Owner Letter
Owner LetterApril 2008
Dear General Motors Customer:
This notice is sent to you in accordance with the requirements of the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act.
General Motors has decided that a defect, which relates to motor vehicle safety, exists in certain 1997-03 model year Buick Regal and Pontiac Grand Prix model vehicles, equipped with a 3.8L V6 Supercharged engine. As a result, GM is conducting a safety recall. We apologize for this inconvenience. However, we are concerned about your safety and continued satisfaction with our products.
We recently sent you a letter about this issue in March.
Important
- Your vehicle is involved in safety recall 07035.
- Schedule an appointment with your GM dealer.
- This service will be performed for you at no charge.
Why is your vehicle being recalled?
These vehicles have higher front rocker cover gasket temperatures, creating the potential for earlier degradation of the front rocker cover gasket and eventual oil seepage. Certain underhood fires may be caused by drops of engine oil, from seepage or spillage, being deposited on the exhaust manifold through hard braking. If the manifold is hot enough and the oil runs below the heat shield, it may ignite into a small flame and, in some instances, the fire may spread to the plastic spark plug wire channel and beyond. If this occurs, there could be a fire in your vehicle and nearby property.
What will we do?
Your GM dealer will install a new front rocker cover gasket with an improved design over the original gasket and replace the spark plug wire channel with new retainers. This service will be performed for you at no charge. Because of service scheduling requirements, it is likely that your dealer will need your vehicle longer than the actual service correction time of approximately 55 minutes.
If your vehicle is within the New Vehicle Limited Warranty your dealer may provide you with shuttle service or some other form of courtesy transportation while your vehicle is at the dealership for this repair. Please refer to your Owner's Manual and your dealer for details on courtesy transportation.
What should you do?
You should contact your GM dealer to arrange a service appointment as soon as possible. Bring the enclosed customer reply form with you when you visit your dealer. The form identifies the repairs required. If you no longer own this vehicle, please let us know by completing the form and mailing it back to us.
There are two very important precautions you should take before your vehicle is serviced:
- We strongly recommend you not park your vehicle in a garage, car port, or other structure.
- If you notice a burning odor, you should have your GM dealer inspect your vehicle immediately. The dealer will inspect your vehicle without charge.
For your continued satisfaction with your vehicle, you should know:
- Your vehicle requires premium fuel (91 octane or higher). as stated in your vehicle owner's manual. Exhaust manifold temperatures are higher if regular fuel is used.
- Gaskets, including the new front rocker cover gasket that will be installed in your vehicle, eventually may need replacement. If oil seepage is observed, see your dealer for this regular maintenance.
Did you already pay for this repair?
The enclosed form explains what reimbursement is available and how to request reimbursement if you have paid for repairs for the recall condition.
Do you have questions?
If you have questions or concerns that your dealer is unable to resolve, please contact the appropriate Customer Assistance Center at the number listed below. More information about this recall can be found at the Owner Center at MyGMLink, http://www.gm.com/recall.
If after contacting your dealer and the Customer Assistance Center, you are still not satisfied we have done our best to remedy this condition without charge and within a reasonable time, you may wish to write the Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, Washington DC 20590, or call the toll-free Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1.888.327.4236 (TTY 1.800.424.9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov.
Federal regulation requires that any vehicle lessor receiving this recall notice must forward a copy of this notice to the lessee within ten days.
Scott Lawson
General Director,
Customer and Relationship Services
Enclosure
07035