Chevrolet has issued a recall on the 2013-2015 Spark and the 2014-2015 Spark EV because of their hood latches. This is the second recall related to this part, as the automaker’s first fix was found to be inadequate.
GM first recalled 120,688 of the vehicles in 2014 because of a fault that allowed their secondary hood latch lever to corrode prematurely. Naturally, that’s a concern, because if the part fails, it can deform the hood latch striker, which could cause it to become stuck out of position.
In a worst case scenario, the latch can fail, and the hood can open while the vehicle is in motion, which increases the risk of a crash quite significantly. Chevrolet, therefore, decided to replace the hood striker assembly and the hood latch assembly on vehicles where corrosion was detected.
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A new recall notice submitted on August 25, 2022, suggests, however, that the initial recall did not sufficiently solve the problem. The automaker opened a new product investigation into the issue on May 10 after it found field reports of corroding hood latches.
It reviewed data from warranty claims, legal claims, and other official sources, and identified 276 field reports relating to this condition globally. Between January 2, 2015 and May 25, 2022, it discovered that there were 22 crash allegations and one claimed minor injury relating to this issue. In the U.S., 116,223 Chevrolet Sparks are including in this action, as are 4,465 Spark EVs.
As a result, it has decided to issue another recall to try and solve this problem for good. Chevrolet will get in touch with customers starting on October 10, and they will be asked to return to their local dealership to have their hood striker and hood latches replaced where necessary. The new parts will have a new protective coating with improved corrosion resistance properties.
