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The Most Ridiculous Car Recalls Ever
May. 09, 2020 6:16 PM ET by Ian Wright Car Culture / 13 Comments Spiders, the wrong shade of turn signal, passenger brakes, and more spiders. Recalls are an annoying fact of automotive life. This writer recently had an airbag recall on a 2001 BMW, which was to fix a recall that was supposed to fix the original recall 15 years ago. While that might sound absurd, it's got nothing on some of the following recalls. Even Honda's recall last year with a fix that involved 336,468 people having to put a correction sticker over an error on their car handbook didn't make the cut. Nor did BMW being forced by the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard to change the software for the rear-view camera system so the driver can't change the settings and make the screen so bright it becomes useless. These are even more ridiculous. CarBuzz Chevrolet Sonic No Brake Pads
Back in 2011, GM had to call back 4,296 Chevrolet Sonic models as they had left the factory, gotten to the dealer, and then been sold to customers with brake pads missing. The problem was traced back to a subassembly of components, where the brake pads were falling off before they reached Chevrolet's factory in Michigan. Nobody noticed that the brake pads had landed at the bottom of the containers. As far as we know, not many cars were actually affected, and no injuries or loss of life came of it. Chevrolet Chevrolet Chevrolet Lincoln MKC Start Stop Button Placement
In 2015, the Lincoln MKC came to market with a button-operated transmission, and under the stack of buttons was the engine stop/start button. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what started to happen. Ford explained it as: "Due to the switch's close proximity to other controls, occupants are inadvertently shutting off the engine while driving." The manufacturer had to bring back 13,574 cars to change the module. Lincoln Lincoln Lincoln Lincoln Honda Odyssey Tailgate Badge
Honda's silliest sounding reason to call customers back to the dealer concerned the badge on the tailgate of its minivan. On the 2014 Odyssey models, Honda realized the badge could have been glued on the wrong side of customer's vehicles. Honda did the right thing, though, and explained: "The placement of the emblem may indicate that the vehicle has had repairs performed that are consistent with it being in a crash. This could affect the resale value of the vehicle." Honda Honda Honda Honda Toyota Camry Spiders Setting Off Airbags
In 2013, Toyota realized that a blockage in a drainage tube coming from the air conditioning condenser could cause water to drip down onto an airbag control module and cause a short circuit. That short circuit could then result in a sensor going off, deploying an airbag, or short-circuiting electrical functions like the power steering. Three airbag deployments were recorded as well as 35 warning lights coming on in Camrys and Avalons. It was discovered that the blockage was being caused by spiders spinning their webs in the drain tubes.
Toyota Toyota Toyota Toyota Mazda 6 More Spiders
Before spiders bugged Toyota, Mazda had an issue with a specific breed of the arthropods. Yellow sac spiders were building their nests in the evaporative canister vent line of the fuel system, causing a blockage. Reportedly, some specific species are attracted to the smell of volatiles in gasoline, and Mazda issued a voluntary recall of Mazda 6 models built between 2010 and 2012 to fit them with software that would detect the problem and alert the driver. Mazda Mazda Mazda Mazda Toyota Corolla Drinks Setting Off Airbags
Drinks are inevitably spilled in cars. However, if you were driving a Toyota Corolla in the mid-1990s, it could have set off the airbag. It turned out that spilled liquid in the cupholders could leak and affect the airbag sensors, causing a malfunction. Exactly 627,858 Corolla's were recalled in 1995 to fix the issue. Mostly, the airbag warning light would come on, but the risk was an airbag being deployed. Toyota Toyota BMW X3 Wrong Color Turn Signals
