BELL Service Brakes, Hydraulic: Fluid

Bell is recalling about 288,588 vehicles over a problem with the service brakes, hydraulic. Brake fluid would not comply with FMVSS 116.

Campaign
91E002000
Manufacturer
BELL CHEMICAL COMPANY
Reported
7 January 1991
Vehicles
288,588
Built between
May 1989 – Oct 1989
Models
1
Recall type
Equipment
Initiated by
NHTSA compliance test
Owners notified
21 March 1991
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between May 1989 and October 1989. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • BELL Brake FluidBuilt May 1989 to October 1989

What the defect is

Brake fluid exhibited an evaporation rate of 85 percent, exceeding the 80 percent maximum allowed by FMVSS 116.

What could happen

Brake fluid would not comply with FMVSS 116. Loss ofbrake fluid through evaporation could lead to loss of brakes if the fluid levelis not checked reqularly.

What gets fixed

AFFECTED BRAKE FLUID CONTAINERS WILL BE REPLACED.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtMay 1989 to October 1989
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA7 January 1991
  3. Owners notified21 March 1991

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 7 January 1991.

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
BELL CHEMICAL COMPANY
Safety standard
FMVSS 116
Recall initiated by
OVSC

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

System: brake fluid; FMVSS 116; DOT 3, 12 oz. And 1 quart containers.

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