NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Engineering Analysis EA89-023: FRONT SEAT BRACKET

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Engineering Analysis EA89-023 on May 25, 1989 and closed it on May 22, 1990. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable for it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
EA89-023 (also written EA89023)
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 May 22, 1990
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
Ford Motor Company
Component
Seats
Vehicles and equipment
Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable

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 EA89-023.

SUMMARY:THE LOSS OF VEHICLE CONTROL APPEARS TO BE THE POTENTIALCONSEQUENCE OF A SEAT BRACKET FAILURE.===

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Engineering Analysis EA89-023. 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.

Free VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.

Sources

NHTSA's investigation record for EA89-023

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.