Recalls

Product recalls or recall notices announced recently. Details are available in most cases at www.cpsc.gov and other websites or the telephone numbers listed.

BMW cars
BMW AG is recalling 1.3 million 5- and 6-series cars worldwide from the 2003 to 2010 model years.?The company says that in rare cases a battery cable covering in the trunk was incorrectly installed.?The defect could prevent the car from starting and in extreme cases could lead to a fire. BMW says it knows of no accidents or injuries from the defect.?The company said owners will be notified by letter and that the repair should take about 30 minutes.

GM SUVs, vans
General Motors is recalling more than 6,000 big vans and SUVs because their steering can fail.?The recall affects certain 2012 Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana vans, and Chevrolet Suburban and GMC Yukon XL SUVs.?The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said a gear shaft can break, causing a loss of steering. GM says no crashes or injuries have been reported.?GM dealers will inspect the steering gear shaft and replace it if necessary.

Power strips
About 7,200 Lush Life power strips imported by the Container Store Inc., of Coppell, Texas; sold at the Container Stores nationwide and on the firm’s website www.container?store.com from October through December 2011. The power strips come in three designs of Scroll (black with white scroll), Dot (blue with orange, white and lime green dots and a lime green cord) and Zebra (black and white zebra stripes). They have three-foot power cords and six-outlet power strips. The power strips were manufactured in China. They have undersized wiring, and the wiring and plastic strip fail to meet the requirements for fire resistance, posing a fire hazard. No incidents have been reported. Details: by phone at 888-266-8246 Monday to Saturday, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. EST, and on Sunday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. EST; online www.container?store.com.

Espresso discs
About 2.1 million packages in the U.S. (1.9 million in Canada) of Tassimo espresso T Discs manufactured by Kraft Foods Global Inc., of Northfield, Ill., and sold at department, mass merchandise, home improvement and other stores nationwide and online from August 2011 through February 2012. The recall involves Gevalia, Maxwell House and Nabob brand espresso T Discs. The T Discs are plastic discs filled with coffee that are inserted into Tassimo coffee makers to brew single cups of hot espresso drinks. They were sold in packages of eight or 16 espresso T Discs. The T discs were made in the United States. The espresso T Discs can become clogged and spray hot liquid and coffee grounds onto consumers and bystanders during or after brewing, posing a burn hazard. There have been 21 reports of incidents of hot liquid and/or coffee grounds spraying onto consumers and bystanders, including four reports of second-degree burn injuries.

Details: by phone at 866-918-8763 weekdays, 8 a.m.-8 p.m. EST and Saturdays, 8 a.m.-?1 p.m. EST; online at www.?tassimosafetyrecall.com.

Teapots
About 2,100 Dancing Teapots imported by Ganz U.S.A. LLC, of Cheektowaga, N.Y.; sold at tea and coffee specialty stores, gift stores, drug stores, kitchen supply stores, hospital gift shops and other retailers nationwide from December 2011 through January 2012. The Ganz ceramic teapots are tilted to appear as if they are dancing. The 32-ounce teapots measure about 10 inches tall and 8 inches wide. They were sold in blue, yellow, green, orange, pink and black. The teapots were manufactured in China. The handle can get extremely hot when there is hot water in the teapot, posing a burn hazard. No incidents have been reported. Details: by phone at 800-724-5902 Monday-Thursday, 9 a.m.-7 p.m. EST, and Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. EST; online at www.ganz.com.