Recall rates are soaring and most major automakers have been faced with a recall in recent years. Mitsubishi is the latest automaker to issue a recall in 2018. Mitsubishi has recalled more than 170,300 Outlanders and Outlander Sports for defects related to parking brakes. The recall for the 2014-2016 Outlanders and 2013-2016 Outlander Sports is scheduled to begin on March 27, 2018.
The parking brake defect at the center of this recall could result in significant safety dangers to drivers or others on the road. The faulty brake could cause the car to roll away or prevent disengagement once the driver puts the car in drive. The root of the problem is that the affected vehicles are outfitted with rear brake calipers that come into contact with water and as a result lead to corrosion to the brake actuator shafts. This causes the shafts to bind. If the actuator shaft gets caught, the parking brake will not engage and the car could rollaway.
Mitsubishi initiated an investigation when a complaint in was lodged in October, 2014, in the United Kingdom by the owner of a Mitsubishi Outlander. The owner experienced a stuck rear brake and investigators concluded that the shaft was stuck because of corrosion in the mechanism. As a result, Mitsubishi began to implement rust prevention measures in its production of these cars. Subsequently, a similar complaint was issued and this time it was determined that the washer in the brake caliper had a scratch. In response, the automaker implemented measures to prevent scratches. Later, Mitsubishi determined that faulty inspections were at the root of the problem.
In the current recall, Mitsubishi has promised to replace parking brake boots, pedal levers, brake caliper bodies, and the piston assemblies of the rear brake calipers. This recall comes amid other bad news for Mitsubishi: 57,000 Outlanders, Lancers, Lancer Evolutions, and Lancer Sportbacks were recalled for sunroof glass that can detach while cars are at rest or in motion. Almost 56,000 vehicles are subject to this recall. Mitsubishi confirmed that the material used for the outer frames of its sunroofs was changed in 2009 and fluctuations in temperatures may cause the attachment between the glass and the body to destabilize.
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