Potential Brake Issue in 6.2M GM Cars

Just after American manufacturer GM announced it will make available on all its models a brake override system, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced it has opened a preliminary investigation into no less the 6.2 million GM cars, who may present corrosion of vehicle brake lines.

The vehicles involved are 1999-2003 GM pickups and SUVs and 2003-2500 heavy-duty pickups. The investigation is based on 110 complaints received by the NHTSA, with three of them resulting in crashes. So far, this is only an investigation and not a recall, so further updates are to follow.

"The complaints allege the loss of braking effectiveness due to brake line rupture because of corrosion," NHTSA investigator Chris Lash said in a government filing cited by DetNews. "In 37 of these complaints, the brake line failure was confirmed by a dealer inspection."

As said, this weekend the American manufacturer joined the brake override effotds made by carmaker worldwide and announced all its vehicles will have such a system by 2012.

GM's brake override calls for the modification of the existing electronic controls so that the power to the engine is reduced in case the brake and accelerator pedal are being depressed at the same time.

Earlier in March, Japanese manufacturer Mazda announced a similar move and will from now on install brake override systems on all new models. In addition to Mazda and GM, Honda, Suzuki, Mitsubishi and Daihatsu are also considering adding such an extra safety feature.