For the first time in my life, I got a "recall" notice on an automobile I own, a 1998 model.
1998-2002 Oldsmobile Intrigue
There is a risk, under certain conditions, that your ignition switch may move out of the "run" position, resulting in a partial loss of electrical power and turning off the engine. This risk increases if your key ring is carrying added weight (such as more keys or the key fob) or your vehicle experiences rough road conditions or other jarring or impact related events. If the ignition switch is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury or fatality.
If you are driving an affected vehicle, until the ignition recall repairs have been performed, it is very important for you to follow the 3-Point Check Plan.
Please visit the GM Recall Center to find out more details about recalls affecting your specific vehicle and to schedule a service appointment with your dealer.
http://www.gmignitionupdate.com/vehicles/intrigue.html1998 Oldsmobile Intrigue
Average Resale Value: $2,572
MPG Range: 19 - 30 mpg
Bodystyles: Sedan
Recall ID # 104986 - ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION
Recall Date
JUL 03, 2014
Component
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION
Model Affected
Intrigue
Potential Units Affected 5877718
Summary:
This defect can affect the safe operation of the airbag system. Until this recall is performed, customers should remove all items from their key rings, leaving only the ignition key. The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from the key ring. General Motors LLC (GM) notified the agency on July 3, 2014, that they are recalling 5,877,718 model year 2000-2005 Chevrolet Impala and Monte Carlo, 1997-2005 Chevrolet Malibu, 1999-2004 Oldsmobile Alero, 1998-2002 Oldsmobile Intrigue, 1999-2005 Pontiac Grand Am and 2004-2008 Pontiac Grand Prix vehicles. In these models, the weight on the key ring and/or road conditions or some other jarring event may cause the ignition switch to move out of the run position, turning off the engine.
Consequences:
If the key is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Remedy:
GM will notify owners, and dealers will install two key rings and an insert in the key slot or a cover over the key head on all ignition keys, free of charge. The recall began on September 9, 2014. GM's number for this recall is 14350.
I wasn't going to bother, until someone reminded me that if one doesn't bother, General Motors will hound and harrass--via mail, via telephone--until one does.
So I went to the General Motors dealer in the big city. Their customer service, their communication skills with a deaf person, were excellent, top-of-the-line.
They took all of my keys (three of them) and replaced the plastic upper half with a new plastic upper half. The old halves had had a slot running along the top; the new slots have just a tiny circular hole at the top. That's it, nothing else.
I wasn't going to bother because the keys are about the size of rowboat oars, and I don't care for carrying around large clumps of keys. I took them off the chain, and use them individually; if one gets lost, Hell, they're large enough one can spot them with no problem at all.
That little black box, that "remote control" thingamajig, I threw away sometime the first two or three minutes the vehicle was in my possession; it wasn't anything important for operation of the vehicle, and so I didn't want it.
So.....the problem's been corrected, but I'm wondering. Since I'd been using only a single key, no other keys attached to it by a key-ring, was I ever in peril?
This is a wholly new experience for me.