2010-2011 Chevy Camaro Plagued by Passenger-Side Airbag Defect, Class Action Claims

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General Motors faces a proposed class action wherein an Arizona driver alleges the 2010-2011 Chevrolet Camaro is plagued by a defect that may cause the right frontal passenger airbag to fail to deploy in the event of an accident. 

According to the 54-page complaint, numerous Camaro owners and lessees have reported their airbag warning lights turning on and off when a passenger is seated in the vehicle, indicating the airbag may fail to deploy in a crash. As a result of the apparent defect, Camaro drivers have found it necessary to replace the passenger-side airbag sensor and/or other components “at considerable expense,” the case says. 

For its part, General Motors has known of the apparent Camaro airbag defect for more than a decade yet has neither notified drivers nor offered to fix the problem or reimburse those who’ve paid out of pocket to address the issue, the plaintiff alleges. Since the vehicles’ release, “hundreds, if not thousands” of Camaro drivers have experienced the airbag defect, the lawsuit claims, nodding to the volume of consumer complaints submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and elsewhere online as clearly demonstrating the issue is “widespread and dangerous.” 

Per the complaint, which includes a number of driver complaints submitted to the NHTSA, the cost to repair the passenger-side airbag issue “can be exorbitant.” 

With regard to GM’s alleged knowledge of the airbag defect, the lawsuit says the automaker began issuing to dealers in 2010 technical service bulletins pertaining to the airbag systems found in affected Camaro models. To date, GM has not recalled 2010-2011 Camaros over the airbag defect, the suit says. 

“Had Plaintiff and Class Members known about the Airbag Defect, they would not have purchased the Class Vehicles or would have paid less for them,” the complaint reads.

According to the lawsuit, the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation (TREAD) Act requires vehicle manufacturers to promptly and accurately notify owners and lessees, as well as the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, upon learning of a defect. General Motors “violated and continues to violate” the TREAD Act in that it’s failed to both disclose the true nature and extent of the Camaro airbag defect and offer an adequate remedy, the suit alleges. 

The lawsuit looks to cover drivers nationwide, as well as a Minnesota-only subclass, who bought or leased any 2010 or 2011 Chevy Camaro. 

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