Service Brakes, Hydraulic:Brake Fluid Low Warning: Lamp
CONSEQUENCE OF NON-COMPLIANCE: THERE WOULD BE NO INDICATION TO THE DRIVER OF THE VEHICLE THAT BRAKE FLUID WAS LOW.
Remedy & full details
DEALERS WILL CORRECT THE ELECTRICAL CIRCUIT FOR THE BRAKE WARNING SYSTEM SO THAT THE WARNING LAMP WILL ILLUMINATE WHEN THE LOW LEVEL SWITCH IS ACTIVATED.
THE INSTRUMENT PANEL BRAKE WARNING LIGHT WILL NOT ILLUMINATE WHEN THE BRAKE FLUID LEVEL IN THE MASTER CYLINDER DROPS SUFFICIENTLY TO ACTIVATE THE LOW LEVEL SWITCH DUE TO AN IMPROPERLY WIRED DIODE, REQUIRED BY FMVSS NO. 105, "HYDRAULIC BRAKE SYSTEMS."
Complaint volume
Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.
What owners reported happened
14Crashes
2Fires
7Injuries
0Deaths
Across 76 complaints. Severity Index 0.82.
Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.
Numbers in brackets are open recall campaigns for that year.
Questions
Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?
Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.
Do I pay for recall repairs?
No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.
Why are there complaints but no recalls?
Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.
From the same data desk
Independent sites, same maintainer, same open-data standards.