NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Audit Query AQ24-004: High Voltage Coolant Heaters may fail to defrost windshield
- Open
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Audit Query AQ24-004 on April 3, 2024; NHTSA's investigations file listed it as open on October 23, 2026. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Jaguar I-Pace and Lucid Air for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- AQ24-004 (also written AQ24004)
- Investigation type
- Audit Query An administrative investigation into compliance with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting Early Warning data on time or carrying out a recall.
- Status
- Open since April 3, 2024
- Opened
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturers
- Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC; Lucid USA, Inc.
- Component
- Visibility — Defroster/Defogger/HVAC System — Windshield — Electrical Heating Element
- Vehicles and equipment
- Jaguar I-Pace and Lucid Air
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Audit Query AQ24-004.
In a Part 573 Report dated July 27, 2023, Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC (JLR) notified NHTSA of a safety-related defect in 2021-2022 Jaguar I-Pace vehicles. This filing was assigned Recall No. 23V-518. JLR noted that the subject vehicles are equipped with High Voltage Coolant Heaters (HVCH), supplied by Webasto Group (Webasto), that can develop cracking and delamination of the heating element, leading to an inability to defrost the front windshield, which may increase the risk of a crash. In a Part 573 Report dated January 11, 2024, Lucid USA, Inc. (Lucid) notified NHTSA of a safety-related defect in 2022-2023 Lucid Air vehicles. This filing was assigned Recall No. 24V-011. Lucid noted the subject vehicles are equipped with HVCH, supplied by Webasto, that can delaminate, leading to an inability to defrost the front windshield, which may increase the risk of a crash. The purpose of this Audit Query (AQ) is to: 1. Obtain a complete list of purchasers and the quantities for which the same or similar HVCH were supplied; 2. Obtain copies of all written communications initiated by Webasto and sent to its purchasers regarding the subject equipment; and 3. Request Webasto, per 49 CFR 573.3(f), submit a requisite Part 573 Recall Report for defective HVCH installed into motor vehicles of multiple vehicle manufacturers.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Audit Query AQ24-004. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. Model years with a try.vin recall page link to that page's NHTSA investigations section.
Jaguar
All Jaguar recallsLucid
All Lucid recallsWhat an NHTSA investigation is
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) looks into possible safety defects in vehicles and equipment, often after owner complaints. An investigation usually starts as a Preliminary Evaluation, or as a Recall Query when it concerns whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or fixes the problem, and ODI can upgrade it to a more detailed Engineering Analysis. A Defect Petition asks NHTSA to open an investigation, and Audit and Equipment Queries are administrative investigations into whether companies complied with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting, recall and certification rules.
An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.
To see whether a specific vehicle has an open recall, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Free VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for AQ24-004
Investigation details come from NHTSA's investigations file, which try.vin imports once a day. The investigation types are described from the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General's May 2023 report on NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation, NHTSA's petition rules (49 CFR Parts 552 and 557) and NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation procedures. How try.vin reads NHTSA investigations.