
Details of the order were said to be in the form of email exchanges between a GM contract worker and Delphi Automotive, the company's supplier of ignition switches. The recall was announced by GM in February this year.
Based on the emails, Delphi was asked to execute an aggressive plan of action that prompted the supplier to produce and ship the parts on a tight deadline. Delphi, on its part, declined to give comment on the emails. However, the parts maker was asked to lift the emails' confidentiality status after being questioned by Texas attorney Bob Hilliard on the logical basis in designating the emails as confidential material.
"This is simply mind-blowing in its raw evilness," said lead counsel for the personal injury and wrongful death plaintiffs Bob Hilliard in the Federal Multi District Litigation against General Motors. "GM should have notified its customers immediately to take all weight off of their key chains. By the time GM actually ordered these parts, it had to have already spent months making the decision to place the order."
General Motors was criticized for having to wait 11 years before it finally began issuing a recall of millions of vehicles that were said to have faulty ignition switches. Such issues were pointed out as being linked to a number of fatalities. At least 61 of these claims have been eligible for compensation, which included 30 deaths and 31 injuries.
In early February, the company recalled almost 780,000 compact cars of users from North America for issues on the ignition. The affected vehicles are the Chevrolet Cobalt from 2005 to 2007 and the Pontiac G5 from 2007.
The company is set to expand its recall to cover model years 2003 to 2007 and correct the same issues with the ignition switch. The switch being questioned has the tendency to slip out of position, which could stall the vehicle and disable the air bags.
A federal judge based in Manhattan has scheduled the first consolidated litigation against GM on Jan. 11, 2016. The charges are said to be based on the company's involvement in several safety issues, which include the faulty ignition switch.
