GM Recalls 50,500 2011 Cadillac SRXs Over Airbag-related Software Glitch
Problem with airbags for rear seat
GM is recalling 50,500 Cadillac SRX cross-over vehicles because of a software glitch that may not allow the deployment of airbags for passengers sitting in the right rear seat during a crash, reports a blog post at Zacks Investment Research.
According to GM, the post says:
"...the front passenger is supposed to deploy even if no one is seated. However, the air bags are programmed in such a way that the airbag system will be turned off in case someone does not sit in the front passenger seat."
"Therefore, in case of an accident, the front passenger-side airbag will not open up, thereby leaving passengers at the rear seat at risk. As a result, the company needs to reprogram the airbag software system."
Sounds like a glitch in GM's software design and testing approach which needs to be reprogrammed as well.
The recall (NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number:11V308000) affects 47,401 SRXs sold in the US, with the remainder sold in Canada and Mexico.
Earlier this year, Nissan issued a service bulletin for 5,300 of its new battery-powered Nissan Leaf vehicles to correct a software problem that would keep some of them from restarting after an air conditioner sensor was activated and the vehicle turned off.
Robert N. Charette is a Contributing Editor to IEEE Spectrum and an acknowledged international authority on information technology and systems risk management. A self-described “risk ecologist,” he is interested in the intersections of business, political, technological, and societal risks. Charette is an award-winning author of multiple books and numerous articles on the subjects of risk management, project and program management, innovation, and entrepreneurship. A Life Senior Member of the IEEE, Charette was a recipient of the IEEE Computer Society’s Golden Core Award in 2008.