 Jim Grant's Tech Tips '90 Mitsubishi Montero, Safety Recalls & Service Bulletins
Q: I have a ’90 Mitsubishi Montero. I’d like know when is the dealer responsible for Safety Recalls? What do Service Bulletins mean? Should I have all of these things checked out that I found listed under service bulletins? Please explain what this means and what I should do? I just bought this vehicle and I am concerned about all of these service bulletins. - Ginger M. A: There is a big difference between Safety Recalls and Service Bulletins. Safety Recalls are performed by the dealer at no cost to the vehicle owner, even if you’re not the original owner of the vehicle. Anyone can check to see if there are any Safety Recalls on their vehicle by visiting The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) web sit at www.nhtsa.dot.gov. If you should find a possible Safety Recall on your vehicle you should then call your nearest dealer with the vehicle identification number. The dealer will be able to tell you if the safety recall work has or has not been performed on your vehicle. Service Bulletins or Technical Service Bulletins (TSB’s) should never be confused with safety recalls. The only time TSB related work is at no cost to the consumer is if the vehicle is under warranty or it is a good will program. Why is that? TSB’s would be better described as helpful guides in solving problems. TSB’s are a collection of solution to problems that have occurred. These solutions could include updated parts, diagnostic procedures or information to correctly provide a solution to a problem. Another misconception of TSB’s is that they all apply to a vehicle. This is not the case either. The manufacturer’s database of repairs is designed to reduce repair time. To make this database effective the manufacturers put as much information out to their repair technicians as possible.
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