General Motors issued a recall of 511,528 Chevrolet Camaros from model years 2010 to 2014 for ignition switch issues.
The ignition switch issues bring to mind the controversial ignition switch defects found in Chevrolet Cobalts that have caused no less than 13 deaths and 54 crashes, and forced GM to recall millions of cars.
GM reported three crashes and four minor injuries related to the ignition issues in the Camaro, but there are no fatalities.
The car manufacturer said that the knee of the driver can bump the key fob while driving, which could accidentally take the ignition lock cylinder away from the "run" position resulting in a "reduction or loss of power" from the car's engine. The bumping of the key fob affects drivers who have the tendency of sitting close to the steering column.
The ignition switch problem for this recall, however, is "not at all related to the Cobalt," Alan Adler, GM safety spokesman said, as this is an "external bumping issue."
"The Camaro ignition system meets all GM engineering specifications and is unrelated to the ignition system used in Chevrolet Cobalts and other small cars included in the ignition switch recall," the company said in a statement.
The ignition switch defect in the Cobalt was caused by a weak spring inside the switch, which made it possible for the key to turn to the "off" or "accessory" position on its own, turning off the engine and disabling airbags.
Center for Auto Safety director Clarence Ditlow believes that GM should have made the recall of the Camaro much earlier though.
"GM said it's not the same problem, but it's a first cousin," Ditlow said.
"It is troubling that GM continues to announce ignition switch-related recalls on late-model vehicles (which) raises questions about how pervasive the problem is and why it is taking so long for GM to act," said Henry Waxman, Representative of California and the senior Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee tasked with the investigation of GM.
This most recent recall by GM increases the number of vehicles recalled for ignition switch problems to over 3.1 million. However, that is less than 20 percent of the total 16.5 million vehicles that the company has recalled in over 38 recall actions this year. To put that in perspective, that is the number of vehicles that the whole car industry is looking to sell in the U.S. this year.
