Commentary: The Year For Auto Recalls And How Consumers Should Respond

For those of us who travel often, the automotive recalls today or as common as the security alerts we heard in the airport a few years ago, when the TSA had a color-coded system, which we all became immune to hearing and basically ignored. This seems to be the case with the rash of automotive recalls we’ve heard so far this year. And yes, expect more to come in today’s recall-sensitive environment.

Does recalls equal poor quality? Sometimes! Does it mean that automakers are so concerned after GM was levied such a healthy fine for how they mishandled the ignition switch recall that they, along with other automakers, are taking extra measures to be proactive to avoid being entangled with Big Brother (or Big Sister), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration? Of course, and this is great for the consumer. Should you be concerned as a consumer every time you hear of an automotive recall? Always! 

A study by Carfax recently revealed that 25 percent of cars on the road today are never repaired by the owner. Either most drivers aren’t aware of the recall or they have no incentive to take time to have the vehicle repaired. By the way, recalls are repaired for free and at no expense to the consumer. Thus, there is no excuse not to have the vehicle repaired.

This is why if you’re buying a used or better yet, if you purchased a used vehicle, it is strongly recommended to reach out to your local dealership to find out if there are any outstanding recalls. I always suggest contacting the customer service number in your owner’s manual or seeking out the automakers’ website, registering your contact information.

Again, recalls are performed for free. Just like every writer will be subject to an edit (or several for that matter), every automaker at some point will face a recall. Consumers should be more concerned about the automakers willingness to resolve the recall, as opposed to the number of recalls coming down the pipeline, unless it’s on a brand-new model. And yes, there are a handful of brand-new models that have experienced several recalls within their first year out on the market. Now, that should send up a red flag about the build quality of both the model and the automaker responsible for building the model.

In today’s recall-sensitive environment, there are so many recalls we never hear about and many I never post on my website just because of the small sample size. Again, there isn't an automaker immune from the scrutiny. So, to help consumers keep up with all of the recalls in the pipeline, on August 14, a new government mandated database will be provided by each automaker. This database will allow consumers to search for open recalls by the vehicle identification number. This tool will place you as the consumer in the driver’s seat, helping to ensure you’re driving a vehicle that is truly safe.

In fact, there is an automaker (and it is not the one making today's news headlines) under investigation now for alleged sudden acceleration issues with one of their models. To avoid being hasty and jumping to conclusion unless the evidence support it, I never like to jump the gun, so I usually wait until the issue makes it down the pipeline, reaching recall status, before we reveal such.

Just to show how far we’ve come, I can remember one of the automakers had such poor headlights in the 90s that even with the brights-on, drivers still had difficulty viewing the road at night even after coming up with a redesign. Those of us in the industry jokingly said their models were literally designed for city driving, where lighting is plentiful.

More importantly, because of the strict scrutiny of today’s government, the automaker would have never gotten away with such a poor headlight design. This shows why we always need check and balances to watch over all of us, making sure that we do the right thing, before getting called on the carpet.

So, if you are wondering are the recalls any indication of the build-quality of today’s cars, our response is to utilize the guides we recommend below to answer your question. Ironically, JD Power Circle Ratings, a respected industry source which measure the reliability of vehicles based on consumer feedback, recognized both GM and Hyundai-Kia as having more segment-leading 2014 models based on initial quality than any other automaker. Go figure? This further emphasize what occurred in the past is not always an indication of what’s going on today.

In order to help navigate the car-buying maze, determining the projected quality and reliability of any new or used vehicle, the tools I recommend are as follows: examining the industry respected consumer driven JD Power Circle Ratings, which can be Googled; Consumer Reports; and reviewing car reviews from respected sources. By using all of three of these factors, this should help to steer consumers in the right direction. Now, while I am not always in agreement with Consumer Reports, it does serve as a reference point to take into consideration, before making a final decision.