The 1989 Plymouth Reliant has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 634,000 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 7 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the engine and engine cooling. Last updated July 5, 2026.
THE ENGINE VALVE COVER GASKET MAY DISLOCATE AND ALLOW AN ENGINE OIL LEAK AT THE GASKET.
THE LEAKAGE OF OIL IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT COULD CAUSEA FIRE.
REPLACE GASKET COVER WITH REVISED COVER, AND RTV SEALANT WILL BE APPLIED IN PLACE OF A GASKET.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“While parked after driving for an hour, the vehicle caught on fire. *ak the consumer was driving the vehicle when she smelled something burning. *sc *jb”
“Spare tire blew out while mounted inside trunk. *ak”
“The master cylinder failed on two occasions at 20k and again at 40k, 0nce resulting in an accident. Tt”
“Automatic idle speed motor failed, causing vehicle to accelerate. *dsh”
“Head gasket failed several times after recall repairs.”
“Valve cover gasket failed, causing oil leak. *dh”
“Turned car on, vehicle jumped forward into wall. Tt”
There is no summary currently available
There is no summary currently available
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1989 Plymouth Reliant as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.