Fiat Electrical System: Rear Compartment/Trunk

Fiat is recalling about 15,000 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system.

Campaign
79V144000
Manufacturer
FIAT MOTORS OF N.A., INC.
Reported
12 June 1979
Vehicles
15,000
Built between
Not published
Models
1
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
NHTSA investigation
Owners notified
17 January 1980
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

The manufacturer did not publish a build-date range for this recall, so the model and year list below is the only way to tell whether your vehicle is covered.

  • 1979 Fiat Strada

What the defect is

The manufacturer has established that the tail lights may become inoperative due to possible oxidation of the wiring terminals caused by infiltration of water and dirt.

What gets fixed

DEALER WILL APPLY A PROTECTIVE PAINT AND INSTALL A PLASTIC COVER OVER THE EXPOSED TAIL LIGHT WIRING TERMINALS.

Timeline

  1. Recall reported to NHTSA12 June 1979
  2. Owners notified17 January 1980

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 12 June 1979.

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
FIAT MOTORS OF N.A., INC.
Recall initiated by
ODI

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

Vehicle description: passenger vehicles.system: electrical; wiring harness, rear compartment.consequences of defect: if the tail lights become inoperative, a rear endcollision could result.

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