General Motors India (GMI) on Wednesday said it is recalling 1.14 lakh units of its multi-purpose vehicle Chevrolet Tavera to address emission and compliance issues. This is the largest such recall in India and the third by automakers this month.
The automobile company is recalling Tavera vehicles manufactured between 2005 and 2013 (BS3 2.5L and BS4 2L variants).
In a statement, GMI said the affected vehicles will be repaired free of charge across its 280 dealers. The statement also noted that there were no safety-related issues.
GMI had stopped production and sale of the Tavera BS3 on June 4 and the Tavera BS4 on July 2.
The company says it has also informed the Government about an emission issue involving the Tavera BS3 and an issue with the Tavera BS4 meeting certain specifications.
GMI, which says it has identified a solution for the issues and performed the required engineering validation, is now awaiting regulatory approvals.
After approval from the authorities, it will resume production and sale of the Tavera, and move forward with its recall and customer notification plan for both the BS3 and BS4 models, the statement added.
PTI adds: The Road Ministry has formed a panel to probe into the recall and it will decide if any penal action would be taken against the company.
According to sources in the Ministry of Road transport and Highways, Nitin Gokarn, CEO, National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project has been asked to head the committee.
“The committee will find out how it happened when there are standard emission norms specified in detail by the government,” a ministry official told PTI.
When asked by when the committee would submit its report, the official, without sharing a timeline, said: “As soon as possible.”
rajesh.kurup@thehindu.co.in