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NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Preliminary Evaluation PE11-012: Fontaine Ultra LT 5th Wheel False Latch

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE11-012 on April 15, 2011 and closed it on June 27, 2011. NHTSA's investigations file lists 3 Freightliner models for it and links recall 11V-289 to it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
PE11-012 (also written PE11012)
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 27, 2011
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
Daimler Trucks North America, LLC
Component
Trailer Hitches — Fifth Wheel Assembly
Recall linked by NHTSA
  • 11V-289: FIFTH WHEEL LOCK/FONTAINE, reported
Vehicles and equipment
3 Freightliner models, including the Cascadia and Coronado

NHTSA's summary

As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE11-012.

DTNA submitted a 573 Recall notice (11V-289) prior to the IR response date and therefore was granted permission to forgo submission of the IR response.

Freightliner reported that Fontaine's TSB issued in March had resulted in the remedy of 55 percent of all subject vehicles with an additional 33% scheduled by the time of their 573 submission.

Freightliner will issue another notification 1 July if 100% of the subject population is not remedied by that time.

ODI is aware that the Ultra LT 5th wheel was also installed on several other OEM's vehicles.

ODI will work with Fontaine and the manufacturers to ensure that the remaining vehicles are identified and remedied.

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE11-012. 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.

Freightliner

All Freightliner 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 PE11-012

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.