NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE05-008: SEATBELT MALFUNCTION
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE05-008 on February 10, 2005 and closed it on June 13, 2005, the day it opened Engineering Analysis EA05-010, which this investigation's summary cites. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2004 Toyota Sienna for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE05-008 (also written PE05008)
- 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 13, 2005
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Toyota Motor Corporation
- Components
- Seat Belts; Seat Belts — Rear/Other
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2004 Toyota Sienna
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 PE05-008.
ODI RECEIVED TEN CONSUMER COMPLAINTS ALLEGING THAT THE MIDDLE-ROW PASSENGER SEATBELT WEBBING FREQUENTLY JAMS IN THE INTEGRATED SEATBELT GUIDE HOUSING SLOT.DURING NORMAL BODY MOVEMENT OF THE OCCUPANT, THE WEBBING JAMS IN THE SLOT DUE TO A DISLODGED COVER PLATE, THUS CAUSING EXCESS SLACK IN THE SEATBELT ASSEMBLY.TOYOTA?S LETTER RESPONSE TO THE AGENCY IDENTIFIES 40 OTHER CONSUMER AND FIELD REPORTS AND 3,073 WARRANTY REPAIRS THAT REQUIRE THE REPLACEMENT OF THE SEATBELT GUIDE ASSEMBLY.IN ADDITION, THERE ARE ANOTHER 16 WARRANTY CLAIMS ON MY 2005 SIENNA VEHICLES.COMPLAINANTS EXPRESSED CONCERN FOR CHILDREN OCCUPYING THE MIDDLE-ROW SEATS.THEY MAY NOT RECOGNIZE THE POTENTIAL SAFETY RISK OR BE ABLE TO REMEDY A SLACK SEATBELT.A SLACK OR JAMMED SEATBELT DOES NOT OFFER PROPER OCCUPANT PROTECTION IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH.TOYOTA HAS IMPLEMENTED A RECENT DESIGN CHANGE TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM.TOYOTA WILL APPLY THE DESIGN CHANGE TO NEW PRODUCTION VEHICLES AND ALTHOUGH THE DESIGN CAN BE APPLIED TO EARLIER MY 2004 AND 2005 VEHICLES, TOYOTA HAS NOT ANNOUNCED A SAFETY RECALL FOR THOSE VEHICLES.THIS INVESTIGATION IS UPGRADED TO AN ENGINEERING ANALYSIS (EA05-010) AND WILL INCLUDE MY 2005 VEHICLES.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE05-008. 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.
Toyota
Toyota Sienna
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.
Toyota VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE05-008
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.