NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE03-044: ACCELERATOR PEDAL SENSOR FAILURE (ETC)
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE03-044 on September 26, 2003 and closed it on February 18, 2004. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Ford Excursion and F Super Duty for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE03-044 (also written PE03044)
- Investigation type
- Preliminary Evaluation The first stage of most defect investigations: NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation gathers basic information about a possible safety defect, including from the manufacturer.
- Status
- Closed February 18, 2004
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Ford Motor Company
- Components
- Vehicle Speed Control; Vehicle Speed Control — Accelerator Pedal
- Vehicles and equipment
- Ford Excursion and F Super Duty
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 Preliminary Evaluation PE03-044.
THE SUBJECT VEHICLES FOR THIS INVESTIGATION INCLUDE MODEL YEAR 2002 AND 2003 EXCURSION AND F SUPER DUTY TRUCKS EQUIPPED WITH 7.3L DIESEL ENGINES AND AN OPTIONAL POWER ADJUSTABLE PEDAL (PAP) FEATURE.THE SUBJECT VEHICLES UTILIZE AN ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL (ETC) SYSTEM TO CONTROL ENGINE SPEED AND POWER.THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL POSITION SENSOR OF THE ETC SYSTEM WAS REPLACED UNDER FORD'S FIELD SERVICE ACTION (FSA) 03B03 (ANNOUNCED IN FEBRUARY 2003) DUE TO CONCERNS THAT IT MAY NOT OPERATE AS DESIGNED AND AS A RESULT, MAY CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO CONTINUE TO IDLE OR UNEXPECTEDLY SLOW WHEN THE ACCELERATOR IS APPLIED.CERTAIN COMPLAINT AND WARRANTY INFORMATION RELATED TO THE VEHICLES INVOLVED IN FSA 03B03 HAS NOT BEEN PROVIDED BY FORD, AS DISCUSSED IN DETAIL IN FORD'S RESPONSE LETTER (DATED DECEMBER 2, 2003) TO ODI'S PRELIMINARY EVALUATION INFORMATION REQUEST.THIS ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, WHICH IS REQUIRED TO ADEQUATELY ASSESS THE SAFETY IMPLICATIONS OF THE ALLEGED DEFECT, WILL BE OBTAINED AND ANALYZED DURING THE ENGINEERING ANALYSIS PHASE OF THE INVESTIGATION.THE MANUFACTURER FAILURE REPORT COUNTS WILL BE DETERMINED AT THAT TIME.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE03-044. 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.
Ford
All Ford recallsWhat 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.
Ford VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE03-044
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.