General Motors has issued a massive recall for some 3.64 million vehicles in the United States alone. According to statements issued by the automaker and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, certain vehicles may, in rare circumstances, not deploy the frontal airbags in the event of a crash.
The problem comes down to the Sensing and Diagnostic Module which determines if and when the airbags and seatbelt pretensioners need to be activated. Apparently the module may run a diagnostic test under certain circumstances, precluding it from doing what it’s supposed to do. The fix will involve reflashing the SDM software, or replacing the module entirely in vehicle that have had their airbags deployed previously.
That may sound simple enough, except the problem affects a wide range of vehicles. The list includes the Chevy Corvette, SS, Caprice Police Pursuit Vehicle, Trax and Spark EV, as well as the Buick LaCrosse and Encore, and all of the automaker’s full-size trucks: the Silverado and Sierra (both the 1500 and HD models), the Chevy Tahoe and Suburban, GMC Yukon and Yukon XL, and Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV.
The model years vary according to the model in question, but range overall from 2014 through 2017 – which tells you that it’s still a problem with current vehicles being rolled off the production line. If you own one of those vehicles, you can check with either GM or the NHTSA to determine if your specific vehicle is affected.
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