Car company to fix SUV recall

DETROIT - General Motors Corp. plans to resume production today of its three new sport utility vehicles, having pinpointed a remedy to a flaw that forced this month's recall of 6,000 of the vehicles.

The vehicles are assembled at a plant in Moraine, Ohio, which was temporarily idled because of the recall.

On April 5, the world's largest automaker asked customers who bought 2002 models of the Chevrolet TrailBlazer, GMC Envoy or Oldsmobile Bravada to immediately stop driving the SUVs, citing safety concerns over a suspension part.

GM said yesterday it has traced the problem to a bracket linking the lower control arm of the front suspension to the vehicle frame. Any break in the bracket, GM said, could cause drivers to lose control of the questioned SUVs.

The automaker said it is sending replacement parts to dealers, who will fix the problem for free and return the affected SUVs to their owners, washed and with a full tank of gas.

There have been no reports of accidents or injuries related to the problem, and GM's "aggressive action" in recalling the vehicles was to ensure no one was harmed, spokesman Mike Morrissey said.

The 3,000-worker Moraine plant where the SUVs were built will resume production today, GM said. Morrissey said the extent of production would depend on available replacement parts, which first will be directed to affected customers, then to dealers for their inventories.

"We're comfortable that we'll get to full production shortly," Morrissey said.

Without specifying the recall's costs, John Devine, GM's chief financial officer, said yesterday the company will lose production of 8,000 to 10,000 of the new SUVs in the second quarter because of the problem.