International Electrical System: Starter Assembly

International is recalling about 142 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system. A direct short may create a fire hazard and can result in property damage, personal injury, or death.

Campaign
03V070000
Manufacturer
INTERNATIONAL TRUCK & ENGINE CORPORATION
Reported
6 March 2003
Vehicles
142
Built between
Sep 2002 – Jan 2003
Models
1
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
21 March 2003
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between September 2002 and January 2003. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2003 International 8600Built September 2002 to January 2003

What the defect is

On certain heavy duty trucks built with a caterpillar engine with a 4 degree tilt, the starter field-stud may contact the frame rail because of variations in the air gap between the field stud and the frame rail. Should the starter field stud contact the frame rail, there would be a direct full battery short to the frame (ground) when the starter is in the cranking mode.

What could happen

A direct short may create a fire hazard and can result in property damage, personal injury, or death.

What gets fixed

DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE STARTER NOSE CONE. THE NEW NOSE CONE WILL REORIENT THE STARTER STUD FARTHER AWAY FROM THE FRAME RAIL TO COMPLETELY ELIMINATE THE CLEARANCE ISSUE. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON MARCH 21, 2003.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtSeptember 2002 to January 2003
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA6 March 2003
  3. Owners notified21 March 2003

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 6 March 2003.

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.

Manufacturer contact

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 international at 1-800-448-7825.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
03504
Recalling manufacturer
INTERNATIONAL TRUCK & ENGINE CORPORATION
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

International recall NO.03504.CUSTOMERS can 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