Insufficient Rear Impact Protection/FMVSS 223 & 224

Affected vehicles (1)

Component / system

Defect

Wabash National Corporation (Wabash) is recalling certain 2025-2026 Stepdeck trailers. The incorrect rear impact guard may have been installed. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard numbers 223, "Rear Impact Guards" and 224, "Rear Impact Protection."

Risk / consequence

The incorrect guard may not sufficiently protect a following vehicle during a rear end crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy

Wabash will replace the rear impact guards, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 12, 2026. Owners may contact Wabash customer service at 1-765-771-5404.

Chronology of events

1. May 2025

   May 2025 to September 2025: Wabash’s compliance teams conducted a compliance review of drop deck trailers that had been classified as Special purpose vehicles or Low Chassis vehicles under FMVSS 224, S4. Wabash reviewed trailer designs and rear impact guards installed and conducted a regulatory analysis that included a review of NHTSA interpretations and rulemaking information to evaluate different populations of trailers.

2. Sep 19, 2025

   9/19/25 - A concern was entered into the system to bring awareness to the Product Safety Team (PST) of a potential Rear Impact Guard non-compliance in certain trailer populations.

3. Sep 23, 2025

   9/23/25 - The PST reviewed the compliance investigation and, based on concerns of a potential noncompliance with the dimensional requirements, the PST voted to escalate the issue to the Product Safety Committee (PSC).

Notification schedule

Dealer notification

Dec 04, 2025 - Dec 04, 2025 No Dealers

Owner notification

Dec 04, 2025 - Jan 15, 2026 Phased Recall