Back in May of 2009, General Motors issued the first ever recall for its then new, fifth generation Camaro that was sold as a 2010 model, only a few weeks after launch.
The recall affected 1,243 Camaro SS coupes equipped with a V8 engine because of a short-circuit risk that could lead to a fire. The culprit was a positive battery cable that could rub against the starter motor housing causing wear on the cable insulation.
In all recall cases, the automaker directly or through one of its dealers, contacts owners of the affected models to inform them about the problem and how and when it will be fixed (which is stated in GM's Recall Bulletin that you can find below).
One owner of the 2010 Camaro SS, however, claims that he didn't know about the defect and the recall, and as a result, his beloved muscle car went up in flames burning nearly everything from the windshield and forth.
The owner's name is Christopher J. Williams and he posted a video of what remains of his burned Camaro SS on YouTube.
Now, you'll probably be wondering why he did that, but before we get to that, allow us to tell you that Williams says his insurance paid off the rest of the loan on his car.
What Williams wants, is for General Motors to finance him a new 2012 a 2013 Camaro ZL1 (that's the $54,350 flagship of the series with a scorching –pun intended – 580hp supercharged V8), because his credit union allegedly won't lend him any money.
From the video alone, we cannot confirm that Williams' car was burnt because of the aforesaid cable defect nor if -as he claims- neither GM or one of its dealers came in contact with him, but this is what he stated on YouTube:
"It caught fire. We do not know why". In a comment under the alias / YouTube Channel name, "kkriskringle", he continues: "I was never notified of the recall. If I had, I would have taken it in as fast as possible."
As for what he would like GM to do, Williams states: "I am not asking GM to give me a new car. I am asking Dan Akerson to order his GM financing division to finance a 2012 or 2013 ZL1 for me. I can handle $600.00 per month payments no problem. This car was my dream and I loved her. Please GM stand behind your product."
He also explains why he can't be financed: "I had a full time job when I bought the car but I own my own company now and banks are scared to lend money to a new business owner. GM Please sell me a ZL1 and finance it for me. I will make all the payments but I need your help. I am an average working Joe working hard. I am a Chevy man and I deserve to be helped out."
You can check out Williams' video-plea right past the break, and then head to the comments to voice your thoughts.
POLL: Should GM help Williams finance a new Camaro?
12 Comments:
if the camaro burn because of gm negligence, its a good compensation the zl1
Don't bother buying a Government Motors car, we are all still bailing them out! There are plenty of other choices out there.
I was with him up to the Lambo doors.
SS for a SS
Give him another car, for God's sakes!
If he's only asking them only to finance the car, then just go ahead GM. It's another car sold and good advertising. And then just wait for the million letters you'll receive from other potencial buyers without credit asking you for the same thing. Because this is a really good idea.
If it is determined that the cause was because of recalled items then it would be big of GM to make the deal. But I don't see that they owe it to him.
What was the combustible, the wire sheath? A short circuit there would cause the wire to light up and melt but it didn't really look that way. It didn't seem to be the cause based on its looks but it did suffer damage from the fire.
If your credit is good and he made payments timely...why can't the bank who finance the first car finance the second chevy camaro??? GM finance is bank as well and I imagine they might look at it as an risk to them due to his change in employment. And the first bank that finance his car and hopefully had no issues with him paying timely who can't support a customer due to a lost of not his own sucks in my opinion
Then wouldn't you want him to buy one so that bailout would be finished and you could then stop being an asshole with the same old boring mindless response to anything GM?
Probably not because I'm sure you feel good being an asshole.
This sounds a little bogus. I bet this guy just wants the updated SS and he couldn't get a loan so he did this thinking that his insurance would pay for the new car, but it probably didn't cover for another SS. I bet he want the ZL1 instead.
There's enough speculation here to question.
I saw this coming a long time ago. Surprised not more of these VE Commodore based cars don't go up in smoke. The LS series V8 engines are notorious for running real hot. In pre VE (VZ and bellow) this wasn't much of an issue because there was plenty of room under the bonnet for air to flow and keep temps down. With the VE design, Holden really tried hard to keep things really compact under the hood and mount the Ls V8 deeper and lower into the car. Something has to give, the heat has to go somewhere. The underpinnings of the Camaro is based on the Holden VE Commodore as the Camaro was designed and engineered in Australia by Holden. Hilarious as we don't even get to drive it.
Should as GM to finance a Skyline instead.
Post a Comment