GM recalling SUVs, pickups

General Motors Corp. said Tuesday it was recalling about 800,000 sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks in 14 northern states because corrosion was affecting the antilock brake system, leading to more than 200 low-speed crashes.

GM, the world’s largest automaker, said the recall involved the 1999-2002 model years of the Chevrolet Avalanche, Chevrolet Silverado, Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Sierra, GMC Yukon and GMC Yukon XL.

In separate moves, Hyundai Motor Corp. issued a recall of the 2006 Sonata sedan, and the government announced an investigation of the 2002 Jeep Liberty.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation in late April of more than 1.2 million GM pickups and SUVs in 20 states because of questions over the antilock brakes. The investigation is pending.

GM spokesman Alan Adler said road grime can wedge its way into a plastic piece that covers the ABS sensor near the wheel hub, resulting in salt corrosion.

Arizona seizes millions from Wachovia account

Phoenix Arizona authorities have seized $101 million from a bank account that may belong to a hedge fund being investigated for fraud.

The Arizona Attorney General’s Office seized the money on May 19 from a Wachovia Corp. account after authorities were alerted that the funds were being moved systematically all over the world – often an indication of fraud, Attorney General Terry Goddard said Tuesday after media and investors’ lawyers began inquiring about the money.

Prosecutors’ inquiries into the source of the money were met with “artful stories,” including one involving an Arizona gold mine, said Goddard.

Since the seizure, several claims of ownership have been made including one by Majestic Capital Management, the account holder, and Bayou Management LLC, a hedge-fund based in Stamford, Conn., which is being investigated by officials in that state.