Do Not Drive: Loss of Steering Control from Loose or Missing Fasteners

Affected vehicles (1)

Component / system

Defect

Roush Performance Products, Inc. (Roush) is recalling certain 2026 Nissan Frontier Pro4X R vehicles. The cotter pins for the upper control arm ball joint and steering tie rod ends may not have been installed, and fasteners may not be properly tightened.

Risk / consequence

Loose or missing fasteners can cause a loss of vehicle steering and control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Owners are advised not to drive their vehicle until the remedy is completed. Dealers will replace the cotter pins, and replace or tighten fasteners as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 22, 2026. Owners may contact Roush customer service at 1-800-597-6874. Roush's number for this recall is C-26001.

Chronology of events

1. Mar 2, 2026

   On March 2, 2026 Roush received a Nissan dealer warranty claim on a newly delivered vehicle to the dealership. The dealer was moving the vehicle into its shop to perform pre-delivery inspection. The dealer reported a joint separation involving the upper control arm ball joint and the steering knuckle. The claim inspection revealed the cotter pin and nut from the upper control arm ball joint was missing. Roush immediately implemented an interim corrective action implementing quality inspection procedures at Roush's assembly site to verify cotter pin installation and proper torque application for all joints requiring the use of a cotter pin.

2. Apr 1, 2026

   On April 1, 2026 Roush received a separate Nissan dealer warranty service claim on a low mileage (approximately 264 miles) customer owned vehicle. The dealer reported the right side front steering tie rod had disconnected from the steering knuckle. The dealer believed the cotter pin was not installed. The Roush components were installed by Roush on November 12, 2025. Roush re-inspected pictures of the steering tie rod from the initial March 2, 2026 claim involving the upper control arm. While still connected with a fastener, the tie rod end was missing a cotter pin. Visible thread engagement of the tie rod fastener indicated the tie rod fastener either came loose or was not torqued properly during assembly. Roush's internal investigations of these two claims determined that installation technicians deviated from work instructions during installation of the cotter pins and fasteners for the Upper Control Arm ball joint and Steering Tie Rod Ends. There was insufficient documentation to verify if the nuts were torqued to the proper specification. There had not been any other warranty claims made concerning this condition. Based on the investigation of the two warranty claims, on April 9, 2026 Roush decided to conduct a voluntary safety recall.

3. Apr 15, 2026

   On April 15, 2026 Roush submitted the original Part 573 Defect and Noncompliance Report to NHTSA.

4. Apr 15, 2026

   On April 15, 2026 Roush sent a Stop Ship notification to Nissan dealers advising to hold delivery of the listed unsold VINs at those dealerships that involved suspension components installed by Roush on or before the March 2, 2026 interim corrective action implementation date. In the evening of April 16, 2026 Roush received a Nissan dealer warranty claim on a third vehicle. The dealer had received the Stop Ship delivery hold notification for unsold VINs on its lot. The warranty claim involved a customer owned vehicle that had approximately 1,510 miles. The vehicle had been sold by the dealer before March 2, 2026. The dealer reported the right side front steering tie rod end had disconnected from the steering knuckle. The cotter pin and nut were missing.

5. Apr 17, 2026

   On April 17, 2026 NHTSA sent Roush a draft recall acknowledgment letter and asked Roush to confirm its factual accuracy. Roush communicated to NHTSA that it was investigating the new third warranty claim from the night before and that Roush was evaluating the need to convert the recall to a Do Not Drive consumer advisory.

Notification schedule

Dealer notification

Apr 15, 2026 - Apr 30, 2026 No Dealers

Owner notification

May 15, 2026 - Jun 15, 2026 Phased Recall