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fw: GM recalls 2013 Cadillac SRX on lagging acceleration issue

26K views 118 replies 35 participants last post by  JohnnyBzSRX 
#1 ·
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/gm-recalls-2013-cadillac-srx-125023924.html


DETROIT, May 1 (Reuters) - General Motors Co is recalling about 56,400 model year 2013 Cadillac SRX crossover vehicles because of possible delays in acceleration linked to a computer program that controls the transmission, U.S. regulators said on Thursday.

"In certain driving situations, there may be a three to four second lag in acceleration due to the transmission control module programming," said a report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The NHTSA said the condition can increase the chances of a crash, but GM said it was not aware of any crashes related to this issue.

GM said that 50,591 of the recalled SRX crossovers are in the United States, 3,306 in Canada, 367 in Mexico and 2,123 in other markets.

The affected vehicles have 3.6-liter engines. Consumers are asked to bring their cars to GM dealerships to have the transmission control modules reprogrammed.

The affected Cadillac SRX crossovers were produced from May 29, 2012 to June 26, 2013.

(Reporting by Bernie Woodall; Editing by Sofina Mirza-Reid)
 
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#7 ·
Yes, this is GREAT news and I updated the main 2013 gas pedal thread this morning with the link to the NHTSA site that gives the details of this recall and two supporting documents.

I'm very excited that this is an offical recall!!


~Tina~

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Yes, real good news for those directly affected as well as those, myself included, with vehicles outside the range who are/were having lingering thoughts about 'when will it happen to me?'.

It may seem to have taken a long time to identify and resolve, but having spend a major part of my life in software design and development, I can assure everyone that intermittant problems are absolutely the worst to identify. In this case the problem, IMO, seems like it could have been transmission related, fuel delivery related, throttle-by-wire related, emission control related, or a combination of any or all the above (and possibly other systems as well), any of which could also be impacted by external variables like temperature, humidity, driver inputs or faulty/marginal sensors any of which could also occur in various combinations.

I'm actually quite impressed that GM/Cadillac was able to get a handle on the problem with as little feedback as it seems they were getting.

My only 'knock' on GM/Cadillac is in not acknowledging they were looking into the issue - but I'm sure that decision emanated from the legal department.
I agree 100% I knew this would be a difficult issue to resolve and pin point the problem but I also agree that GM should have acknowledged they were working on it instead completely denying issue when the service managers reached out to GM regarding this issue.

I am very thankful they were able to identify the issue this quickly as I figured this was going to be a long drawn out issue.

~Tina~
 
#14 ·
Can we get Customer Service to weigh in on the status of a fix??

Has a fix been developed?

Has the fix been tested in a sufficient number of vehicles to release for customer vehicle updates?

What is the estimated timeline for having the fix available for dealers to update customer cars?

So far GM has acknowledged being able to recreate the problem in a repeatable scenario. I have not seen anything to tell the rest of the story.
 
#17 ·
Here is one of the two attachments listed on the recall information from the NHTSA site. http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners...getCategory=R&searchCriteria.nhtsa_ids=14V212

Here is the direct link to the below letter: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/acms/cs/jaxrs/download/doc/UCM454491/RCAK-14V212-7341.pdf


April 30, 2014

Ms. Carmen Benavides
Director Product Investigations
General Motors LLC
30001 Van **** - Mail Code 480-210-2V
Warren, MI 48090-9055

NVS-215KS 14V-212

Subject: Transmission Software may cause Acceleration Lag

Dear Ms. Benavides:

This letter serves to acknowledge General Motors LLC's notification to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of a safety recall which will be conducted pursuant to Federal law for the product(s) listed below. Please review the following information to ensure that it conforms to your records as this information is being made available to the public. If the information does not agree with your records, please contact us immediately to discuss your concerns.

