Freightliner Steering: Hydraulic Power Assist System

Freightliner is recalling about 422 vehicles over a problem with the steering. If the valve fails, the driver will experience a loss of power steering assist or the inability to switch power steering assist from one side to the other.

Campaign
99V256000
Manufacturer
FREIGHTLINER CORPORATION
Reported
20 September 1999
Vehicles
422
Built between
Mar 1998 – Sep 1999
Models
1
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
26 May 2000
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between March 1998 and September 1999. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 1998-1999 Freightliner CargoBuilt March 1998 to September 1999

What the defect is

These vehicles have dual axle steering with a hydraulic valve which diverts power assist from one side to the other as necessary. The hydraulic valve can be contaminated causing the valve to malfunction.

What could happen

If the valve fails, the driver will experience a loss of power steering assist or the inability to switch power steering assist from one side to the other. This will inhibit the driver's ability to control the vehicle.

What gets fixed

DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE STEERING CONTROL VALVE AND PARKING BRAKE INTERLOCK FOR PROPER OPERATION. CONTAMINATED OR MALFUNCTIONING UNITS WILL BE REPLACED.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtMarch 1998 to September 1999
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA20 September 1999
  3. Owners notified26 May 2000

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 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

Manufacturer's recall number
FL-245
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

Freightliner recall no. FL-245. Owner notification began may 26, 2000. 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 1-800-1-800-547-0712.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.

Same component

Same brand