NEW YORK (Reuters) - General Motors Co had ordered a half-million new replacement ignition switches nearly two months before it told federal safety regulators about the safety issues which prompted a recall of millions of vehicles this year, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.
The automaker placed an "urgent" order for 500,000 replacement switches to fix Chevrolet Cobalts and other small cars, one day after a meeting of senior executives last December, the Journal said, citing e-mails viewed by the publication.
The e-mail exchanges took place in mid-December 2013 between a GM contract worker and the company's ignition-switch supplier, Delphi Automotive PLC, WSJ said. GM announced its recall in February 2014.
GM's recall of about 2.6 million vehicles concern a faulty ignition switch, which could cause it to slip out of position, cutting power to air bags, steering and brakes. A federal judge in Manhattan has set Jan. 11, 2016 for the first trial in consolidated litigation against GM over the safety issues that prompted the recalls.
(Reporting by Ashley Lau in New York; Editing by Chris Reese)
