- Vehicles
- 50,495
- Built between
- Jun 1999 – Sep 1999
- Models
- 12
- Recall type
- Equipment
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 1 December 1999
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between June 1999 and September 1999. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- Sears 31225Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 31235Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 31325Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 31335Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 31425Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 31435Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 31525Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 31535Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 37025Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 37035Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 37125Built June 1999 to September 1999
- Sears 37135Built June 1999 to September 1999
What the defect is
Equipment description: automotive starting, lighting and ignition batteries sold to sears, roebuck and company under the diehard trademark. Cracking occurs in the internal portion of the positive or negative post on the outside top surface of the terminal.
What could happen
This condition can cause a no-start condition. Under some circumstances, without warning, a cracking of the battery cover could occur and acid would be sprayed.
What gets fixed
SEARS WILL INSPECT THE BATTERIES AND IF THE BATTERY IS AFFECTED BY THE DEFECT, A REPLACEMENT BATTERY WILL BE PROVIDED.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJune 1999 to September 1999
- Recall reported to NHTSA14 September 1999
- Owners notified1 December 1999
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 14 September 1999.
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
- JOHNSON CONTROLS, INC.
- 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 began december 1, 1999. 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 johnson controls automotive systems group at 1-888-701-3007.ALSO contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).
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.