- Vehicles
- 239,799
- Built between
- Jan 1979 – Jul 1980
- Models
- 4
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 4 April 1983
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between January 1979 and July 1980. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1980 Buick SkylarkBuilt January 1979 to July 1980
- 1980 Chevrolet CitationBuilt January 1979 to July 1980
- 1980 Oldsmobile OmegaBuilt January 1979 to July 1980
- 1980 Pontiac PhoenixBuilt January 1979 to July 1980
What the defect is
Under certain conditions, vehicles may experience premature rear wheel skid during braking. Rear wheel skidding is most likely to occur on a wet or slick surface.
What gets fixed
DEPENDING ON THE TRANSMISSION TYPE AND THE BRAKE COMPONENTS THAT HAVE BEEN INSTALLED, DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND REPLACE OR REPAIR, AS NECESSARY, CERTAIN FRONT BRAKE COMPONENTS, AND THE PARKING BRAKE CABLES. THE REAR BRAKE SHOES AND LININGS WILL BE REPLACED WITH PARTS THAT USE A MATERIAL WHICH GREATLY REDUCES THE LIKELIHOOD OF REAR WHEEL SKID. ACTIONS TAKEN TO THE FRONT BRAKES ARE TO ENSURE UNIFORMITY OF THE ENTIRE BRAKE SYSTEM. ACTIONS TAKEN TO THE PARKING BRAKE COMPONENTS WILL ENSURE THAT THE PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS, FOR KEEPING THE VEHICLE STATIONARY WHILE MANUAL TRANSMISSION EQUIPPED UNITS ARE IN NEUTRAL AND AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION EQUIPPED UNITS ARE IN PARK, ARE MET.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJanuary 1979 to July 1980
- Recall reported to NHTSA24 February 1983
- Owners notified4 April 1983
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 24 February 1983.
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
- GENERAL MOTORS CORP.
- 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: service brakes; rear brakes.consequences of defect: if the driver is unable to complete corrective steeringor braking actions, the rear end of the vehicle may skid out of its lane oftravel, possibly resulting in an accident.note: until the problem is corrected, the driver should use caution in makinghard braking stops.
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.