- Vehicles
- 5,319
- Built between
- Dec 2001 – Feb 2003
- Models
- 5
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 8 July 2003
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between December 2001 and February 2003. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2002-2003 Suzuki AerioBuilt December 2001 to February 2003
- 2002 Suzuki EsteemBuilt January 2002 to May 2002
- 2002-2003 Suzuki Grand VitaraBuilt December 2001 to February 2003
- 2003 Suzuki Grand Vitara XL-7Built September 2002 to February 2003
- 2002 Suzuki Grand Vitara XL7Built December 2001 to July 2002
What the defect is
Certain passenger (111 my 2002 esteem, 777 my 2002 aerio, 2,368 my 2003 aerio) and sport utility (324 my 2002 grand vitara, 274 my 2003 grand vitara, 684 my 2002 grand vitara XL-7, and 781 my 2003 grand vitara XL-7) vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 212, 'windshield mounting." the windshield may not be properly secured to the vehicle body due to insufficient adhesion between the paint applied during the second-stage painting process and the paint applied during final-stage painting.
What could happen
If the windshield is not properly secured, it may separate from the vehicle during a crash which could result in the ejection of unbelted occupants, increasing the risk of severe injury or death.
What gets fixed
DEALERS WILL INSPECT THESE VEHICLES. VEHICLES THAT ARE FOUND TO HAVE INSUFFICIENT PAINT ADHESION WILL EITHER HAVE THE PROBLEM REMEDIED BY REPAINTING, OR WILL BE REPLACED, OR REPURCHASED AND DESTROYED. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON JULY 8, 2003.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtDecember 2001 to February 2003
- Recall reported to NHTSA16 June 2003
- Owners notified8 July 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 16 June 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 should contact suzuki at 1-800-934-0934.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- EC
- Recalling manufacturer
- AMERICAN SUZUKI MOTOR CORP.
- Safety standard
- FMVSS 212
- 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
Suzuki recall no. Ec.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.