- Vehicles
- 35,856
- Built between
- Apr 1996 – May 1997
- Models
- 1
- Recall type
- Child restraint
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 9 October 1997
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between April 1996 and May 1997. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- Evenflo 244 (sidekick)Built April 1996 to May 1997
What the defect is
Equipment description: sidekick child booster seats, model nos. 244 manufactured from april 23, 1996 through may 20, 1997. These seats do not comply with FMVSS no. 213, "child restraint systems," which limits head injury criteria. In recent tests on some of these booster seats, the head injury criteria scored more than allowed by this standard.
What could happen
In the event of a vehicle crash, there is a risk of injury to the seat occupant.
What gets fixed
EVENFLO WILL REIMBURSE OWNERS EITHER COMPLETELY OR PARTIALLY DEPENDING ON WHETHER THE SEAT CAN BE USED BY THE OWNER'S CHILD. OWNERS ARE ADVISED TO USE THE SIDEKICK BOOSTER SEAT ONLY AS A BELT POSITIONER. WHEN USED AS A BELT POSITIONER, THE SIDEKICK MUST BE USED WITHOUT ITS FRONT SHIELD AND ONLY IN VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A THREE POINT LAP/SHOULDER SEAT BELT SYSTEM.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtApril 1996 to May 1997
- Recall reported to NHTSA23 June 1997
- Owners notified9 October 1997
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 23 June 1997.
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
- EVENFLO COMPANY, INC.
- Safety standard
- FMVSS 213
- 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 june 30, 1997.OWNERS who do not receive a free retrofit kit within a reasonable time should contact evenflo at 1-800-233-5921.ALSO contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-800-424-9393.( previous recall number 97E020000)
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.