The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce released the
documents on Tuesday as lawmakers asked CEO Mary Barra why GM failed
to recall 2.6 million cars until more than a decade after it first
noticed a switch problem that could cut off engines and disable
airbags, power steering and power brakes.
Colorado Congresswoman Diana DeGette cited a 2005 GM document that
she said showed a cost of 57 cents per fix.
DeGette did not release the document, and Reuters was unable to get
a copy. However, Reuters obtained what appeared to be a separate
document, a series of 2005 emails between GM engineers debating
whether to make a change to the ignition switch. The change would
have cost an extra 90 cents per unit and additional tooling costs of
$400,000, one email showed. Those tooling costs typically are
amortized over several years.
Barra said she found the concept of turning down the change because
of tooling costs "very disturbing. That is not the way we do
business in the New GM."
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In the email exchange, one of the engineers, John Hendler, said his
team was prepared to continue using a switch that was made by Delphi
Automotive and approved by GM, even though Delphi told the automaker
in early 2002 that the switch did not meet GM's performance
specifications.
Hendler said the cars, including the Chevrolet Cobalt and Saturn
Ion, which were recalled this year, would continue using the old
switch "until the piece cost can be eliminated or significantly
reduced," and targeted a new switch for 2009 models. Reuters was
unable to contact Hendler.
Another GM executive, Lori Queen, who had responsibility for the
development of GM's small cars, responded, "I'm not sure it's ok to
wait." She did not explain herself in the email. Queen did not
return a call seeking comment. A General Motors spokesman said the
company was still investigating the recall and would review all
relevant documents.
Representatives repeatedly questioned Barra about GM's weighing of
costs even in safety situations. Barra said that was no longer the
case, and that the company since its 2009 bankruptcy was changing
from a "cost culture" to one focused on customers.
EMPTY BLANKS
In the early 2000s, GM, like the other Detroit automakers was under
intense cost pressure, in the face of competition from overseas
rivals and a legacy of high labor costs. Those and other financial
issues eventually led to GM's 2009 bankruptcy.
GM did change the ignition switch, in 2006, but the process did not
comply with the company's own rules, documents and testimony show.
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Parts maker Delphi told congressional investigators last week that
the redesigned switch on the 2007 models was harder to move out of
position, but the force required to turn the switch was "still below
GM's original specifications," according to a timeline released by
the investigators.
A separate, April 26, 2006, document called a "validation sign-off",
authorized changes to the switch, including a new spring, designed
to increase the force required to move the switch.
The document showed that the part number did not change, when
redesigned, an issue which GM said hampered its own internal
investigation.
"It is inconceivable," Barra said, when asked about the design
change without a corresponding change in part number. "It is not our
process."
Moreover, several fields on the document marked as "required" are
left blank or with "N/A", including purchase order number and
"validation engineer".
The document has the signature of GM "lead engineer" Ray DeGiorgio,
who could not be reached for comment. In a 2013 deposition in a suit
against GM, DeGiorgio had said he was unaware of a change in the
part.
A retired GM manager familiar with the automaker's engineering and
manufacturing procedures said that another manager would have had to
sign off on the part, by company policy, given DeGiorgio's
relatively low seniority. "So who approved a design change without a
part number change?"
Barra confirmed that DeGiorgio is still employed by the company and
said she has not yet heard his explanation for signing the 2006
document.
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The redesigned ignition switch was installed on 2007 Chevrolet
Cobalts and Saturn Ions in late 2006, GM has said.
(Reporting by Paul Lienert in Detroit and Marilyn Thompson in
Washington; additional reporting by Simon Gardner in Mexico City and
Nick Carey in Chicago; editing by Peter Henderson)
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