Makes/Models/Model Years: CADILLAC/SRX/2013

Mfr's Report Date: April 24, 2014

NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V-212

Components: POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM, PCM)

Potential Number of Units Affected: 50,571

Problem Description: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013 Cadillac SRX vehicles manufactured May 29, 2012, through June 26, 2013, and equipped with 3.6L engines. In the affected vehicles, in certain driving situations, there may be a three to four second lag in acceleration due to the transmission control module (TCM) programming.

Consequence: A three to four second lag in acceleration may increase the risk of crash.

Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the transmission control module, free of charge. The manufacturer has not yet provided a notification schedule. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006. General Motors' number for this recall is 14132.

Notes: Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

Please be reminded of the following requirements:
You are required to submit a draft owner notification letter to this office no less than five days prior to mailing it to the customers. Also, copies of all notices, bulletins, dealer notifications, and other communications that relate to this recall, including a copy of the final owner notification letter and any subsequent owner follow-up notification letter(s), are required to be submitted to this office no later than 5 days after they are originally sent (if they are sent to more than one manufacturer, distributor, dealer, or purchaser/owner).

You are required to provide an estimated date including month, day, and year, when you will send notifications to owners, dealers, and distributors as soon as it becomes available. Please be reminded that it is expected owners will be notified of a safety defect in their vehicles within 60 days of a manufacturer's notification to NHTSA of a safety defect in those vehicles.

As required in Part 573.6(c)(6), in the case of a defect, please provide a chronology of all principal events that were the basis for the determination that the defect related to motor vehicle safety, including a summary of all warranty claims, field or service reports, and other information, with their dates of receipt. Please provide this information as soon as possible.

As stated in Part 573.7, submission of the first of six consecutive quarterly status reports is required within one month after the close of the calendar quarter in which notification to purchasers occurs. Therefore, the first quarterly report will be due on, or before, 30 days after the close of the calendar quarter.

Your contact for this recall will be Kelly Schuler who may be reached by phone at (202) 366-5227, or by email at kelly.schuler@dot.gov or through the office email at rmd.odi@dot.gov. We look forward to working with you.

Sincerely,
Jennifer Timian Chief, Recall Management Division Office of Defects Investigations Enforcement
 
#25 ·
What is the URL for the VIN lookup?

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Anyone expecting to have the fix applied to your TCM, ask the Service Manager at your dealer if they have it before you take the time to go to the appointment. Today I made an appointment for the recall, but asked before ending the call if they have the fix and the Service writer checked and said no. He is now checking further and will call me tomorrow.

Just a word of caution to ask specifically if they can do the work when on the phone rather than going to an appointment only to be told they cannot do it.

My SRX was built 11/12 and Customer Service said my VIN is not matched to the recall yet. Still trying to dig deeper to find when the fix will actually be available.
 
#26 ·
As of now only the NHTSA has been notified of the safety recall and GM has 60 days to notify the owners. I seriously doubt that they have even sent an offical notification to the dealers for the service depts. We have a jump on this info because once it hits NHTSA site it becomes public knowledge. As of now we just need to sit tight and let your service manager know you are wanting the updated TCM. My service manager is aware of this issue and knows I am anxiously waiting the update TCM program. He will notify me when it is available but as of a few days ago when the notice became public I was the first one to share it with him.


Here is a excerpt from the document on the NHTSA site and I also posted the entire document in post #17. (the use of You in the below statement is referring to GM)

"You are required to provide an estimated date including month, day, and year, when you will send notifications to owners, dealers, and distributors as soon as it becomes available. Please be reminded that it is expected owners will be notified of a safety defect in their vehicles within 60 days of a manufacturer's notification to NHTSA of a safety defect in those vehicles."

I feel better just in the fact that I know what not to do. NO MORE ROLLING STOPS for me!!!

~Tina~
 
#28 ·
Thanks for the link. I had to refresh the link a few times before I saw the article on the SRX. So I copied it and pasted it below.