In 2018, BMW had to call back some X3 models as "The outer rear turn signals may flash red while the inner rear signal lights flash amber." The concern was that divers behind could get confused, while the signals didn't meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. We look forward to your 'BMW driver not using turn signal jokes' in the comments below. This was also a problem for Ford back in 1978 when it was discovered that the Granada's turn signal lenses weren't the correct shade of amber. BMW BMW BMW BMW Volkswagen Jetta Overheated Seats
Imagine driving down the road, then smelling smoke, and realizing your jeans are starting to burn. That happened to a Canadian woman, who also had her child in the back of the car. She discovered her car was one of 94,000 that had already had a recall performed to rectify the heater in the seat from short-circuiting. The Jetta, Golf, and the GTI built between 2002 and 2004 were all affected. Volkswagen Volkswagen Various Subaru Models Super Auto Start
This one affected several 2010-2012 models, including the Subaru Legacy, Subaru Outback, and Subaru Impreza. What all the cars had in common was a CVT transmission with the Audiovox remote engine starter accessory installed. The problem was that if the remote was dropped, it could "randomly transmit an engine start request without pressing the button." In non-PR speak, it could start the vehicle and cause it to run for 15 minutes or until it ran out of fuel or the remote ran out of power. Not a huge deal, unless the car was parked in an enclosed space where it could cause a build-up of carbon monoxide. Subaru Subaru Subaru Peugeot Citroen and Renault Passenger Braking
You know when you're in the passenger seat of a car with a bad driver and find yourself reflexively pressing on a brake pedal that isn't there? In Europe, some Peugeot, Citroen, and Renault passengers in UK registered models found that it was. The models affected were designed and built in France as left-hand drives cars, then adapted to become right-hand drive for the UK market. The problem was that the master brake cylinder is on the left, so the automakers added a crossbar between the master cylinder and the driver's brake pedal on the right. However, they failed to "protect" the passenger-side lever. Renault Renault Peugeot Peugeot Join The Discussion
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Chevrolet Sonic Hatchback Lincoln MKC Honda Odyssey Toyota Camry Mazda 6 Sedan Toyota Corolla Sedan BMW X3 Volkswagen Jetta Subaru Outback Ian Wright Associate Editor After working his way through several loosely related careers, Ian finally took the hint and became an automotive journalist and photographer. He spent a few years freelancing before joining up with CarBuzz to combine his love of writing, photography, and cars into one neat package. When Ian is not staring down a lens or into a computer screen writing reviews and features, you can find him in Southern California enjoying winding mountain and canyon roads. If you can’t find him, he’s probably off-roading in the desert. Contact Ian @BothHandDrive @BothHandDrive LoginSign Up Home News Features Car Reviews Car Advice 2021 CarBuzz Awards New Cars Used Cars Future Cars Compare Cars Sell My Car Car Dealerships Buy Here Pay Here Used Car Reviews Popular Tags Cars # Video # TOP # Spy Shots # Reveal # Rumor # Auto Show # Supercar # Tuning # Car Culture # Industry News # Motorsport Acura Alfa Romeo Aston Martin Audi Bentley BMW Bollinger Bugatti Buick Cadillac Caterham Chevrolet Chrysler Dodge Ferrari Fiat Fisker Ford Genesis GMC Hennessey Honda Hyundai Infiniti Jaguar Jeep Karma Kia Koenigsegg Lamborghini Land Rover Lexus Lincoln Lordstown Lotus Lucid Motors Maserati Mazda McLaren Mercedes-Benz Mini Mitsubishi Nissan Pagani Polestar Porsche Ram Rimac Rivian Rolls-Royce Spyker Subaru Tesla Toyota Volkswagen Volvo By Make Acura Alfa Romeo Aston Martin Audi Bentley BMW Bollinger Bugatti Buick Cadillac Caterham Chevrolet Chrysler Dodge Ferrari Fiat Fisker Ford Genesis GMC Hennessey Honda Hyundai Infiniti Jaguar Jeep Karma Kia Koenigsegg Lamborghini Land Rover Lexus Lincoln Lordstown Lotus Lucid Motors Maserati Mazda McLaren Mercedes-Benz Mini Mitsubishi Nissan Pagani Polestar Porsche Ram Rimac Rivian Rolls-Royce Spyker Subaru Tesla Toyota Volkswagen Volvo By Car Type SUVs Crossovers Sedans Coupes Trucks Sports Cars Wagons Vans Hatchbacks Convertibles Small Cars Luxury Cars Electric Cars Hybrid Cars Future Cars By Price Up to $15K $15K - $25K $25K - $35K $35K - $45K $45K - $55K $55K - $75K $75K - $100K $100K - $200K $200K - $300K Above $300K Back To Top