Roughly one out of every 10 of passenger cars and trucks on the road in the U.S. has been recalled this year.
The U.S. auto industry has recalled a stunning 24.7 million vehicles in so far in 2014. That leaves it poised to shatter the record 30.8 million vehicles that were recalled in 2004.
General Motors (GM) prompted the surge when it revealed that it took ten years to issue a recall for a flawed ignition switch that’s been tied to at least 13 deaths.
In the wake of those revelations, GM has changed its procedures and recalled a total of 13.9 million U.S. vehicles in 2014 — a record for the company. Other automakers have also issued a raft of recalls, scared that they, too, could be accused of overlooking safety problems.
The recalls have been for flaws as serious as a steering problem that prompted GM to tell owners of 477 pickups and SUVs to stop driving their vehicles immediately — GM sent flatbed trucks to haul the vehicles to dealerships for repairs.
They’ve also been for matters as minor as a sticker on the inside of some Kias that incorrectly stated the recommended tire pressure. Kia sent out new labels.
There were 252.7 million passenger vehicles in operation in the U.S. at the start of this year, according to IHS Automotive, meaning the total number of recalls is close to 10% of the nation’s fleet of cars and trucks.
If there isn’t another recall the rest of this year, 2014 will rank as the third largest number of U.S. recalls in history.
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But there is no sign of a slowdown. GM’s recall crisis has triggered both congressional and criminal probes, and the automaker must pay a $35 million fine to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). It also faces the prospect of paying out billions in expenses related to various lawsuits. And no other automaker wants to risk a similar fate.
“On recall issues, you’re going to see a heightened level of sensitivity. You may see excessive corrective actions,” said Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne at a forum last month. He later told CNBC, “There’s no doubt that the industry is going to have to adjust to a new paradigm. This is permanent.”
Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety, said that he believes as many as 35 million cars could be recalled this year, but that he thinks the pace of recalls will slow down.
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“Part of what [automakers] are doing is going through the backlog of vehicles they should have recalled in the past and didn’t,” he said. “Once they get through that backlog, it’ll be new recalls only.”
Many of the vehicles recalled this year are older models. GM says that 70% of the autos it has recalled in the U.S. this year are models it no longer manufactures.
Ditlow said the negative press surrounding the GM recall crisis has changed the dynamics among automaker employees who examine accident reports and consumer complaints, making it easier for someone who believes a recall is necessary to prevail.
“To think you could get fired if you don’t pursue safety, that is a change,” he said.