GM Recalls Another 825,000+ Vehicles with Faulty Headlights

General Motors announced Wednesday that it is recalling more than 825,000 vehicles, including some 740,108 vehicles in the United States and 85,685 in Canada.

The company is taking the action on: 2021-23 Buick Envision, 2020-23 Cadillac CT4 and CT5, Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, as well as the 2022-23 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Yukon and Yukon XL because the daytime running lights may not shut off when the headlights come on.

According to NHTSA, the vehicles do not meet the criteria of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108 for lighting, reflecting devices, and related equipment. Daytime running lights “may result in a glare, limiting vision and raising the danger of a crash” if they do not turn off as intended, the government warned.

To fix the issue, GM will have dealers update the software or will revise the software through over-the-air updates, depending on the vehicle. The automaker is not aware of any crashes, injuries or deaths as a result of the lighting gremlin. 

Dealers have already been notified, having been told Dec. 8. Owners should start receiving notifications Jan. 23.

Not a first-time problem

GM’s recall on Wednesday greatly expands the number of vehicles affected by the headlight recall. In November, the automaker announced a recall of 340,000 2021 Chevrolet Tahoes and Suburbans, as well as some GMC Yukons and Cadillac Escalades for the same reason. The new recall greatly expands the number of vehicles affected by the faulty headlight software. Owners of those vehicles will be notified by mail beginning on Dec. 19

So far this year, GM has issued 29 recalls affecting nearly 3.3 million vehicles. Recreational vehicle manufacturer Forest River, Stellantis, Daimler, Volkswagen Group and Ford have had more recalls than GM, with Ford topping the list with 65 recalls impacting more than 8.6 million vehicles, according to NHTSA. Mercedes-Benz, Kia Motors America, Navistar, Hyundai Motor America, Tesla, Inc. and BMW of North America have had fewer. 

The action comes a day after Stellantis announced plans to recall 1.4 million full-size Ram pickups from the 2019 to 2022 model years because the tailgate may open while trucks is being driven. Of those, some 1.23 million were sold in the U.S., 120,000 in Canada with the remainder sold in Mexico and outside of North America.