Chevrolet Recalls 413,000 Cruzes for Engine-Fire Hazard General Motors is recalling every Chevrolet Cruze it has produced at its plant in Lordstown, Ohio. The recall follows an investigation begun by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in April after two owners informed the agency that their vehicles had caught fire while in motion and been destroyed. Both owners escaped without injuries. That investigation applied to all 177,000 Cruzes built at Lordstown for the 2011 model year. On Friday, however, G.M. announced that it would recall Cruzes from both the 2011 and 2012 model years, for a total of 413,000 vehicles sold in the United States. An additional 61,000 built for the Canadian market, as well as roughly 700 for the Israeli market, were also recalled. According to a letter addressed to the safety agency on Thursday, G.M. said it learned during an internal investigation that if an oil change were performed improperly and oil dripped on the under-engine shield, the shield could ignite, potentially causing a larger fire in the engine compartment. The fire hazard could be compounded for drivers with Cruzes equipped with manual transmissions. If the Cruze were to be driven with a "completely worn" clutch, hydraulic fluid escaping from a housing vent could make contact with the engine shield, possibly resulting in smoke or fire. The remedy involves the application of tape to the car's electric power steering wiring harness. G.M. said it ultimately could not identify a defect with the engine shield during its investigation. Rather than replace them, however, G.M. said it would modify them. The automaker did not indicate in its official announcement what this modification would entail, but Alan Adler, a spokesman for G.M., offered an explanation in a telephone interview. The shield, which roughly 70 percent polypropylene and 30 percent glass fibers, would be cut in specific locations to allow escaping fluids, like hot engine oil, to drip to the pavement. The modification would be made at dealerships in about 30 minutes, he said. Holden, G.M."s Australian subsidiary, was examining 10,000 Cruzes that might be affected, Mr. Adler said. There were, however, no reports of fires among those vehicles. The Cruze is also sold in Asia, Europe and Latin America, but Mr. Adler was not aware of whether a safety problem would be identified by the G.M. divisions in those markets. In a separate recall, G.M.said it would inspect some of the cars in the engine-shield recall for improper welds. Welds in as many as 249 cars may have been applied improperly in the vicinity of the fuel-tank straps, as well as near a subassembly close to the rear floorpan. The automaker said it knew of no injuries related to either recall.