Article in MSN home page: http://editorial.autos.msn.com/blogs/autosblog.aspx?feat=26647611-8fa9-4840-ba8b-6be23ed57ebf


Recalls: GM SUVs and Saturn sedans for transmission problems, fuel gauge errors
More than 100,000 late-model Cadillac, Chevrolet, Buick and GMC models are affected. Another 56,000 Saturn sedans could roll away.
By Exhaust Notes Mon 8:14 AM
General Motors is recalling more than 150,000 SUVs and sedans to fix transmission and fuel gauge problems, according to filings with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The 2013 Cadillac SRX has a transmission software error that can delay acceleration by up to four seconds. GM said that if the driver reaches second gear between 8 and 10 mph, brakes to under 5 mph and then proceeds to accelerate, the car will not accelerate for several seconds.

About 50,571 cars are affected in the U.S. GM did not specify when it first discovered the problem but only that it took an internal committee three days to approve the recall.


I would love to know when they were first aware of this issue but I am thankful they realized after three days that this is a serious safety issue and decided on the recall. I wonder if it has anything to do with all the heat GM is getting over the ignition switch issue that should have been recalled 10 years ago? Maybe all the bad press they are getting from that issue helped push this issue to a decision faster. Either way, kudos to GM for learning from past mistakes and making changes. That is what it takes to start rebuilding the faith in the eyes of the general public and their car owners.

~Tina~
 
#30 ·
Hello rokkerz,

I am sorry that you have experienced this with your 2011 SRX as well. We would be happy to look further into this situation and document this concern. Have you brought this to the attention of your Cadillac service department? Could you private message us with your name, contact info, VIN, mileage, and preferred dealership? If you are unable to private message us, you can also email us at socialmedia@gm.com with “ATTN GREG” in the subject line so that it gets delivered directly to me. I hope to hear from you soon.

Gregory W.
Cadillac Customer Care
 
#32 ·
Unless your next oil change will be in the next day, or so, you should probably schedule an appointment to have this done as soon as possible, as this is a safety recall and the problem could result in an increased risk of a crash.
The update is not available yet. GM has 60 days from the time they notified NHTSA of the recall to notify the owners, dealers and distributors. As of the last time I checked with my service dept, they had not even heard anything from GM about the recall. I was the one to notify them of it. So it might be a few weeks before the fix is available.

For all of us that have actually experienced this issue, I am sure we are all very anxious to get this fixed but just knowing the sequence of events that causes the issue is good to know to limit the chance of it happening again until the fix is available.

~Tina~
 
#36 ·
The Transmission Control Module was reprogrammed today on my SRX. This was done before my VIN is matched with the Recall.

When the update is applied, your transmission will shift strangely for the first several trips. I made eight trips today and this evening it is shifting smoothly once again. The initial trip as I left the dealer had terrible shifts most noticeably 2-3 where the RPM surged about 700 RPM as it shifted with engagement to 3 which was very noticeable.

The service invoice does not mention the Recall, but states update 2810175 with SPS 2013 WP94.

I will be watching for further Recall documentation to verify the correct update was applied.

----------

The Transmission Control Module was reprogrammed today on my SRX. This was done before my VIN is matched with the Recall.

When the update is applied, your transmission will shift strangely for the first several trips. I made eight trips today and this evening it is shifting smoothly once again. The initial trip as I left the dealer had terrible shifts most noticeably 2-3 where the RPM surged about 700 RPM as it shifted with engagement to 3 which was very noticeable.

The service invoice does not mention the Recall, but states update 2810175 with SPS 2013 WP94.

I will be watching for further Recall documentation to verify the correct update was applied.
Just found the 2810175 is the Global Labor Code for reprograming the TCM. (Google on the Internet is wonderful).

Perhaps the SPS 2013 WP94 is the fix that was applied.
 
#37 ·
The Transmission Control Module was reprogrammed today on my SRX. This was done before my VIN is matched with the Recall.

