Police Cars Recalled for Suspension Flaw, 1,700 Affected

Luke Vandezande
by Luke Vandezande

Police cruisers need to be tougher than most, which is why it’s especially surprising that 1,713 police-spec Chevrolet Impalas ranging from model years 2008 to 2012 are being recalled for having faulty front suspensions.

Short of being shipped without brakes, there isn’t a whole lot that could be worse for a cop than having the front control arms fracture during a high-speed chase, but that’s exactly what might occur in the vehicles affected by this recall. At low speeds, drivers will probably notice tire squeal or chirping during turns, but the consequences will be more severe under stressful chase situations.
Transport Canada, the governing body similar to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, issued the recall because under certain conditions the defect could mean drivers losing control of the vehicle.
Given that the Impala is widely used among U.S. police forces, there’s a good chance the recall will jump borders soon. Dealerships in Canada will replace the faulty parts, though this particular recall isn’t likely to affect many civilians.
UPDATE: Since this story was published, GM announced that it will recall 36,413 police Impalas in the U.S. for the same issue.
Luke Vandezande
Luke Vandezande

Luke is an energetic automotive journalist who spends his time covering industry news and crawling the internet for the latest breaking story. When he isn't in the office, Luke can be found obsessively browsing used car listings, drinking scotch at his favorite bar and dreaming of what to drive next, though the list grows a lot faster than his bank account. He's always on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> looking for a good car conversation. Find Luke on <A title="@lukevandezande on Twitter" href="http://twitter.com/lukevandezande">Twitter</A> and <A title="Luke on Google+" href="http://plus.google.com/112531385961538774338?rel=author">Google+</A>.

More by Luke Vandezande

Comments
Join the conversation
Next