Since you mention cars, there is a lot of regulations and laws regarding the production, selling and importing of cars. As such, producing unsafe car is likely a criminal offense, and it would likely be NHTSA who would go after GM.

But in this case, there is good precedence for claim of damages. People has used time it have taken a engineer to investigate, clean, and fix a computer system after a computer intrusion. Even a few hours work will result in several thousands, much more than the laptop itself is worth.