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NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Preliminary Evaluation PE08-056: ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL MALFUNCTION

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE08-056 on September 17, 2008 and closed it on January 14, 2009, the day it opened Engineering Analysis EA09-002, which this investigation's summary cites. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Chevrolet Corvette and Corvette Z06 for it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
PE08-056 (also written PE08056)
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 January 14, 2009
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
General Motors, LLC
Component
Electronic Stability Control
Vehicles and equipment
Chevrolet Corvette and Corvette Z06

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 PE08-056.

ON SEPTEMBER 17, 2008, ODI OPENED PRELIMINARY EVALUATION PE08-056 TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGATIONS OF INAPPROPRIATE ACTIVATION OF THE ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC) SYSTEM IN MODEL YEAR (MY) 2005 AND 2006 CHEVROLET CORVETTE VEHICLES.SOME REPORTS RECEIVED BY ODI AND SOME REPORTS TO GENERAL MOTORS (GM) CONTAINED IN GM'S RESPONSE TO PE08-056 ALLEGE THAT THE ESC SYSTEM MALFUNCTIONED CAUSING A SUDDEN AND INAPPROPRIATE BRAKING ACTION WITHOUT ILLUMINATION OF THE BRAKE LIGHTS AND CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO SWERVE LEFT OR RIGHT UNEXPECTEDLY. GM ISSUED A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN IN JANUARY 2006, LATER REVISED IN OCTOBER 2007 (BULLETIN NO. 06-02-35-002B) CONCERNING ESC PROBLEMS IN MY 2005 AND 2006 CHEVROLET CORVETTE VEHICLES WITH THE TELESCOPING STEERING WHEEL OPTION.THE BULLETIN WAS INTENDED TO CORRECT A FRETTING CORROSION PROBLEM WITH THE STEERING WHEEL POSITION SENSOR CONNECTOR C202. AN ENGINEERING ANALYSIS HAS BEEN OPENED (EA09-002) TO CONTINUE TO ASSES THE SCOPE, FREQUENCY, AND SAFETY-RELATED CONSEQUENCES OF THE ALLEGED DEFECT.

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE08-056. 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.

Chevrolet

All Chevrolet 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.

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

Sources

NHTSA's investigation record for PE08-056

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.