GM recalls nearly 1.5 million cars for fire threat

April 14th, 2009

General Motors is recalling nearly 1.5 million midsize cars from the 1997-2003 model years have a defect that lets oil drip onto the exhaust manifold and flame up, potentially leading to an engine fire, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.The recall includes:

Vehicle Make / Model: Model Year(s):
BUICK / REGAL 1997-2003
CHEVROLET / IMPALA 2000-2003
CHEVROLET / LUMINA 1998-1999
CHEVROLET / MONTE CARLO 1998-2003
OLDSMOBILE / INTRIGUE 1998-1999
PONTIAC / GRAND PRIX 1997-2003

According to the recall notice, if the manifold is hot enough and the oil runs below the heat shield, it may ignite into a small flame and may spread to the plastic spark plug wire channel and beyond increasing the risk of an engine compartment fire.

To remedy the default, dealership technicians will remove the spark plug wire retention channel at the front of engine and install two new spark plug wire retainers free of charge.

A Chevrolet car NOT on the recall list is the 2009 Chevrolet Cobalt. Check out a review by jayrone34: