In its lead story, the CBS Evening News (4/10, lead story, 2:50, Pelley, 5.08M) reported that it “got worse” on Thursday for GM “and the owners of more than two and a half million recalled cars.” CBS (Glor) added that GM said that in addition to the problems with the ignition, “keys in the recalled vehicles can be pulled out while the engine is running.” CBS also said that GM announced that it suspended two engineers as part of the ignition switch investigation.
The New York Times (4/11, Vlasic, Subscription Publication, 9.65M) reports GM said “it had suspended two engineers, with pay, as part of its internal investigation of its decade-long failure to recall defective ignition switches in Chevrolet Cobalts and other small cars.” Reps. Tim Murphy (R-PA) and Fred Upton (R-MI) said in a statement, “Although the two employees on leave played a part in G.M.’s safety failure, there are still many unanswered questions about who else was involved and the extent of the breakdown.”
The Wall Street Journal (4/11, Bennett, Lublin, Subscription Publication, 5.51M) reports that GM on Thursday estimated that the costs of repairing the recalled vehicles had climbed to $1.3 billion, which is more than three times the company’s original estimate.