NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE08-072: ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL AND/OR TRAC
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE08-072 on December 16, 2008 and closed it on April 15, 2009. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2003 Toyota Sequoia for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE08-072 (also written PE08072)
- 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 April 15, 2009
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Toyota Motor Corporation
- Component
- Electronic Stability Control
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2003 Toyota Sequoia
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 PE08-072.
ODI HAS RECEIVED 64 CONSUMER REPORTS AND TOYOTA HAS RECEIVED 96 REPORTS THAT ALLEGE INCIDENTS OF INAPPROPRIATE ACTIVATION OF EITHER THE ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL SYSTEM [TOYOTA NOMENCLATURE: VEHICLE STABILITY CONTROL (VSC)] AND/OR THE TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM IN MODEL YEAR (MY) 2003 TOYOTA SEQUOIA VEHICLES.DURING THE ACTIVATION OF EITHER SYSTEM THE DRIVER LOSES THROTTLE CONTROL AND ONE OR MORE BRAKES MAY APPLY CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO SLOW SUDDENLY.DURING THESE ACTIVATION EVENTS THE BRAKE LIGHTS ARE NOT ILLUMINATED TO SIGNAL TO FOLLOWING TRAFFIC THAT THE VEHICLE IS SLOWING.SOME OF THE COMPLAINANTS ALLEGE ALMOST BEING STRUCK BY FOLLOWING OR CROSSING TRAFFIC BECAUSE OF THE UNEXPECTED DECELERATION.IN RESPONSE TO ODI'S INFORMATION REQUEST LETTER FOR PE08-072, TOYOTA INDICATED THAT IT HAS REVIEWED THE REPORTS SUBMITTED TO ODI AND TO TOYOTA AND THAT IT BELIEVES THAT THERE ARE SEVERAL ISSUES RESPONSIBLE FOR THE REPORTED INCIDENTS.IT IS TOYOTA'S OPINION THAT THE VSC SYSTEM WAS OPERATING AS DESIGNED AND THAT THE REPORTS ARE MOST LIKELY RELATED TO THE APPLICATION OF THE TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM RATHER THAN THE VSC SYSTEM.AT THIS TIME TOYOTA HAS NOT DETERMINED THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT EXISTS IN THE MY 2003 SEQUOIA VEHICLES. THIS PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION HAS BEEN UPGRADED TO AN ENGINEERING ANALYSIS (EA09-006) TO CONTINUE TO INVESTIGATE 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 PE08-072. 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 Sequoia
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 PE08-072
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.