Holden Cruze recalled because the handbrake might not work

HOLDEN has issued its eighth recall in just five months. Other models could catch fire or lurch forward while parked, now the handbrake could slip.

Holden recalls 21,000 more cars - Holden Cruze Picture: Supplied

HOLDEN is recalling more than 21,000 versions of its Cruze small car because the handbrake could slip, causing a potential hazard to pedestrians and other parked cars.

The latest recall means that Holden has now recalled almost half of all Cruze cars sold in Australia: 73,000 of the 152,000 it has sold since 2009.

The latest recall affects Cruze models made in Adelaide as well as those imported from South Korea.

A statement from Holden says certain Cruze models made between 2010 and 2012 fitted with a manual transmission “have experienced unintended vehicle movement after being parked on particular inclined surfaces”.

In other words, the car has rolled backwards or forwards when parked on a hill.

Holden says it has issued the recall after customer reported “a small number of incidents”.

Holden said in a statement: “The Cruze park brake system meets all the relevant regulatory standards however if the recommended procedure for parking the vehicle, as specified in the vehicle owner’s handbook, is not followed and the park brake lever is not applied as far as possible, and the brakes are at a sufficiently elevated temperature, it may be possible for unintended vehicle movement to occur sometime after the vehicle is parked.”

The Cruze safety campaign is Holden’s eighth recall in just five months — more than any other car brand — and Holden is now on its way to beating last year’s tally of 14 recalls in a calendar year.

The recalls.gov.au website has published a link for the Holden Cruze recall but the website is experiencing problems opening because there is so much traffic in the wake of the global airbags recall that affects 550,000 cars in Australia.

This reporter is on Twitter: @JoshuaDowling