NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Defect Petition DP98-007: IMPROPER HEIGHT FOR HEAD RESTRAINTS
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Defect Petition DP98-007 on July 28, 1998 and closed it on September 28, 1998. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 1996 Mercury Grand Marquis for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- DP98-007 (also written DP98007)
- 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 September 28, 1998
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Ford Motor Company
- Component
- Seats — Front Assembly — Head Restraint
- Vehicles and equipment
- 1996 Mercury Grand Marquis
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 DP98-007.
NHTSA WAS PETITIONED TO COMMENCE A DEFECT INVESTIGATION OF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES ON JULY 28, 1998.
THE PETITION ALLEGES THAT THE DRIVER'S SEAT HEAD RESTRAINT WAS NOT HIGH ENOUGH AT ITS HIGHEST POSITION TO PROTECT HIM FROM NECK INJURIES SUSTAINED DURING A REAR IMPACT COLLISION.OTHER THAN THE SUBJECT PETITIN, ODI HAS RECEIVED NO OTHER COMPLAINTS OF INADEQUATE HEAD RESTRAINT HEIGHT FOR THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.FORD MOTOR COMPANY'S COMPLIANCE DATA SHOWS THAT THE SUBJECT VEHICLES MET THE HEAD RESTRAINT HEIGHT REQUIREMENT OF FMVSS NO. 202, HEAD RESTRAINTS. THEREFORE, THE PETITION IS DENIED.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Defect Petition DP98-007. 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.
Mercury
Mercury Grand Marquis
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 DP98-007
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.