The defect
ON CERTAIN TRUCKS,THE STEERING SYSTEM KNUCKLE ARM WAS DESIGNED WITH AN INSUFFICIENT STRENGTH MARGIN. REPEATED STEERING OPERATION WHILE STATIONARY, OR NORMAL VEHICLE OPERATION THAT REQUIRES FREQUENT REPEATED STEERING OPERATION, COULD CAUSE THE KNUCKLE ARM TO CRACK.
The risk
IF THE KNUCKLE ARM CRACKS, THE VEHICLE'S STEERING CONTROL COULD BECOME INOPERATIVE, CAUSING A CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL INSTALL AND MODIFY THE STEERING KNUCKLE ARM ASSEMBLY, INSPECT TOE-IN AND ADJUST IF NECESSARY. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JANUARY 13, 2005. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT MITSUBISHI FUSO AT 1-877-711-0707.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Mitsubishi Fuso FE434 | 1987, 1988, 1989 |
| Mitsubishi Fuso FE444 | 1989 |
Components: STEERING:LINKAGES:KNUCKLE:SPINDLE:ARM
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mitsubishi Fuso FE434 | 1987 | 0 | 2 |
| Mitsubishi Fuso FE434 | 1988 | 0 | 1 |
| Mitsubishi Fuso FE434 | 1989 | 0 | 2 |
| Mitsubishi Fuso FE444 | 1989 | 0 | 2 |
Other steering recalls in 2004
30 of the 601 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2004 concerned the steering; MITSUBISHI FUSO TRUCK OF AMERICA, INC. filed 30 campaigns in all.
| 04V610000 28 Dec 2004 | GILLIG CORPORATION |
| 04V579000 9 Dec 2004 | DAIMLERCHRYSLER CORPORATION |
| 04V567000 9 Dec 2004 | PIERCE MANUFACTURING |
| 04V474000 1 Oct 2004 | NORTH AMERICAN BUS INDUSTRIES, INC. |
| 04V448000 20 Sept 2004 | HINO MOTORS SALES U.S.A., INC. |
| 04V456000 20 Sept 2004 | MACK TRUCKS, INC |
| 04V424000 30 Aug 2004 | VAN HOOL, N.V. |
| 04V401000 12 Aug 2004 | FREIGHTLINER LLC |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2004