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NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Preliminary Evaluation PE05-056: STEERING WHEEL AND SHAFT BOLTS

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE05-056 on October 26, 2005 and closed it on March 9, 2006, the day it opened Engineering Analysis EA06-004, whose summary cites it. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Dodge Durango and Dakota for it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
PE05-056 (also written PE05056)
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 March 9, 2006
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
Chrysler (FCA US, LLC)
Components
Steering; Steering — Steering Wheel/Handle Bar; Steering — Column; Steering — Linkages
Vehicles and equipment
Dodge Durango and Dakota

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 PE05-056.

ON OCTOBER 26, 2005 ODI OPENED PE05-056 TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGATIONS OF LOOSE OR MISSING STEERING WHEEL OR STEERING SHAFT COUPLING BOLTS IN MODEL YEAR (MY) 2004 AND 2005 DODGE DURANGO SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES AND MY 2005 DODGE DAKOTA PICKUP TRUCKS MANUFACTURED BY DAIMLERCHRYSLER CORPORATION (DCC).

DURING PE05-056 ODI IDENTIFIED 3 OWNER COMPLAINTS TO ODI OR DCC, 21 FIELD REPORTS TO DCC AND 142 WARRANTY CLAIMS RELATED TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT CONDITIONS.THE REPORTS AND CLAIMS INCLUDED 8 INCIDENTS OF EITHER STEERING WHEEL SEPARATION OR STEERING SHAFT DECOUPLING WHILE DRIVING DUE TO LOOSE OR MISSING BOLTS.ONE OF THE FAILURES RESULTED IN A CRASH. PE05-056 HAS BEEN UPGRADED TO AN ENGINEERING ANALYSIS (EA06-004) TO CONTINUE TO INVESTIGATE THE SCOPE, FREQUENCY AND SAFETY CONSEQUENCES OF THE ALLEGED DEFECT.

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE05-056. 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.

Dodge

All Dodge 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.

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

Sources

NHTSA's investigation record for PE05-056

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.