The defect
THE REAR BRAKE RELEASE TIME MAY BE GREATER THAN THE TIME SPECIFIED IN FMVSS 121, "AIR BRAKE SYSTEM". IN ADDITION, SOME TRACTORS MAY HAVE WARPED PARKING BRAKE APPLY SPRINGS WHICH ALSO EFFECT THE REAR BRAKE RELEASE TIME. CONSEQUENCE OF DEFECT: TRACTORS FAIL TO MEET THE STOPPING DISTANCE SPECIFIED IN FMVSS 121 WHICH IS REQUIRED TO STOP THE TRUCK SAFELY.
The remedy
INSTALL A QUICK RELEASE VALVE IN THE TRAILER SERVICE AIR LINE AND INCREASE THE DIAMETER OF THE REAR SERVICE BRAKE LINE. ALSO INSPECT REAR SPRING BRAKE CHAMBER AND RELEASE IF NECESSARY.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Chevrolet Astro | 1983, 1984, 1985 |
Components: PARKING BRAKE:DRIVELINE:AIR:CHAMBER
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chevrolet Astro | 1983 | 0 | 1 |
| Chevrolet Astro | 1984 | 1 | 1 |
| Chevrolet Astro | 1985 | 5 | 3 |
Other parking brake recalls in 1985
7 of the 173 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 1985 concerned the parking brake; GENERAL MOTORS CORP. filed 1,195 campaigns in all.
| 85V168000 20 Dec 1985 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY |
| 85V159000 26 Nov 1985 | MACK TRUCKS, INCORPORATED |
| 85V133000 22 Oct 1985 | NAVISTAR INTL CORP. |
| 85V103000 14 Aug 1985 | VOLVO GM HEAVY TRUCK CORP |
| 85V092000 22 Jul 1985 | IVECO TRUCK OF N.A., INC. |
| 85V055000 1 May 1985 | ELDORADO MOTOR CORP. |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 1985