Century Child Seat

Century is recalling about 969,182 vehicles over a problem with the child seat. In the event that the release button rotates, excessiveforce could be required to activate the release button of the shoulder belt inorder to remove a child from the seat.

Campaign
92C017000
Manufacturer
CENTURY PRODUCTS
Reported
25 August 1992
Vehicles
969,182
Built between
Sep 1989 – Mar 1992
Models
14
Recall type
Child restraint
Initiated by
NHTSA compliance test
Owners notified
1 October 1992
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between September 1989 and March 1992. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • Century 4353Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4365Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4366Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4367Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4368Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4369Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4380Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4450Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4460Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4470Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4475Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4476Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4480Built September 1989 to March 1992
  • Century 4490Built September 1989 to March 1992

What the defect is

The red shoulder strap release button can rotate out of the frame in a crash or sudden stop. In this event, the release button could not be activated with less than 16 pounds of force as required by FMVSS 213, "child restraint systems".

What could happen

In the event that the release button rotates, excessiveforce could be required to activate the release button of the shoulder belt inorder to remove a child from the seat.

What gets fixed

A KIT TO RETROFIT THE CHILD SAFETY SEAT WITH A MODIFIED RELEASE BUTTON AND DRESS PLATE WILL BE PROVIDED TO CONSUMERS.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtSeptember 1989 to March 1992
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA25 August 1992
  3. Owners notified1 October 1992

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 25 August 1992.

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

Consumers can call century at 1-800-231-2755 to obtain these kits.

Official source

Recalling manufacturer
CENTURY PRODUCTS
Safety standard
FMVSS 213
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: child safety seat; FMVSS 213.EQUIPMENT description: 3000STE: numbers 4353, 4365, 4366, 4367, 4368, 4369,3500STE: number 4380, 5000STE: numbers 4450, 4460, 4470, 4475, 4476,5500STE: numbers 4480, 4490.( previous recall number 92E017000)

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