OnStar Glitch Halts Some GM Vehicle Deliveries

General Motors Co. is reprogramming the OnStar telematics software in about 60,000 Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet and GMC vehicles.

GM says affected models, many of which have been held on dealer lots until they are repaired, include the 2012 Cadillac SRX crossover and 2013 Buick Verano sedan; Cadillac ATS and XTS sedans; Chevrolet Cruze small car, Equinox crossover and Volt extended-range hybrid; and GMC Terrain crossover.

The software glitch prevents the vehicle from automatically alerting OnStar's call center of a crash such as a collision from behind in which the airbags don't deploy. GM tells Automotive News, which first reported the problem, that all other OnStar features, including notification when the airbags are triggered by a crash, work as they should.

The company emphasizes that the flaw does not interfere with airbag deployment.

GM says it is conducting a "customer satisfaction campaign" to fix the issue in vehicles that have already been sold. The company hopes to reprogram the software remotely through OnStar. If that fails, owners will be notified to bring their vehicles to a dealership. GM tells dealers it expects the updates to be completed by late September.