General Motors Corp.: Exterior Lighting › Brake Lights › Switch
General Motors Corp. reported this defect to federal regulators on Oct 16, 1990 and put the number of vehicles at risk at 476,422. The repair is free for as long as the recall stands.
The defect
BRAKE STOPLAMPS MAY NOT ILLUMINATE OR, IN SOME CASES, STOPLAMPS WILL NOT STAY ILLUMINATED ALL THE TIME WHEN BRAKES ARE APPLIED DUE TO A FAULTY STOPLAMP SWITCH. ALSO IN VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH CRUISE CONTROL, A FAULTY STOPLAMP SWITCH CAN RESULT IN RESUMPTION OF THE CRUISE CONTROL FUNCTION UPON RELEASE OF THE BRAKE PEDAL.
The risk
A TRAILING VEHICLE MAY NOT RECOGNIZE A BRAKING ACTIONIN TIME TO RESPOND APPROPRIATELY. ALSO, CRUISE CONTROL WILL REENGAGE UPONRELEASE OF THE BRAKE PEDAL AND RESUME THE SET SPEED. IN EITHER CASE, IT COULDRESULT IN A CRASH WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING.
The remedy
INSTALL AN IMPROVED DESIGN STOPLAMP SWITCH.
4 model years covered
Newest first| Vehicle | Complaints | Recalls | Fires | Crashes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 Buick Regal | 77 | 9 | 1 | 7 |
| 1990 Chevrolet Lumina | 427 | 9 | 8 | 24 |
| 1990 Oldsmobile Cutlass | 103 | 6 | 0 | 11 |
| 1990 Pontiac Grand Prix | 176 | 9 | 1 | 12 |
What this page is, and what to do next
A recall is not an opinion. It is a Part 573 report a manufacturer is required by federal law to file once it decides a defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety, and it commits them to repairing the vehicle at no cost to the owner. The three passages above are the manufacturer’s own wording as published by NHTSA.
This page describes the campaign. It cannot tell you whether one particular car has already been through the shop — that is tracked by VIN, and only the manufacturer knows it. Check yours at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with a franchised dealer, quoting campaign number 90V185000.
Full record for the 1990 Buick Regal → · Recalls carrying a do-not-drive advisory → · Where this data comes from →