NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE09-008: FIRE
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE09-008 on February 12, 2009 and closed it on June 16, 2009. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2006 Honda Ridgeline for it and links recall 10V-001 to it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE09-008 (also written PE09008)
- 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 16, 2009
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Honda (American Honda Motor Co.)
- Component
- Electrical System — Instrument Cluster/Panel
- Recall linked by NHTSA
- 10V-001: BLOWER MOTOR HEATING VENTILATION AC, reported
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2006 Honda Ridgeline
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE09-008.
THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) OPENED THIS INVESTIGATION BASED ON THREE VEHICLE OWNER QUESTIONNAIRE (VOQ) REPORTS ALLEGING A FIRE OCCURRED IN THE INSTRUMENT PANEL.IN ADDITION, THERE WERE THREE VOQ REPORTS ALLEGING A BURNED, MELTED, OR SHORTED HVAC FAN MOTOR WIRING HARNESS.HONDA REPORTS THAT DURING AUGUST AND SEPTEMBER, 2006, IT CONDUCTED A STUDY REGARDING MELTING OF THE HVAC FAN MOTOR HARNESS CONNECTOR.HONDA CONCLUDED THAT THE DAMAGE TO THE HARNESS CONNECTOR COULD RESULT FROM CONTACT BY A PASSENGER'S FOOT OR HANDLING OF THE HVAC UNIT DURING VEHICLE ASSEMBLY.HONDA INSTITUTED CHANGES TO ADDRESS THESE ISSUES.ALL COMPLAINT VEHICLES WERE MANUFACTURED BEFORE HONDA IMPLEMENTED THESE CHANGES.ODI'S ANALYSIS OF THE DATA (BOTH ODI AND HONDA) SHOW THERE ARE SIX REPORTS (DUPLICATES REMOVED) ALLEGING A FIRE IN OR NEAR THE INSTRUMENT PANEL.FOUR OF THOSE RESULTED FROM AN UNKNOWN CAUSE, ONE RESULTED FROM AN HVAC FAN MOTOR FAILURE, AND ONE IS REPORTED TO HAVE BEEN ARSON. IN ADDITION, THERE WERE NINE REPORTS OF HVAC FAN MOTOR HARNESS FAILURE THAT RESULTED IN SMOKE IN THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT BUT NO VEHICLE FIRE.THE REMAINING FIVE REPORTS RESULTED IN SMOKE IN THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT AND INCLUDED FAILURES OF THE AIR CONDITIONING COMPRESSOR, HVAC FAN MOTOR, AND A POWER TRANSISTOR.THIS INVESTIGATION DID NOT FIND THAT FAILURE OF THE HVAC FAN MOTOR CONNECTOR, WHICH CAN RESULT IN SMOKE, WOULD ALSO LEAD TO A FIRE.SIMILARILY NO DEFECT TREND WAS IEDNTIFIED FROM EXAMINATION OF THE SIX REPORTED FIRES.A SAFETY RELATED DEFECT HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.ACCORDINGLY THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE09-008. 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.
Honda
Honda Ridgeline
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.
Honda VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE09-008
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.