NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE04-053: FRONTAL DRIVER AIR BAG
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE04-053 on July 26, 2004 and closed it on November 22, 2004. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2004 Honda Accord for it and links recall 04V-551 to it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE04-053 (also written PE04053)
- 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 November 22, 2004
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)
- Component
- Air Bags — Frontal
- Recall linked by NHTSA
- 04V-551: HONDA/DRIVER AIR BAG FABRIC, reported
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2004 Honda Accord
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE04-053.
try.vin does not copy NHTSA's investigation documents; NHTSA's investigation record lists the ones NHTSA has published.
DURING TWO OF 13 NHTSA RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT COMPATIBILITY CRASH TESTS, THE DRIVER-SIDE FRONTAL AIRBAG FAILED TO PROPERLY DEPLOY DUE TO A LARGE TEAR IN THE AIRBAG FABRIC.BOTH R&D TEST VEHICLES THAT CONTAINED A FAILED AIR BAG WERE 4-DOOR, 4-CYLINDER (L4) VEHICLES.SUBSEQUENT STATIC AND DYNAMIC TESTS CONDUCTED BY HONDA REVEALED THAT DURING SEVERE CRASH CONDITIONS, THE AIRBAG FABRIC CAN SNAG THE INSIDE SURFACE OF THE AIRBAG MODULE COVER AT THE EMBLEM ATTACHMENT POINTS.HONDA REPORTS THAT THE AIR BAG MODULE AND COVER DESIGN ARE UNIQUE TO THE 4-DOOR, 4-CYLINDER SUBJECT VEHICLES.ON NOVEMBER 17, 2004, HONDA NOTIFIED THE AGENCY THAT IT WOULD RECALL 228,932 MODEL YEAR (MY) 2004 AND 28,428 EARLY-MY 2005 ACCORD L4 SEDANS (UP THROUGH EARLY-OCTOBER, 2004).
AS PART OF THE RECALL REMEDY, HONDA WILL INSTALL AN ADDITIONAL PIECE OF PROTECTIVE FABRIC/FLAP BETWEEN THE AIRBAG AND THE INSIDE AIRBAG MODULE COVER.SEE NHTSA RECALL 04V551 FOR DETAILS.IN ADDITION, THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 250 EXPORTED ACCORD VEHICLES INCLUDED IN THIS RECALL. THE V-6 MODELS AND THE 2-DOOR, 4-CYLINDER MODELS ARE NOT INCLUDED BASED ON DIFFERENT AIR BAG AND AIR BAG MODULE COVER DESIGNS.THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE04-053. 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.
Honda
Honda Accord
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.
Honda VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE04-053
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.