NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Preliminary Evaluation PE04-014: STEERING BINDING

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE04-014 on February 5, 2004 and closed it on June 24, 2004. NHTSA's investigations file lists 8 Volvo models for it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
PE04-014 (also written PE04014)
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 June 24, 2004
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
Volvo Trucks North America
Component
Steering
Vehicles and equipment
8 Volvo models, including the VN and VN610

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 PE04-014.

ODI'S PRELIMINARY EVALUATION FOCUSED ON THE POTENTIAL FOR A BROKEN, BENT, DEFORMED, FRAGMENTED OR DISPLACED TURN SIGNAL CANCELING RING (TSCR), VTNA PART NUMBER 1607363, TO RESTRICT THEVEHICLE OPERATOR'S ABILITY TO TURN THE STEERING WHEEL.THE PE IDENTIFIED THIRTEEN VTNA WARRANTY CLAIMS THAT ALLEGE THAT THE TSCR HAD FAILED AND THAT THE VEHICLE STEERING EFFORT HAD BEEN ADVERSELY AFFECTED.TO DATE, ODI HAS NOT FOUND ANY SAMPLES OF A FAILED TSCR AND HAS NOT BEEN ABLE TO DEFINITIVELY ESTABLISH WHETHER A FAILED TSCR CAN OR CANNOT CONTRIBUTE TO INCREASED STEERING EFFORT.ODI BELIEVES THAT IT IS APPROPRIATE TO CONDUCT FURTHER INVESTIGATION(EA LEVEL) TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE CHARACTERISTICS OF TSCR FAILURES AND TO ASSESS THE EFFECT, IF ANY, THAT THESE TYPES OF FAILURES COULD HAVE ON VEHICLE STEERING EFFORT.

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE04-014. 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.

Volvo

All Volvo 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.

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

Sources

NHTSA's investigation record for PE04-014

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.