oh noez!!! cheby cobalt FAIL.........

[RACER X]

http://www.click2houston.com/news/22685627/detail.html

Cobalt Power Steering Investigation
By Amy Davis

POSTED: Friday, February 26, 2010
UPDATED: 10:00 pm CST February 26, 2010

HOUSTON -- Local 2 Investigates power steering problems in a popular American-made car.

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FIND IT: Read Complaints Filed With NHTSA
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FIND IT: File Complaint With NHTSA
While Congress is calling special sessions to get to the bottom of serious issues with Toyota vehicles, some drivers want to know why General Motors is not getting as much heat for the growing number of complaints about one if its popular vehicles.

KPRC Local 2 investigative reporter Amy Davis explains the problem and uncovers at least one death that may have been caused by the malfunction two years ago.

"Hi. I'm Will Mattern. I live in The Woodlands, Texas," said Will Mattern, in his video posted on YouTube. "This is my son's car. It's a Chevrolet Cobalt."

Mattern took his story to YouTube when, he says, General Motors wouldn't help when he told them his son's car began losing power steering intermittently while he was driving.

Cara Jones of Pasadena called us with the same complaint.

"I couldn't steer my car," Jones told Davis.

Both say the power steering on their Chevrolet Cobalts started failing abruptly and without explanation.

"Then when I called GM, they acted like they hadn't ever heard of the problem before," Mattern told Davis.

It was seven months ago when Mattern took a video camera and took his story to the Internet.

"There's one thing you can do that can make a difference," Mattern says to his online audience. "You can call the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at 888-327-4236."

When Mattern first called the government agency that investigates vehicle safety defects, he says it told him the agency had only received six or seven similar complaints.

By late January, the NHTSA began a preliminary evaluation when it said the number of complaints jumped to 1,132, with 11 accidents reported when drivers said they lost control of their car when the power steering failed.

GM sent us a statement that reads, in part, "GM has been cooperating with the NHTSA in its investigation of the issue. If a loss of power steering assist should occur, a 'power steering' message is displayed in the driver information center and a chime sounds to inform the driver. At highway speeds, there will be little change in the effort required to steer the vehicle. At lower speeds, the effort required to steer the vehicle may increase, but the vehicle will still be controllable."

"You could be in the middle of a turn," said Mattern, in response to GM's statement. "You could be on the freeway. You could be trying to make an emergency maneuver. And if it happens at that second, you're going to be in big trouble."

"I weigh 100 pounds," said Jones. "I can not steer the vehicle. It takes everything in me just to try to move it just a little bit."

Local 2 Investigates uncovered similar complaints in the NHTSA's own records posted on online.

In November 2007, one driver said they spun out of control and into a tree. In February 2008, another driver said they lost control, the vehicle went airborne, struck a guardrail and dropped four feet from the interstate.

The most disturbing entry is a "steering" complaint. It reads, on "June 13, 2008, a driver was driving approx. 55 mph when the vehicle veered off the road into the opposite lane where it was struck by another vehicle. The driver was killed as a result of the crash."

The problem centers around the Cobalt's electric power steering system, installed in every Cobalt made from 2005 to 2009. The NHTSA estimates there are about 905,000 vehicles. The majority of these complaints reveal the problems don't start until the Cobalt has about 30,000 to 40,000 miles.

Repairs cost Mattern about $1,000.

Jones wants a recall, but all Mattern asked GM to do was alert owners.

"I asked them to send out postcards, just warning postcards to every parent letting them know of the possible situation of loss of steering," explained Mattern.

"For Chevy to know that this is a problem, and there's so many complaints, you know, what are they waiting for?" asked Jones.

GM tells us it is very close to concluding its investigation. The NHTSA has asked the car maker to respond to its inquiries and requests for records by March 26.

The NHTSA says the one death we found in its records wasn't reported until after it released the summary of complaints and injuries. To date, the NHTSA has received at least 1,861 complaints regarding the power steering failures in Chevrolet Cobalts.

If you would like to file a complaint, you can call the NHTSA at (888) 327-4236 or fill out a complaint form online.

You can search complaints already filed on the NHTSA's Web site.

GM plans to stop making the Chevrolet Cobalt at the end of 2010.