General Motors recalls 162,000 Hummers

WASHINGTON: US car giant General Motors has recalled more than 160,000 Hummers over a flaw that could cause part of the hood to break off while the vehicle is being driven, the company said on Wednesday.

The problem could affect up to 162,129 Hummer H3 cars made between 2006 and 2010, according to documents from GM and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. "Some of these vehicles have a condition in which the integral clip-tabs on the hood louver may fracture," GM said.

If this indicator is unnoticed, additional clips could fracture and the hood louver could detach from the vehicle. "If the vehicle is being driven when this occurs, it could strike a following vehicle and cause injury and/or property damage," the company said.

The problem can be fixed with the application of an adhesive to the louver, an air grille panel on the car, and owners of affected cars can have them fixed at local dealers, GM said. A letter from GM to NHTSA said the issue was raised in Japan in January after three warranty claims citing hood grille detachments.

The problem was communicated to GM North America, which decided on April 22 to issue a recall. The recall affected certain H3 Hummers made between 2006-2008, and certain H3 or H3T vehicles made between 2009-2010. GM last month informed dealers of its plans to dismantle the Hummer brand after a deal to sell the unit fell through.

Letters went out to the 153 Hummer dealers in the United States and 247 dealers in other countries last week formally notifying them of the "dissolution of the dealership network," GM spokesman Nick Richards told AFP. The Detroit automaker had announced a deal to sell the brand in June, as it underwent a massive government-assisted bankruptcy restructuring.

But in February, the company announced that the planned sale to China Sichuan Tengzhong Heavy Industrial Machines Co. had fallen through.