April is National Car Care Month - be sure to remind your customers and provide them this link with helpful hints on your websites and Facebook pages.

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DETROIT -- General Motors is warning owners of almost 800,000 2010-12 vehicles that they may need oil changes more frequently than their onboard oil monitoring systems are telling them.  After high warranty claims on several models with four-cylinder engines, GM will reprogram software to make oil change warning lights go on sooner.

The change only affects 2010-2012 Chevrolet Equinox, GMC Terrain and Buick LaCrosse and Regal models with 2.4-liter LAF and LEA four-cylinder engines.

GM sent letters asking 778,956 owners of those vehicles to take them back to dealerships. The service will be done at no charge until Feb. 28, 2015. The program involves vehicles in the United States as well as any affected vehicles that were exported.

Owner's manuals say the engine oil and filter must be changed at least once a year. Further guidance appears on a display screen that expresses remaining oil life as a percentage. Driving style and environment play a role in the readings.

GM began updating the software in December after noticing warranty claims for worn-out balance chains. The company declined to disclose the number of claims.  Product investigators found that recalibrating the oil-life monitor will help the chains last longer.

A GM spokesperson said the program is not a recall because it does not involve a safety issue.  Clarence Ditlow, executive director of the Center for Auto Safety in Washington, said a safety recall never expires, as opposed to the limited time frame of a voluntary equipment-modification program that does not involve a safety issue.

Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia are recalling almost 1.9 million vehicles to fix problems with air bags and brake light switches. The switch recall covers almost 1.7 million vehicles - most of the automakers' model lineups from the 2007 through 2011 model years. In addition, Hyundai Motor Co. is recalling about 194,000 Elantra compacts from 2011 to 2013 to fix an air bag problem.

A faulty switch can stop the brake lights from illuminating when drivers press on the pedal, the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in documents posted Wednesday on its website. Also, the cruise control may not turn off when a driver steps on the brake, push-to-start buttons may not work, and a feature that stops the driver from shifting out of park without a foot on the brake may fail. "Failure to illuminate the stop lamps during braking or inability to disengage the cruise control could increase the risk of a crash," NHTSA said in the documents.

As do many automakers, Hyundai and Kia try to use the same parts in as many cars as possible to get a better price from parts suppliers and make manufacturing simpler.  Both automakers are owned by the same company and use the same underpinnings for their cars and SUVs. Hyundai models affected by the brake light switch recall include the 2007 to 2009 Accent and Tucson, the 2007 to 2010 Elantra, the 2011 Sonata, the 2007 to 2011 Santa Fe, the 2008 to 2009 Veracruz and the 2010 to 2011 Genesis Coupe. Kia models include the 2007 to 2010 Rondo and Sportage, the 2011 Optima, the 2007 to 2011 Sorento, the 2010 to 2011 Soul and the 2007 Sedona.

The recall is in addition to a 2009 recall for a similar problem with the brake light switches.

Hyundai and Kia will notify owners and dealers will replace the switches free of charge. Kia will send notifications in May, while Hyundai expects to send them in June, after enough replacement parts are shipped to dealers.

In the Elantra air bag recall, a support bracket can come loose when the side air bags are inflated and cause injuries. In one case, the bracket cut a driver's ear. NHTSA began investigating the problem last year and traced it to cars that had auto-dimming rear-view mirrors installed after arriving at U.S. ports from South Korea. Technicians installing the mirrors could dislodge the bracket, the investigation found.

Dealers will install industrial adhesive strips to keep the brackets in place at no cost to the owners. Hyundai will notify owners during the second quarter of this year.