CPSC, Polaris Industries Announce Recall of RANGER 4x4 Utility Vehicles

Recall Insight

This CPSC action (record #05504) was formally reported on October 21, 2004. It is classified under Moderate severity, with a current status of Active. Polaris Industries, Inc., of Medina, Minn. is listed as the recalling firm. Federal records indicate About 1,250 units are affected.

The documented reason for this recall is: The lower steering shaft assembly may have a missing or misplaced weld that connects the steering wheel to the steering gear box assembly. If a weld is missing or misplaced, the lower steering shaft assembly could fail,… Distribution information was not included in the agency filing, so consumers should assume broad potential exposure until the firm publishes point-of-sale details. The remedy documented by the agency is: Contact your Polaris dealer to schedule an appointment to replace the steering shaft assembly. Polaris has notified consumers directly about this recall. — consumers holding this product should act on that instruction rather than relying on general guidance.

To put this record in context, PlainRecalls indexes 83,949 recalls across the FDA, CPSC, NHTSA and USDA FSIS going back to 1995. Within the same product category, the database holds 6 closely related recalls, of which 1 were also issued by CPSC. That clustering is a signal — repeated actions in a narrow category often indicate a systemic quality-control issue, a supplier-wide contamination, or a design defect that has propagated across product lines. This recall is roughly 22 years old; older recalls can remain relevant because many units enter resale, rental, and secondary-market channels where the original warning never reaches the end user. Always cross-check the recall number against the official agency page before relying on any summary.