The increase in the number of vehicles listed under recall reports continues to concerns car safety advocates, but instead of simply focusing on making newer vehicles recall proof, companies continue to scramble to address equipment failures that haunt current car makers.
The latest announcement released by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration indicated that over 50,000 vehicles manufactured by Mitsubishi are being recalled over an issue that could translate into a greater accident risk.
The vehicles impacted by the recall include the 2009 and 2010 Mitsubishi Lancer and Outlander vehicles. All Lancer units have been manufactured between January 12, 2009 and July 6, 2010 while all units of the Outlander vehicles were manufactured between January 12, 2009 and August 27, 2010. The recall also impacts the 2010 Lancer Sportback and the 2010 Lancer Evolution vehicles.
According to the firm, the vehicles have been fitted with certain electronic control units that may experience unstable voltage due to a manufacturing error. Since the control unit impacted controls the head and tail lights as well as the windshield wipers, an error may cause the vehicle to experience intermittent failure of head and tail lights, increasing the risk of visibility issues.
If the problem takes place during the nighttime, the driver may experience issues stemming from the reduced visibility. Other problems could also arise as a result of the vehicle’s faulty head lights and other drivers may be unable to see the vehicle. To prevent accidents that may occur due to both of these issues, the company decided to launch a recall.
Various conditions associated with a faulty electronic control unit may increase the risk of accidents and because of that, car owners impacted should not ignore this problem.
Once all impacted car owners are contacted, dealers will have the potentially defective ECU replaced for free. Once that problem is addressed, consumers should be much safer.
While Mitsubishi hasn’t announced a notification schedule, the company should be working on addressing the risks immediately. If you were impacted by this recall and you have concerns that haven’t been addressed by the official announcement, make sure to contact the automaker for more details. The official report can be read here.
If you have one of the recalled vehicles or you know someone who may have been impacted, make sure to stay alert and urge others to stay alert as well. Too often, recalled vehicles put the lives of its owners in great danger. To ignore recall campaigns means that you’re not heeding important recommendations that could help to keep you safe.