QOTD: Ignoring That Recall?

Matthew Guy
by Matthew Guy

Yesterday, young Mr. Posky brought us news that Honda has recalled a number of Odysseys for problems with their second-row seats. Now, reading into the details, it seems to be more of a user problem, rather than a design flaw. Nevertheless.

I’ve had my own share of recalls hurled in my direction, all of which were attended to with varying degrees of urgency. Our question for you: have any of your cars been recalled? How quickly did you bring them in?

The Takata debacle ensnared cars ranging from popular old Hondas to Audis to Ferraris and just about everything in between. Not everyone has been dutifully bringing their vehicle in for repair; according to Bloomberg, nearly two-thirds of American vehicles with Takata airbags are still not fixed. As of mid-September, they report, 20 million of the things are still out there, a full 64 percent of the 31.5 million recalled.

Of course, there’s more than an outside chance that a few of those which haven’t appeared for fixin’ have simply dropped off the automotive radar. After all, when Uncle Morley’s knacked ’01 Accord hit 400,000 miles and developed a rusty subframe, he simply gave it to his nephew for the derby. This is a fictional example. Yes. Purely fictional. Point is, someone’s probably counting that Accord in the Takata totals somewhere.

Other huge recalls include the ignition switch saga at General Motors and Toyota’s challenges with floormats. On a smaller scale, we see recalls such as the one for wayward minivan seats at Honda.

Have you had a recall card show up in your mailbox? Did you attend to it or did you pull an Uncle Morley? We recommend getting recalls attended to at the first opportunity. Whether the parts are correctly installed, though, that’s a different story.

Matthew Guy
Matthew Guy

Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.

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  • Bill Bill on Nov 20, 2017

    I ignored the ignition switch recall on my old '98 Malibu. All they were going to do was put inserts in my key to center the keyring. I only have my house key and car key, and I had already replaced the ignition switch about a year before that with an aftermarket one to fix an electrical problem so I didn't see the point of wasting time to go to the dealer. Plus I would have to deal with the annoyance of them doing a "complimentary inspection" and trying to upsell me stuff while I was there.

  • Justice_Gustine Justice_Gustine on Nov 20, 2017

    Totaled 06 Monte Carlo went to the crusher with about 7 postcards for the ignition switch recall in the glovebox. Wonder if they could not get the title transfer without getting the recall done, it's coming to that, eh?

  • CanadaCraig VOTE NO VW!
  • Joe This is called a man in the middle attack and has been around for years. You can fall for this in a Starbucks as easily as when you’re charging your car. Nothing new here…
  • AZFelix Hilux technical, preferably with a swivel mount.
  • ToolGuy This is the kind of thing you get when you give people faster internet.
  • ToolGuy North America is already the greatest country on the planet, and I have learned to be careful about what I wish for in terms of making changes. I mean, if Greenland wants to buy JDM vehicles, isn't that for the Danes to decide?
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