Much to the frustration of lawmakers who are members of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, General Motors chief executive officer Mary Barra could not give direct answers to pointed questions regarding the automakers handling of ignition switch problems in millions of recalled vehicles.

Barra often referenced the ongoing efforts of U.S. Attorney Anton Valukas to conduct “a thorough and unimpeded investigation of the actions of General Motors.”

When representative after representative wanted Barra to answer either “yes” or “no” as to when the OEM knew problems with ignitions in several discontinued models that weren’t recalled until several weeks ago, the GM boss who has been on the job only for a few months continued to point to the information the OEM is hoping to uncover that’s eventually led to a dozen deaths.

“I’m anxiously awaiting the results of his study,” Barra said several times throughout the course of the more than two hours she testified on Tuesday.

GM announced late last week that it’s expanded its recall to cover more than 2 million units to replace the ignition in units such as the Chevrolet Cobalt. Lawmakers wanted assurance the new parts meet the automaker’s specifications.

“We are working closely with our supplier,” Barra said. “Our executive director responsible for switches is personally looking at the performance of the switches, including 100 percent end-of-line testing to make sure the performance, the safety, the functionality of these switches are safe.”

Barra acknowledged a portion of the investigation GM already shared with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that showed the original switches didn’t meet specifications. One committee member asked why GM would even choose to use the part at all.

“I want to know that as much as you do,” Barra said. “That’s not how we do business today.”

Rep. Tim Murphy, a Pennsylvania Republican, opened Tuesday’s hearing by saying the purpose was for “restoring public trust — and giving the families of crash victims the truth about whether this tragedy could have been prevented and if future ones will be prevented.

“This investigation is only three weeks old. We are determined to find the facts and identify the problems so a tragedy like this never happens again,” Murphy continued.

Barra will be back on Capitol Hill today as the Senate conducts a similar hearing.

Analyst Reaction to Barra's Appearence

Even though there could be plenty of negative attention coming GM’s way, Edmunds.com senior analyst Jessica Caldwell isn’t yet aware of a significant consumer backlash.

“Publicity-wise, this has certainly been a trying month for GM, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at its sales,” Caldwell said. “Shoppers still see it as a trusted brand, and they’ve responded to GM's pricing programs and marketing messages throughout the month.

“In fact, shopper consideration for GM brands on Edmunds.com has remained relatively steady in the last 60 days,” she continued. “Nothing in our data shows that shoppers are shying away from new GM vehicles — at least for now.”

After watching the hearing, Kelley Blue Book executive editorial director and analyst Jack Nerad gave his assessment.

“Congressional representatives from both sides of the aisle were relentless in their questioning of GM CEO Mary Barra over the ignition-switch recall issue, but Barra held her ground, claiming that today’s General Motors is a different company from the one whose corporate culture allowed this issue to fester for a decade,” Nerad said. “She noted that GM had already commissioned a full, outside investigation into the issue, but many lawmakers were not satisfied with that as an answer to questions about what did GM know and when did it know about the problem.

“Barra promised that GM would not make the same decisions in the future that it had in the past,” he continued.

Nerad’s KBB colleague, senior analyst Alec Gutierrez, noted that Barra appeared committed to doing the “right thing” during her House testimony.

“We still have much to learn about why GM is only now addressing a decade old design flaw in their ignition switch from the late-model vehicles but Ms. Barra stated time and time again that the new GM will do whatever is necessary to make things right for the customer moving forward,” Gutierrez said. “Of the most damning evidence that some within GM approved of redesigning the ignition switch without changing the part number, Ms. Barra commented that she found this practice unacceptable and would do whatever necessary to ensure the series of events that led us to where we are today never happens again. 

“The big unanswered question will be how consumers react to the recall and if they will buy into GM’s newfound focus on safety, but if retail sales volume is any indication, it appears as though consumers continue to have faith in GM,” Gutierrez went on to say.

“GM saw retail sales volume improve by 7 percent this month, outpacing the overall industry average growth pace. While this process is far from over, Mary Barra looks to be committed to getting GM through this crisis by focusing on quality and transparency in a way that they never have previously,” he added.