A major scandal is brewing in Brazil over Chevrolet Onix cars, reports daily-motor.ru. General Motors may be required to pay $500 million in compensation to vehicle owners after selling over 1 million units of unsafe Chevrolet Onix models between 2012 and 2018.
The Brazilian Federal Prosecutor’s Office is seeking to hold General Motors accountable, demanding compensation for all accident victims who suffered due to the car’s lack of safety features.
The controversy revolves around claims that Chevrolet intentionally sold unsafe Onix models in Brazil while exporting versions of the same car with additional protective reinforcements on the side panels.
In 2017, the independent organization Latin-NCAP conducted a crash test, in which Chevrolet Onix received zero stars for side-impact safety. This led to a lawsuit against General Motors in 2020.
General Motors argues that Latin-NCAP is not an official regulatory body and its ratings do not represent legally binding safety standards.
Other popular models in Brazil also received low safety ratings, including:
* Renault Sandero, Renault Logan, Hyundai HB20,
* Citroen C3, Citroen C3 Aircross, Ford Ka, Fiat Argo.
However, Brazilian prosecutors have focused specifically on Chevrolet, despite the company asserting that Onix models sold in Brazil complied with national safety regulations at the time.
Interestingly, soon after the controversy began, Chevrolet added the missing side-impact protection to Onix models sold in Brazil, which had previously only been included in export versions.
General Motors executives declined to comment, citing the ongoing legal proceedings.
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