General Motors
Monday's recall was prompted by reports that the adhesives used to seal the vehicles' windshield wiper units might be defective, allowing water to leak into the cars and cause short circuits. Last week's recall was related to an electrical problem with the steering columns in certain 1998-2001 models.
While GM does not consider the situation with either defect to be terribly urgent -- owners will not even be officially notified of the car recall until March, and owners of the SUVs will start receiving notices in July -- the company's continuing quality control difficulties poses a dilemma for shareholders.
GM is currently the largest auto manufacturer in the world by sales. For 2003, it sold approximately 8.4 million vehicles, followed by Toyota Motor
But the reputation that GM and fellow U.S. car manufacturers Ford and Chrysler (now DaimlerChrysler
Unless General Motors stops putting out cars like Microsoft
Are you worried for GM's future as the world's No. 1 auto maker? What do you make of the serial recalls? Ruminate with other Fools on the General Motors discussion board. Only on Fool.com.
Rich Smith actually owns a GM truck -- but while it has plenty of glitches and blemishes, he bought it used on eBay and so has no cause to blame GM for his particular troubles. He owns no shares in any company mentioned in this article.