Great Wall and Chery cars recalled due to asbestos!

Ateco Automotive have recalled almost 25,000 Australian-delivered Great Wall and Chery vehicles, after the discovery of the deadly substance asbestos in the engine and exhaust systems.
Ateco today claimed that handling or removing the asbestos affected components "constitutes a very low health risk". They admit that asbestos was used in the production of models from both brands.

Owners will rightly be wondering how such a situation could have arisen, and how the use of components that contain even the smallest traces of asbestos has slipped through to the Australian market.

The asbestos was discovered during routine spare parts tests by Customs and Border Protection officers a few months ago.

The ACCC is monitoring the recall, which will remove the asbestos components from affected models.

The affected Great Wall models include 21,500 utes and SUVs. The affected Chery models include 1700 J11 SUVs and 550 J3 light cars.

Great Wall X240

Recently delivered cars and the existing Chery J1 are free of asbestos and not included in the recall, according to the ACCC.

"We'll be writing to all owners very soon to explain the situation for their specific vehicle," said Ateco Automotive's Daniel Cotterill. "Included in that information will be a risk assessment done by an independent occupational health and safety consultant that outlines the risk to drivers and passengers from the asbestos in these gaskets as being negligible."

The report also notes that the danger to mechanics removing and replacing the components is minimal “even if [the work is] carried out in an uncontrolled way".

This is a terrible situation for the owners of these cars and the mechanics who have worked on them and it raises a lot of questions - particularly about the conditions of the factories where the cars were built and the health of the factory workers who handled these components.

Owners of affected Great Wall and Chery vehicles will be asked to return the vehicle to their dealership via a letter that they should receive this week.

Recall of almost 10,000 Holden Cruzes in Australia

Around 10,000 Holden Cruzes are being recalled by Holden Australia.

The recall applies to 9,547  locally built 2012 and 2013 units of the sedan fitted with the 1.4-litre turbo petrol engine. Holden said a condition has been identified where the car’s belly pan can catch oil that might drip from the engine if an oil change is not done properly. 

Holden's statement said: “If oil makes contact with hot engine parts such as the exhaust manifold or catalytic converter, a fire could occur.”

The move follows General Motors’ recall of 475,418 Chevrolet Cruze sedans in North America and Israel due to a similar fire risk.

So far there have been no reported cases of engine compartment fires caused by this problem in Australia.

Holden Director of Warranty, Customer Satisfaction and Quality, Craig Porritt said the recall is a precautionary measure and that Australia’s standards of servicing significantly reduce the risk.

“
We believe Australia’s high standards in servicing procedures significantly reduce the risk of improper oil changes which almost eliminates the risk of a thermal incident. However we will always err on the side of caution when it comes to initiating safety recalls and campaigns. Even if there have been no reported cases in our market we will take action to assure our customers and their vehicles are safe.”

Holden is contacting customers to arrange a free-of-charge modification which it expects to take around 40 minutes.

Owners are urged to contact 1800 632 826.