- Vehicles
- 1,410
- Built between
- Jan 1996 – Oct 1996
- Models
- 5
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 18 December 1996
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between January 1996 and October 1996. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1996 Freightliner CenturyBuilt January 1996 to October 1996
- 1996 Freightliner ConventionalBuilt January 1996 to October 1996
- 1996 Freightliner FL-60Built January 1996 to October 1996
- 1996 Freightliner FL-70Built January 1996 to October 1996
- 1996 Freightliner FL-80Built January 1996 to October 1996
What the defect is
Vehicle description: all vehicles equipped with eaton drive axles and axilok spindle nuts. The drive axle housings consist of a plate steel center section and two forged spindles, one of which is welded to each end of the center section. Each spindle contains a keyway slot in which the locking tab for the wheel bearing nut locking mechanism is inserted. The length of the keyway slot may not be long enough to accommodate the tab causing the tab to be deformed or damaged during installation.
What could happen
This locking tab prevents the wheel bearing nut from loosening during vehicle operation. If this tab is deformed, the nut can loosen allowing the wheel to separate from the axle increasing the risk of a vehicle accident.
What gets fixed
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE DRIVE AXLE HOUSING NUTS WITH A CONVENTIONAL WHEEL NUT HARDWARE SYSTEM.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJanuary 1996 to October 1996
- Recall reported to NHTSA20 November 1996
- Owners notified18 December 1996
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 20 November 1996.
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
- FREIGHTLINER CORPORATION
- 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
Owner notification:owner notification began december 18, 1996. Note: owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact freightliner at 1-503-735-8000.ALSO contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-800-424-9393.
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.