GM Recalls ‘Switchblade’ Key FOB

Today, GM announced four new recalls… If you merely read the shock and awe headlines, you’d think that every Camaro from 2010 – 2014 was being recalled due to ignition failures; this is not true. One of the recalls is for the ‘Switchblade’ Key FOB that came with all 5th Gen Camaros, and this is the official quote from GM:

“The company will change the Camaro key to a standard design from one in which the key is concealed in the FOB and is opened by pushing a button. The change will make the ignition key and FOB independent of each other, so that inadvertent contact with the FOB won’t move the key from the “run” position. There are 464,712 Camaros from the 2010-2014 model years in the U.S. included in the recall.”

If taken out of context, “Camaros from the 2010-2014 model years in the U.S. included in the recall”, would scare any 5th gen Camaro owner straight to the dealership for answers. Thankfully, many of us aren’t so easily spooked and we tend to do a bit more research. As stated in the FULL quote above, it’s merely an issue with the current “switchblade” key FOB.

Apparently, if hit the key FOB hard enough with your knee, at the proper angle, the driver could switch the ignition out of the “run” position. Doing this while driving would cause the loss of power steering, and could lead to a serious accident. GM will be replacing our beloved “switchblade” key FOB with a standard key and remote. I suppose I should say replacing “some” of our key FOB’s, because there are several of us who have no issues with knee-to-key distance, rarely flail our right legs around while driving, and won’t be giving up our “switchblade” key FOB’s without a fight.