- Vehicles
- 450
- Built between
- Nov 2004 – Aug 2007
- Models
- 4
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 8 July 2008
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between November 2004 and August 2007. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2005-2008 Freightliner Century STBuilt November 2004 to August 2007
- 2005-2008 Freightliner Classic XLBuilt November 2004 to August 2007
- 2005-2008 Freightliner ColumbiaBuilt November 2004 to August 2007
- 2005-2008 Freightliner CoronadoBuilt November 2004 to August 2007
What the defect is
On certain trucks equipped with rack and pinion steering, the ball socket assembly at the inner end of the driver side tie rod may be damaged in a sharp turn. Excessive tie rod angles may loosen the tie rod in the ball socket or damage the threaded tie rod socket attachment to the steering rack on the driver side. The threaded end of the ball socket assembly may fracture and separate.
What could happen
A fractured tie rod assembly will make the vehicle more difficult to control at higher speeds and a crash may occur.
What gets fixed
DEALERS WILL CHANGE THE FRONT AXLE STEERING STOPS TO PREVENT INTERFERENCE IN THE TIE ROD BALL SOCKET ASSEMBLY AND STEERING COMPONENTS WILL BE REPLACED FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON JULY 8, 2008, AND WILL BE MAILED IN PHASES THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2008.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtNovember 2004 to August 2007
- Recall reported to NHTSA6 September 2007
- Owners notified8 July 2008
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 September 2007.
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 may contact freightliner at 1-800-547-0712.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- FL-513
- Recalling manufacturer
- FREIGHTLINER LLC
- 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
Freightliner recall no. FL-513. Customers may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov.
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.