Photo: Mazda
Mazda has filed the paperwork for a precautionary safety recall in the United States of America, which targets less than 600 vehicles.
According to the documentation presented by Mazda at the NHTSA and then published in the form of a press release, the Japanese carmaker will inspect the torque condition of all front strut lower mounting nuts and bolts of the approximately 578 vehicles they want to check.
The automaker has decided to do this recall after an internal survey revealed that the automatic tightening system might not tighten the front strut assembly lower mounting nuts and bolts to the proper torque specification. The issue can only appear in certain conditions of under-torque detection.
Because of this potential problem, there is a risk of separation of the front strut and steering knuckle, which may lead to significant loss of steering control and increase the likelihood of a crash.
The affected models include the MY 2013-2014 Mazda2, the 2016 CX-3, the MY 2014-2016 CX-5, and the MY 2013-2015 CX-9. Considering the rather broad range of model years involved and the four products targeted by this recall, we are surprised that Mazda does not have more cars to check.
As explained, the company will first notify owners of these cars of the issue and ask them to come to a Mazda dealer for a free inspection of the suspected components. If any problems are found, the technicians will tighten the nuts and bolts to factory torque specification, while the damaged parts will be replaced.
Fortunately for everyone involved, there have been no reports of accidents or injuries caused by this situation. Mazda's service campaign is not the first recall which is caused by improper torque specification of nuts and bolts on the factory production line.
Other automakers have had similar issues, and some of the recalls they made included were expensive repairs, as some components were severely damaged by the excessive torque used to tighten them.
The automaker has decided to do this recall after an internal survey revealed that the automatic tightening system might not tighten the front strut assembly lower mounting nuts and bolts to the proper torque specification. The issue can only appear in certain conditions of under-torque detection.
Because of this potential problem, there is a risk of separation of the front strut and steering knuckle, which may lead to significant loss of steering control and increase the likelihood of a crash.
The affected models include the MY 2013-2014 Mazda2, the 2016 CX-3, the MY 2014-2016 CX-5, and the MY 2013-2015 CX-9. Considering the rather broad range of model years involved and the four products targeted by this recall, we are surprised that Mazda does not have more cars to check.
As explained, the company will first notify owners of these cars of the issue and ask them to come to a Mazda dealer for a free inspection of the suspected components. If any problems are found, the technicians will tighten the nuts and bolts to factory torque specification, while the damaged parts will be replaced.
Fortunately for everyone involved, there have been no reports of accidents or injuries caused by this situation. Mazda's service campaign is not the first recall which is caused by improper torque specification of nuts and bolts on the factory production line.
Other automakers have had similar issues, and some of the recalls they made included were expensive repairs, as some components were severely damaged by the excessive torque used to tighten them.
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