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The Internal Revenue Service has announced that purchasers of General Motors Corp. qualified vehicles may continue to claim the Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit. The announcement comes after the IRS concluded its quarterly review of the number of hybrid vehicles sold.

GMC sold 1,388 qualifying vehicles to retail dealers in the quarter ending June 30, 2006. The credit amount and make and model of qualified vehicles sold are:

• GMC Silverado Hybrid 2WD, Model Years 2006 and 2007 — $250
• GMC Silverado Hybrid 4WD, Model Years 2006 and 2007 — $650
• GMC Sierra Hybrid 2WD, Model Years 2006 and 2007 — $250
• GMC Sierra Hybrid 4WD, Model Years 2006 and 2007 — $650
• Saturn Vue GreenLine, Model Year 2007 — $650

Purchasers of GMC’s qualified vehicles may continue to rely on the certifications concerning the vehicles’ qualification for the credit. Consumers seeking the credit may want to buy early because the full credit is only available for a limited time.

Taxpayers may claim the full amount of the credit up to the end of the first calendar quarter after the quarter in which the manufacturer records its sale of the 60,000th vehicle. For the second and third calendar quarters after the quarter in which the 60,000th vehicle is sold, taxpayers may claim 50 percent of the credit. For the fourth and fifth calendar quarters, taxpayers may claim 25 percent of the credit. No credit is allowed after the fifth quarter.

Posted under Automotive

General Motors’ Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup trucks for model years 1999 and 2000 have been recalled. According to the manufacturer and supported by government documents, cables securing the truck’s tailgate can be corroded.

Approximately 900,000 vehicles are affected by this recall, which comes just days after the U.S.’ biggest automaker recalled 4 million vehicles from later years for the same reason.

Posted under Automotive, Recalls

Following an announcement earlier this week that seat belts on hundreds of thousands of its vehicles could be at fault, General Motors announced just before the holiday that another 550,000 also potentially could experience safety problems.

This latest recall covers vehicles in Delaware, Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Wisconsin and the District of Columbia. The vehicles are the 1999 through 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverador and GMC Yukon.

Posted under Automotive, Recalls

The United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has notified consumers of a recall affecting 425,593 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana for the 2003-2006 model years. According to the government agency, some of the front and rear seat belt buckles do not latch or unlatch. The agency also said that “in the event of a crash…occupants may not be properly restrained.”

Two conditions affect the seat belts.

The agency also said that dealers will inspect the buckles and, if found to be inoperative, the entire buckle assembly would be replaced. For buckles found to be operative, dealers will replace only the upper buckle cover. The manufacturer has not yet provided an owner notification schedule for this campaign. Owners should contact Chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438 or GMC at 1-866-996-9463.

Posted under Automotive, Recalls, Safety

General Motors and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) have issued two safety recalls for more than 200,000 vehicles.

The largest, covering 150,000 vehicles, involves brake assemblies for the 2004 and 2005 model years for the following vehicles:

• CHEVROLET / AVALANCHE
• CHEVROLET / EXPRESS
• CHEVROLET / KODIAK
• CHEVROLET / SILVERADO
• CHEVROLET / SUBURBAN
• GMC / SAVANA
• GMC / SIERRA
• GMC / TOPKICK
• GMC / YUKON XL
• HUMMER / H2

The second recall is for 20,000 model year 2004 cars regarding the accelerator pedal assembly. The vehicles being recalled are:

• CADILLAC / SRX
• CADILLAC / XLR
• PONTIAC / GRAND PRIX

In both situations, consumers can call NHTSA’s toll-free Auto Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 for more information.

Posted under Automotive, Recalls