Unintended Key Rotation? Whatever you call it, there's a recall.

Americans recently celebrated the 4th of July with a weekend full of hot dogs fireworks and a massive GM recall -- which, let's face it, is becoming as All-American as apple pie. This latest action by General Motors involves 8.4 million vehicles.

That's more defective cars and trucks than:

• The combined population of New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Montana, Delaware, South Dakota, Alaska, North Dakota, Vermont (Yes, there are people -- not just cows -- in VT) and Wyoming.
• The number of calories my Uncle Hank ate over the holiday weekend. Seriously, he's a bottomless pit.

According to GM, this latest round of problems involves mostly ignition switch related issues that are responsible for at least 7 crashes, 8 injuries and 3 deaths. The full list and details can be found here.

Unintended Key Rotation ∞

The largest part of the recall involves 7.6 million vehicles that suffer from, what GM is calling, "unintended ignition key rotation." Of course, there's another name for that too -- "unintended holy %$#! my car just shut itself off on the highway." This is dangerous and affects a wide range of cars:

• 1997-2005 Chevrolet Malibu
• 1998-2002 Oldsmobile Intrigue
• 1999-2004 Oldsmobile Alero
• 1999-2005 Pontiac Grand Am
• 2000-2005 Chevrolet Impala
• 2000-2005 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
• 2004-2008 Pontiac Grand Prix

What To Do Next ∞

1. GM has not announced when the recall will begin
   It should be in the next couple months but it's probably hard to gauge when you have 29 million vehicles in your repair queue.
2. Keep an eye on your mailbox for an official recall notice with more details
   Not literally, though. Putting your eye on the mailbox sounds painful and will probably worry the neighbors.
3. GM is stressing the importance of removing all items from your key ring, leaving only the vehicle key
   At least until your ignition is fixed. Sorry bowling league keychain -- you have to go.

Want to Learn More?

Ignition Switch Safety Recall

In February, 2014, General Motors recalled 1.6 million vehicles because of a faulty ignition switch that has been linked to the deaths of 13 people. To make matters worse, the company may have known about the defect for over a decade.