Photo: Dragos Savu for Alfa Romeo Romania
The size of the calipers is important, but if the brake fluid isn’t up to the job, then you can kiss braking power farewell. Alfa Romeo finds itself in a similar situation with its Giorgio platform-based sedan and crossover, announcing a recall for U.S.-spec models over contaminated brake fluid.
Identified by campaign number 17V823000, the safety recall involves 307 vehicles, all built for the 2018 model year. The estimated percentage of cars affected by the issue is, according to the report submitted to the National Highway Traffic And Safety Administration, 100 percent.
The automaker highlights that “vehicles may contain brake fluid that was contaminated in the plant with a non-compatible oil type.” The wrong brake fluid got its way into the braking system of vehicles produced at the Cassino plant in Italy from November 14 through November 23, 2017.
Not only does the wrong brake fluid decrease the braking performance of the Giulia and Stelvio, but the mineral-based oil can also affect the braking system in time. Alfa Romeo got the gist of the situation on November 23, after two vehicles “failed the dynamic Customer Product Audit test and experienced a loss of clutch pressure.” As expected, this turn of events prompted the automaker to conduct a laboratory analysis.
Care to guess what happened next? Alfa Romeo found that “a pallet containing both brake and clutch fluid and mineral oil was used starting November 13, 2017.” This mess-up convinced the automaker to develop a foolproof solution, coming in the form of a bypass system within the plant.
Affected owners will be notified as swiftly as possible, with the recall scheduled to begin on February 8, 2018. Customers who had the work done from their own pockets are eligible to be reimbursed by Alfa Romeo.
Those who wish to take the matter into their own hands can contact the automaker's customer service at 1-844-253-2872 or the government watchdog at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153).
The automaker highlights that “vehicles may contain brake fluid that was contaminated in the plant with a non-compatible oil type.” The wrong brake fluid got its way into the braking system of vehicles produced at the Cassino plant in Italy from November 14 through November 23, 2017.
Not only does the wrong brake fluid decrease the braking performance of the Giulia and Stelvio, but the mineral-based oil can also affect the braking system in time. Alfa Romeo got the gist of the situation on November 23, after two vehicles “failed the dynamic Customer Product Audit test and experienced a loss of clutch pressure.” As expected, this turn of events prompted the automaker to conduct a laboratory analysis.
Care to guess what happened next? Alfa Romeo found that “a pallet containing both brake and clutch fluid and mineral oil was used starting November 13, 2017.” This mess-up convinced the automaker to develop a foolproof solution, coming in the form of a bypass system within the plant.
Affected owners will be notified as swiftly as possible, with the recall scheduled to begin on February 8, 2018. Customers who had the work done from their own pockets are eligible to be reimbursed by Alfa Romeo.
Those who wish to take the matter into their own hands can contact the automaker's customer service at 1-844-253-2872 or the government watchdog at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153).
Google News