Utility Suspension: Hub

Utility is recalling about 271 vehicles over a problem with the suspension. An outboard bearing failure can result in a separation of the hub assembly from the spindle.

Campaign
00V102003
Manufacturer
UTILITY TRAILER MFG. CO.
Reported
24 May 2000
Vehicles
271
Built between
Aug 1998 – Mar 2000
Models
2
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
15 June 2000
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between August 1998 and March 2000. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 1999-2000 Utility VS2DBuilt August 1998 to March 2000
  • 1999-2000 Utility VS2RBuilt August 1998 to March 2000

What the defect is

Vehicle description: van-refrigerated/dry freight trailers equipped with conmet pregreased trailer hubs and a tire inflation system. The outboard bearing on the pregreased trailer axle hubs used with the tire inflation systems may fail due to the intrusion of contaminants through the tire inflation system.

What could happen

An outboard bearing failure can result in a separation of the hub assembly from the spindle.

What gets fixed

AUTHORIZED DEALERS ARE INSTRUCTED TO CONVERT GREASED HUBS TO OIL HUBS IF THE TIRE INFLATION SYSTEM IS TO REMAIN ON THE TRAILER. IF THE TIRE INFLATION SYSTEM IS REMOVED, THE HUB MUST BE INSPECTED FOR CONTAMINATION AND CORROSION. THE HUB AND BEARING ASSEMBLY MUST BE REPLACED IF THERE IS EVIDENCE OF CORROSION. IF THERE IS NO EVIDENCE OF CORROSION, LUBRICANT AND SEAL MANITENANCE CAN BE PERFORMED AND THE HUB REINSTALLED.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtAugust 1998 to March 2000
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA24 May 2000
  3. Owners notified15 June 2000

Your rights

A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.

That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 24 May 2000.

To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.

Official source

Recalling manufacturer
UTILITY TRAILER MFG. CO.
Recall initiated by
MFR

Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

Additional notes

Owner notification is expected to begin during june 2000.OWNERS who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact utility trailer at 1-626-854-7215 or consolidated metco at 1-800-425-4827.ALSO contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).

Check your own vehicle

This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.

A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.

Same component

Same brand