When the update is applied, your transmission will shift strangely for the first several trips. I made eight trips today and this evening it is shifting smoothly once again. The initial trip as I left the dealer had terrible shifts most noticeably 2-3 where the RPM surged about 700 RPM as it shifted with engagement to 3 which was very noticeable.

The service invoice does not mention the Recall, but states update 2810175 with SPS 2013 WP94.

I will be watching for further Recall documentation to verify the correct update was applied.

----------



Just found the 2810175 is the Global Labor Code for reprograming the TCM. (Google on the Internet is wonderful).

Perhaps the SPS 2013 WP94 is the fix that was applied.
It's good to hear that the updated TCM program is out and available for uploading. I'll have to give my service manager call to see if they have it available or if it is going out in waves.

Thanks for the update.

~Tina~
 
#45 ·
To get all new updates for your car go to : https://tis2web.service.gm.com/tis2web
Enter your VIN and you will have all the calibration info available for your car.

For the TCM, part number of the new calibration is 24273822 : New calibration to resolve vehicle hesitation during acceleration under certain conditions.

If you were to drive into a dealer and tell them you want all updates that are available from GM installed, most likely they wouldn't do it. But if you were experiencing that particular condition, then they would load the update. I think GM does not allow the "selling" of warranty repairs. The customer must have a complaint, before they can do a repair.
 
#46 ·
Wow there is a lot of info in that link. My question is how do you know if you have the updates or not? Most areas seem to have only the original programming. But for areas that have been updated, the website does not seem to know which version my SRX has.

Thanks for that link.
 
#51 ·
I dropped my SRX off this morning for the TCM recall. They told me that they received the offical notice and the fix from GM on Friday morning. They also indicated there were other 2013 SRX owners that have complained about the same issue. While I was waiting on the courtesy transportaion to take me to work, another 2013 SRX owner pulled into the service area for the same fix. I'm sure the Cadillac service dept will be busy with this fix.

I also let my service advisor know that after the update the car shifts clunky for a little bit and then smooths out.

~Tina~
 
#52 ·
I had the TCM update done today. I drove the car off the lot and there was couple of slower then expected shifts but after that everything seems to be shifting fine. After I picked up my car I went to the gas station to fill it up and in the little bit of driving I have done today, it seems like the fuel range indicator is showing less of a range then typical. Not sure of before the fuel range was off and now it is fixed or if it is off now. It typically shows a range of about 410 or so miles when I fill it up and will stay there and not go down for quite a few miles of driving but this time it showed 390 mile range when filled up and moves down steadily as I drive. I'm interested to see what my overall MPG will be now. I check it at every fill up so my typically driving pattern gets me around 19 - 20 MPG and that is with a mix of interstate and in town driving.

I have attached the invoice showing the TCM update.

~Tina~


Text Document Paper Font Receipt
 
#53 ·
Just to provide an update after about two days of driving since the TCM update, everything seems to be running very smooth. Shifting is much smoother than it was before the update and doesn't seem to wonder what gear it should be in like it did before. Fuel range seems to be a little better so maybe with the new program it needed to re-calibrate some. I have driven about 112 miles since the TCM update and my fuel range shows 346 so that brings it back up. I know that will go up and down based on my driving habits so the true test will be when I fill up and calculate the MPG then.

It is great to get in the car and truly enjoy driving and not having to worry about the potential to lose acceleration. I notice that I still hesitate when cutting across traffic. I still tend to wait for a much larger gap in traffic then I actually need. I got in that habit because of the loss of acceleration and it isn't necessarily a bad habit to be in either. :)

~Tina~
 
#55 ·
Shifting is much smoother than it was before the update and doesn't seem to wonder what gear it should be in like it did before. ~Tina~
I agree that gear selection is better calibrated to low speed driving maneuvers.

I also stepped up to using Premium BP (93 Octane) which unleashed low RPM torque for better acceleration out of corners and so far the detonation previously heard occasionally is no longer apparent. I think better gear selection along with the higher octane fuel delivers much better drivability.
 
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