REPORT: GM voluntarily recalling Camaro for battery cable issue
by John Neff on May 6th 2009 at 12:58PM 
Camaro5 forum member Bumleb drove his brand new 2010 Chevy Camaro SS about 40 miles when it suddenly just shut down (that's his car above being trailered back to the dealer on a flat bed). The culprit turned out to be a battery cable run from the trunk. Its insulation had broken down from rubbing up against the starter and eventually just shorted out, which ultimately caused the car itself to shut down. Before this was known, however, the forums blew up with speculation about what could be the cause and Mustang and Challenger fanboys had a field day. It turns out, however, that what happened to Bumleb's new Camaro may not be an isolated incident. General Motors has reportedly issued a voluntary product safety recall for any 2010 Chevy Camaro equipped with a V8 engine to ensure this doesn't happen again.
The recall is a pretty easy fix, but GM is reportedly offering two options for owners: a temporary fix that requires a second visit to a dealer and a permanent fix. The temporary fix involves wrapping the battery cable with protective insulating tape and rerouting it to ensure enough clearance between it and the starter. The permanent fix involves the same thing, except will use a new engine wiring harness that's being shipped to all dealers by May 11. Thus, owners can choose the temporary fix and keep driving their Camaro or just leave it at the dealer until the new wiring harnesses arrive.
The real question is whether or not this recall will damage the Camaro's reputation and ultimately hurt sales. Every aspect of GM is under the microscope, so what does it say when such an important new product launches with a recall right out of the gate? Thanks for the tip, Mark!
UPDATE: The AP reports that GM has built about 1,400 Camaros equipped with a V8 that are affected by this issue, but only 300 have been sold and are therefore under recall. The rest will be fixed before they're delivered to dealers.
[Source: Camaro5]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
Steve Lopez 1:19PM (5/06/2009)
YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDDING? RIGHT?
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KeatMP 5:46PM (5/06/2009)
And down goes your ranking.
Tango 1:03PM (5/06/2009)
but at what cost?
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cFoo 1:23PM (5/06/2009)
5% of your pay cheque!
Serge 2:51PM (5/06/2009)
@cFoo
Or $0.00 in your case...
audifan 1:05PM (5/06/2009)
HAHHAHAAHAHAHHAHHAHHAAHAHHAHHAHHAHHAHHAHHAHHAAHAHAHAHA
*breathe*
oh man that's good stuff right there. Yeah GM you're doing great!!!! rofl
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why not the LS2LS7? 1:13PM (5/06/2009)
I guess you forgot when the BMW MINI was recalled right as it came out.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/1523086.stm
rar 1:16PM (5/06/2009)
Yeah, because Audi and VW's never had any electrical issues.
zamafir 1:52PM (5/06/2009)
LoL, no, we didn't forget the mini recall. Oddly enough, my buddy just picked up his yesterday (camaro, v8, orange, without the options he wanted but he's tired of his dealer F*ing up) and had a lot of fun with both of his minis when the recalls came down the line, the camaro isn't even phasing him as a result :). The recall at least, the clutch is less then he expected for a 35k performance car but whatevers.
Erik 2:15PM (5/06/2009)
Sorry audifan, you lose.
chconline 2:16PM (5/06/2009)
... okay?
Duke 2:30PM (5/06/2009)
So, should we mention the Audi 5000? Its a battery cable issue - not really a life ender.
tankd0g 10:42PM (5/06/2009)
Like anyone thought BMWs were reliable.
Taglane 1:06PM (5/06/2009)
Oh my God here we go with the 'omfg gm sux ' commenters.
in 1, 2......3.
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Auari 1:16PM (5/06/2009)
GM total confidence...... I wish that were the case...
Aprime 1:09PM (5/06/2009)
This, along with cracking bumpers (which they say was a problem limited to "some pre-prod models" - but I don't buy it because my G3's bumper cracked (it was covered in ice and when I went down South it had cracked) and GM say it was because of a collision, therefore they refuse to repair it under warranty (what)).
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jv2k 1:22PM (5/06/2009)
G3?
You mean the pontiac G3? I mean it at least looks better than the aveo and considering how they sell it's probably rebated to hell... but yea don't judge the camaro based on the Aveo/G3.
The Other Bob 1:24PM (5/06/2009)
"I don't buy it because my G3's bumper cracked"
As if your G3 has anything in common with the Camaro. It wasn't designed or built even on the same continent.
Aprime 1:29PM (5/06/2009)
Yes it was - Mexico.
Need I repeat: buying it was a mistake.
Aprime 1:31PM (5/06/2009)
Well I can't say I don't buy it, but bumpers cracking due to weather or temperature variations is rather... Erm, odd, given these vehicles are tested to resist conditions like these.