NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE13-008: High exhaust temperature causing fire
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE13-008 on March 29, 2013 and closed it on September 3, 2013. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2012 Ford Manning Equipment F-350 for it and links recall 13V-380 to it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE13-008 (also written PE13008)
- 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 September 3, 2013
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Manning Equipment Inc., LLC
- Component
- Engine and Engine Cooling — Exhaust System
- Recall linked by NHTSA
- 13V-380: Insufficient Tailpipe Length, reported
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2012 Ford Manning Equipment F-350
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE13-008.
During communications with Government Services Administration (GSA) staff, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) was made aware of a 2012 Ford F350 utility truck vehicle fire.
The fire allegedly resulted from high exhaust temperatures igniting materials within the passenger side, lower rear storage compartment of the Manning utility body.
As a result of this incident, an equipment alert (USFS-EA-2012-01) was issued by GSA to operators of GSA-owned fleet vehicles equipped with the subject Manning utility body instructing them not to store flammable liquids or combustible materials in the subject storage compartment.
The San Dimas Technology and Development Center (SDTDC) was contracted by GSA to conduct testing of the Manning utility body to determine the cause of the fire.
Testing performed by SDTDC engineers found temperatures in the subject utility body compartment well above those of peer vehicles.
The elevated temperatures were found to be the result of the exhaust pipe routing configuration that directed exhaust gases onto the utility body undercarriage.
Furthermore, above average temperatures were found to melt plastic and rubber parts located just below the exhaust outlet.
By its letter dated August 21, 2013, Manning Equipment Inc. LLC notified ODI that it initiated a safety recall (NHTSA Recall No. 13V-380) to address a safety defect in 37 model year (MY) 2012 Ford F-Series gas, dual rear wheel chassis cabs equipped with Manning Equipment installed service bodies. The affected vehicles were manufactured from October 2011 through June 2012.
Manning has informed ODI they will remedy the subject vehicles with a tailpipe extension that will direct exhaust out and away from rear compartment and a decal placed above the compartment instructing users not to store flammable liquids or combustible materials in the subject compartment.
Based on Manning?s action to remedy the subject vehicles for the defective exhaust pipe design, this investigation is closed.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE13-008. 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.
Ford
Ford Manning Equipment F-350
- 2012
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.
Ford VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE13-008
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.