FleetWeek

Manufacturers have announced the following order cutoff dates for 2011 model year vehicles in the U.S.:

Ford

Crown Victoria* (4/1/2011)
Crown Victoria Police Interceptor* (3/1/2011)
Crown Victoria VSO* (2/25/2011)

GM

Buick Lucerne* (2/18/2011)
Cadillac DTS* (2/18/2011)
Cadillac STS* (2/04/2011)
Chevrolet Aveo* (2/18/2011)
Chevrolet HHR* (2/18/2011)

Toyota

Toyota Camry (2/10/2011)
Toyota Yaris (2/10/2011)

*Model will be discontinued or renamed after the 2011 model year

Please note that all timeframes listed above are tentative and subject to change. Clients looking to acquire any models approaching cutoff – particularly those that will be discontinued – are encouraged to submit orders as soon as possible.

A complete listing of announced order startup/cutoff dates is available here. Please contact a member of your account team if you have any questions about order cutoffs, production startup dates or your vehicle selector.
 

Please note that the following vehicle recalls were announced recently in the U.S.:

Chrysler

Chrysler is recalling about 144,000 vehicles in three campaigns:

The first includes over 65,000 2009 model year Dodge Journey vehicles due to potential issues with wires within the front door harness.  These wires may fatigue and break, which could interrupt the circuit and cause an airbag warning lamp to light, or cause the loss of side crashing sensing that could result in an airbag failure.

The second recall includes over 56,000 2011 Ram 1500 trucks built since September 2009 due to concerns that some may experience grinding sounds from the rear axle bearing, which may seize and increase the risk of vehicle stalling.

The third recall includes over 22,000 2008-2011 Dodge Ram 4500 and 5500 trucks, which may experience a loss of steering capabilities due to a weakening or cracking of a tie rod part.

Ford

Ford is recalling nearly 15,000 2011 model year F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450, F-550, Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles due to concerns that wiring in the Body Control Module in affected vehicles may short, possibly resulting in a fire.

For all recalls listed above, manufacturers have indicated that no injuries or deaths due to the suspected defects have been reported at this point.  Each driver affected by the recalls will receive an official recall notice and instructions directly from the manufacturer, and can have his or her vehicle repaired at a certified dealership free of charge.  Please note that drivers do not need to wait for an official recall notice to arrive before bringing their vehicles in for recall-related repairs.

Additional information on recalls is available at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website at http://www.nhtsa.gov/.
 

Clients whose insurance policies expire February 1 are reminded to send their new certificates of insurance to the Wheels Risk Management Department as soon as possible by e-mailing them to RiskManagement@wheels.com or by faxing them to 847.627.8544 for processing. Certificates must list Wheels, Inc. and Wheels LT (and Wheels Leasing Canada Ltd. if applicable) as additional insureds.

It is important to send new certificates to Wheels in a timely fashion regardless of participation in our insurance programs, as current insurance certificates are contractually required and impact many fleet-related processes. For example, expired insurance certificates affect new vehicle deliveries, vehicle license plate renewals and state/province transfers. We encourage clients to contact their risk management department/insurance broker, if necessary, to expedite the certificate process.