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NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Preliminary Evaluation PE07-054: EMERGENCY DOOR HANDLE FAILURE

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE07-054 on November 9, 2007 and closed it on March 4, 2008. NHTSA's investigations file lists 9 models from 2 makes for it and links recall 08V-087 to it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
PE07-054 (also written PE07054)
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 4, 2008
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturers
FREIGHTLINER LLC; THOMAS BUILT BUSES, INC.
Component
Structure — Body — Door — Hinge and Attachments
Recall linked by NHTSA
  • 08V-087: EMERGENCY EXIT DOOR HANDLE, reported
Vehicles and equipment
9 models from 2 makes, including the Thomas Built Buses FS-65 and Thomas MVP EF

NHTSA's summary

As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE07-054.

THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION OPENED THIS PRELIMINARY EVALUATIONAFTERBECOMING AWARE THAT FLEETS WERE HAVING HANDLE FAILURES ON THE REAR EMERGENCY DOOR EXIT.THE FAILURE RESULTED IN THE DOOR HANDLE SEPARATING FROM THEDOOR LATCH MECHANISM.WHEN THE HANDLE FAILS, THE REAR EMERGENCY EXIT DOOR CAN NOT BE OPENED FROM OUTSIDE THE BUS.THE FAILURE RESULTS FROM CORROSION OF THE EXTERIOR DOOR HANDLE AROUND THE SECURING ROLL PIN AND SQUARE DRIVE LATCH MECHANISM, CAUSING THE PROTECTIVE FINISH TO CHIP AND FLAKE.CONTINUED CORROSION WEAKENS THE HANDLE AND EVENTUALLY THE HANDLE MAY BREAK WHILE TRYING TO OPEN THE EXIT DOOR.ODI WAS CONCERNED THAT DURING AN EMERGENCY, A PERSON OUTSIDE OF THE BUS WOULD BREAK THE DOOR HANDLE WHILE TRYING TO OPEN THE EMERGENCY EXIT DOOR,POTENTIALLY DELAYING EVACUATION OF THE BUS.UNDER THE SAFETY RECALL, THE ALUMINUM HANDLES WILL BE REPLACED WITH A MORE ROBUST HANDLE.THE RECALL ACTION RESOLVES THE ISSUES RAISED BY THIS INVESTIGATION. ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE07-054. 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.

Thomas

All Thomas recalls

Thomas Built Buses

All Thomas Built Buses 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.

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

Sources

NHTSA's investigation record for PE07-054

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.