Yakima Products issued a product recall of its Mighty Joe 2 and Mighty Joe 3 bicycle racks. Yakima is voluntarily recalling all Mighty Joe 2 and Mighty Joe 3 racks (part numbers 8002609 and 8002608, respectively) due to safety concerns revealed following extensive product testing. Yakima notified the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration of the recall this morning and it will cooperate with the agency in administrating the recall.
These rear-of-car-mounted, strap-style racks began shipping in the first quarter of 2005. Yakima has determined that the latches designed to support the load arms may appear to be latched when they are not. In such a case, the bicycle load arms may collapse while one or more bicycles are mounted on the rack, which could cause injury or product damage. There have been no reported injuries.
Retailers should cease all sales of these products immediately and remove them from the retail floor. Consumers should cease use of these racks immediately.
Retailers should not send product back to Yakima at this time. Detailed instructions regarding what steps should be taken by retailers, plus information about how Yakima will manage compensation of retailers, will be issued by Yakima in the next ten business days. Later in the month, Yakima will issue notices to consumers, detailing what steps they should take regarding the recall to receive compensation.
“We wanted to move quickly to get the word out to our dealers and retailers about this recall. We will be working hard to develop a comprehensive plan to take the products that have already shipped off the market and out of use, and will be communicating with our dealers and customers in more detail in the coming days,” said Jim Clark, CEO of Yakima.
