Kelsey Hayes Trailer Hitches

Kelsey Hayes is recalling about 27 vehicles over a problem with the trailer hitches.

Campaign
79V157000
Manufacturer
KELSEY-HAYES COMPANY
Reported
19 June 1979
Vehicles
27
Built between
Until Jan 1979
Models
2
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
14 June 1979
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between an unspecified date and January 1979. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 1979 Kelsey Hayes Kelsey HayesBuilt unknown to January 1979
  • 1979 Kelsey Hayes WT66Built unknown to January 1979

What the defect is

The combined rear bumper and trailer hitch mount welds may develop cracks due to stresses generated in normal service. Cracks could eventually result in failure of the mounting bracket, causing partial or total separation of the trailer from the towing vehicle.

What gets fixed

REPLACEMENT REAR BUMPERS AND HITCH MOUNTING BRACKETS WILL BE PROVIDED, OR VEHICLES MAY BE RETURNED TO THE PLANT FOR INSTALLATION BY MANUFACTURER.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtunknown to January 1979
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA19 June 1979
  3. Owners notified14 June 1979

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 19 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
KELSEY-HAYES COMPANY
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

Vehicle description: trucks.system: equipment; bumper and trailer hitch mounting bracket, welds.consequences of defect: partial or total trailer separation may cause loss ofvehicle control and an accident.

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