Buick Seats: Recliner

Buick is recalling about 319,181 vehicles over a problem with the seats. The high current caused by the electrical short welds thecircuit breaker elements together in the closed position, leaving the circuitunprotected and generating sufficient heat to burn the wire insulation andignite the seat cushion material.

Campaign
92V124000
Manufacturer
GENERAL MOTORS CORP.
Reported
1 September 1992
Vehicles
319,181
Built between
Aug 1989 – Jul 1991
Models
5
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
24 September 1992
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between August 1989 and July 1991. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 1990-1991 Buick CenturyBuilt August 1989 to July 1991
  • 1990 Chevrolet CelebrityBuilt August 1989 to July 1991
  • 1990 Oldsmobile CieraBuilt August 1989 to July 1991
  • 1991 Oldsmobile CutlassBuilt August 1989 to July 1991
  • 1990-1991 Pontiac 6000Built August 1989 to July 1991

What the defect is

The power seat or recliner wiring harness can be pinched or can chafe on the seat frame or spring support rod, wearing through the wire insulation and causing an electrical short.

What could happen

The high current caused by the electrical short welds thecircuit breaker elements together in the closed position, leaving the circuitunprotected and generating sufficient heat to burn the wire insulation andignite the seat cushion material.

What gets fixed

REPAIR ANY ABRADED WIRING AND REROUTE THE WIRING HARNESS USING A WIRING HARNESS CLIP.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtAugust 1989 to July 1991
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA1 September 1992
  3. Owners notified24 September 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 1 September 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.

Official source

Recalling manufacturer
GENERAL MOTORS CORP.
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

System: interior: seating.vehicle description: passenger cars with 6 way power seats or power recliners.

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