The defect
THE ALIGNMENT BOLT WAS NOT TORQUED TO SPECIFICATION.
The risk
THIS UNDERTORQUING CAN ALLOW THE ALIGNMENT BOLT TO LOOSEN AND FALL OUT OF THE ASSEMBLY. ONCE THE BOLT IS GONE, THE SPRING LEAF CAN SHIFT AND EVENTUALLY FALL AWAY FROM THE AXLE ALLOW THE BED OF THE TRAILER TO FALL AGAINST THE TIRE INCREASING THE RISK OF A VEHICLE ACCIDENT.
The remedy
DEALERS ARE REPLACING THE SPRING SETS ON THESE TRAILERS.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Karavan T3500 | 1994 |
| Karavan T4000 | 1994 |
Components: SUSPENSION:REAR:SPRINGS:LEAF SPRING ASSEMBLY
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Karavan T3500 | 1994 | 0 | 1 |
| Karavan T4000 | 1994 | 0 | 1 |
Other suspension recalls in 1996
25 of the 297 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 1996 concerned the suspension.
| 96V252000 18 Dec 1996 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY |
| 96V233004 2 Dec 1996 | VOLVO TRUCKS NORTH AMERICA INC |
| 96V240000 27 Nov 1996 | INTERNATIONAL TRUCK AND ENGINE |
| 96V233002 22 Nov 1996 | INTERNATIONAL TRUCK AND ENGINE |
| 96V233003 20 Nov 1996 | FREIGHTLINER CORPORATION |
| 96V227001 15 Nov 1996 | ELDORADO NATIONAL |
| 96V124006 10 Sept 1996 | MAXIM TRUCK COMPANY, INC. |
| 96V159000 28 Aug 1996 | OSHKOSH TRUCK CORPORATION |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 1996