NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Engineering Analysis EA08-017: STEERING INTERMEDIATE SHAFT BINDING
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Engineering Analysis EA08-017 on August 28, 2008, the day it closed Preliminary Evaluation PE08-033, whose summary cites it, and closed it on July 1, 2009. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Kia Sedona and Sedona EX for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- EA08-017 (also written EA08017)
- Investigation type
- Engineering Analysis A more detailed stage of a defect investigation, opened when NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation decides an issue merits further review, often after a Preliminary Evaluation or a Recall Query; it can include vehicle testing, surveys and further information requests.
- Status
- Closed July 1, 2009
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Kia America, Inc.
- Component
- Steering
- Vehicles and equipment
- Kia Sedona and Sedona EX
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 Engineering Analysis EA08-017.
try.vin does not copy NHTSA's investigation documents; NHTSA's investigation record lists the ones NHTSA has published.
ODIS ANALYSIS OF WARRANTY DATA SHOWS THAT THE ALLEGED DEFECT HAS OCCURRED AT A RELATIVELY HIGH FREQUENCY IN SALT-BELT STATES (5.9 PERCENT).
HOWEVER, THE TESTS CONDUCTED BY ODI AND KIA HAVE SHOWN THAT THE ALLEGED DEFECT HAS A MINIMAL EFFECT ON STEERING EFFORTS.IN ADDITION, ODI INTERVIEWS OF OWNERS WHO EXPERIENCED THE ALLEGED DEFECT SHOWED THAT IN MOST CASES THE PROBLEM WAS PRECEDED BY MONTHS OR YEARS OF NOISE OR A GRADUAL INCREASE IN STEERING EFFORTS AND WAS MORE OF A NUISANCE CONCERN. THERE HAS BEEN ONE ALLEGATION OF A MINOR CRASH RELATED TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT, INVOLVING A MY 2003 KIA SEDONA WITH 59,900 MILES.THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN CHECKED TWICE IN THE PREVIOUS NINE MONTHS BY A DEALER FOR COMPLAINTS OF STIFF STEERING AND THAT THE VEHICLE FELT LIKE IT WAS INTERMITTENTLY LOSING POWER ASSIST.THE CRASH OCCURRED AS THE DRIVER WAS ATTEMPTING TO MAKE A LEFT TURN WHILE TRAVELING AT APPROXIMATELY 20 MILES PER HOUR AND STRUCK A VEHICLE PARKED ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE STREET THAT THE VEHICLE WAS TURNING INTO. THE CRASH RESULTED IN MINOR INJURIES TO THE DRIVER. AFTER THE CRASH, IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE INTERMEDIATE SHAFT WAS EXHIBITING SOME BINDING OF THE STEERING INTERMEDIATE SHAFT BEARINGS.WHILE THE ABSENCE OF ADDITIONAL CRASHES OR INJURIES DOES NOT MEAN THAT THERE IS NOT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT, THERE HAVE BEEN NO REPORTED ADDITIONAL CRASHES CAUSED BY THE ALLEGED DEFECT IN THE PAST THREE YEARS. THE RELEASE OF THE TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN SHOULD ASSIST SERVICE PERSONAL IN DIAGNOSING THIS POTENTIAL PROBLEM LONG BEFORE IT BECOMES POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED. THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST. THE AGENCY WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR COMPLAINTS AND OTHER INFORMATION RELATING TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES AND TAKE FURTHER ACTION IN THE FUTURE IF WARRANTED.FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REGARDING THIS ENGINEERING ANALYSIS REFER TO THE EA08-017 CLOSING REPORT.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Engineering Analysis EA08-017. 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.
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.
Kia VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for EA08-017
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.