GM: Steering Problem May Cause Police to Lose Control

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DETROIT, MI – General Motors said Tuesday that it is recalling thousands of police cars nationwide because of steering problems that can cause officers to lose control and crash vehicles that have been left idling for 20 or more hours.

The recall covers 6,300 Chevrolet Caprice Police Pursuit vehicles from model years 2014 to 2016, the Associated Press reports.

The automaker said corrosion on a connector can cause the electric power-assisted steering to fail. When that happens, police cars still have manual steering, but more effort is required to turn and the wheels and the risk of a crash increases.

GM said it hasn’t received any reports of crashes or injuries as a result of the problem, which was reported after a police department in Illinois complained some of the vehicles in its fleet had lost power steering.

Police vehicles are often left idling for up to 20 hours a day, causing heat to build up under the hood and lead to the corrosion. Dealers will replace the steering gear control unit.