NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Defect Petition DP04-007: FUEL RAIL, BRAKE FLUID, CHASSIS

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Defect Petition DP04-007 on October 13, 2004 and closed it on October 27, 2004. NHTSA's investigations file lists 5 models from 3 makes for it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
DP04-007 (also written DP04007)
Investigation type
Defect Petition A petition asking NHTSA to open a defect investigation; NHTSA grants or denies it, and granting one opens an investigation.
Status
Closed October 27, 2004
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
Chrysler (FCA US, LLC)
Components
Fuel System, Gasoline — Fuel Injection System — Fuel Rail; Service Brakes, Hydraulic — Fluid; Structure — Frame and Members
Vehicles and equipment
5 models from 3 makes, including the Chrysler Concorde and Chrysler LHS

A recall appears here only when NHTSA's investigations file links one to the investigation; NHTSA's summary or record can name others.

NHTSA's summary

As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Defect Petition DP04-007.

ON SEPTEMBER 5, 2004, MR. ROBERT GALENTY OF ISELIN, NJ, PETITIONED THE AGENCY TO CONDUCT DEFECT INVESTIGATIONS OF CERTAIN MODEL YEAR (MY) 1993-1997 VEHICLES PRODUCED BY DAIMLERCHRYSLER CORPORATION.HIS PETITION IDENTIFIED THREE ISSUES OF CONCERN: 1) FUEL LEAKING FROM THE FUEL INJECTOR RAILS; 2) BRAKE FLUID CONTAMINATION RESULTING IN BRAKE FAILURE; AND 3) SUSCEPTIBILITY OF THE VEHICLE FRAME TO DAMAGE WHILE THE VEHICLE IS BEING TOWED.MR. GALANTY ALLEGED THAT HIS 1996 DODGE INTREPID HAD EACH OF THESE THREE PROBLEMS.CONCERNING FUEL RAIL LEAKAGE, DAIMLERCHRYSLER COMMENCED A RECALL (98V-184) OF APPROXIMATELY 722,600 VEHICLES TO ADDRESS ENGINE FUEL RAIL LEAKS THAT COULD LEAD TO A FIRE, INCLUDING THOSE VEHICLES CITED IN THE PETITION AND THE PETITIONER'S 1996 DODGE INTREPID.ON OCTOBER 7, 1998, NHTSA OPENED A RECALL QUERY INVESTIGATION (RQ98-018) TO EVALUATE THE ADEQUACY OF THE RECALL REMEDY.THAT INVESTIGATION WAS CLOSED ON JULY 8, 2002 WITHOUT REQUIRING FURTHER ACTION BY DAIMLERCHRYSLER.VERY RECENTLY, ON JUNE 9, 2004, NHTSA DENIED A PETITION (RP04-001) TO REOPEN RQ98-018 AFTER FINDING THAT THERE WAS NO NEW INFORMATION THAT WOULD INDICATE ANY BASIS FOR REOPENING IT.THIS IS STILL THE CURRENT POSITION OF NHTSA ON THIS ISSUE.CONCERNING BRAKE FLUID CONTAMINATION AND FRAME ALIGNMENT, A REVIEW OF NHTSA'S DATABASE SHOWS NO OTHER COMPLAINTS ON EITHER ONE OF THESE ISSUES ON THE VEHICLES CITED IN THE PETITION.

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Defect Petition DP04-007. 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.

Chrysler

All Chrysler recalls

Dodge

All Dodge recalls

Eagle

All Eagle recalls

What 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 DP04-007

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.