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NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Engineering Analysis EA99-034: REFUELING SPIT BACK

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Engineering Analysis EA99-034 on December 16, 1999 and closed it on June 29, 2000. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 1998–1999 Kia Sephia for it and links recall 00V-175 to it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
EA99-034 (also written EA99034)
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 June 29, 2000
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
Kia America, Inc.
Component
Vehicle Speed Control — Linkages
Recall linked by NHTSA
  • 00V-175: KIA/ORVR VALVE, reported
Vehicles and equipment
1998–1999 Kia Sephia

NHTSA's summary

As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Engineering Analysis EA99-034.

The number and dates of complaints and warrant claims reported by Kia indicates that fuel spit-back has been a serieous ongoing problem with the Sephia models.

Kia has made changes in both the ORVR valve and in the installation process on the fuel tank check valve, in an attempt to correct the problem.

The failure of the check valve, due to cracking during installation, could go undetected until problems develop with the ORVR valve.

Should an ORVR valve malfunction, when the vehicle has a tank chech valve with a latent crack, significant fuel spitting out the fuel filler pipe during refueling is possible.

Current owners of 1998 and 1999 models could still be driving vehicles with latent defects.

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Engineering Analysis EA99-034. 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.

Kia

All Kia 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.

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

Sources

NHTSA's investigation record for EA99-034

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.