NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE14-001: Brake Actuator malfunction
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE14-001 on January 23, 2014 and closed it on August 22, 2014. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2007–2011 Toyota Camry Hybrid for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE14-001 (also written PE14001)
- 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 August 22, 2014
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Toyota Motor Corporation
- Components
- Service Brakes; Service Brakes, Air — Supply — Reservoir/Tank; Service Brakes, Electric; Service Brakes, Hydraulic — Power Assist
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2007–2011 Toyota Camry Hybrid
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 PE14-001.
try.vin does not copy NHTSA's investigation documents; NHTSA's investigation record lists the ones NHTSA has published.
On June 25, 2014, Toyota initiated a Warranty Enhancement Program (ZE1) to extend warranty coverage for the brake actuator assembly and skid control ECU/brake pedal stroke sensor in certain MY 2007 to 2011 Toyota Camry hybrid vehicles. Toyota's program covers repairs related to two conditions:internal malfunctions of the Brake Actuator assembly; and overly sensitive monitoring logic for the Brake Pedal Stroke Sensor.
Primary coverage provides warranty enhancement until November 30, 2015, with no mileage limitation.
After the primary coverage period ends, secondary coverage is provided for 10 years or 150,000 miles from the date of first use, whichever occurs first.
In addition, on July 10, 2014, Toyota initiated Limited Service Campaign E0U to replace the Brake Reservoir Tank in MY 2007 through 2011 Toyota Camry hybrid vehicles.
The LSC will be available until June 30, 2017, and will only be available at an authorized Toyota dealer.
ODI's analysis of failure data determined that the majority of records were related to the Brake Actuator condition, which appeared to be the causal component in 734 complaints/field reports and 864 warranty claims.
The Brake Pedal Stroke Sensor (80 reports/189 claims) and Brake Reservoir Tank (91 reports/44 claims) conditions were identified in far fewer records.
Analysis of the failure data indicate that each condition provides warning prior to any reduction in power assisted braking, with less than 10 percent of all reports and claims involving diagnostic codes or complaint narratives indicating increased braking effort or reduced brake effectiveness.
In addition, most of the incidents in which reduced braking assist appears to have occurred involved operation in a reduced assist mode and not a sudden, complete loss of power assisted braking.
ODI assessed reduced assist mode in a subjective driving evaluation which indicated that the brake system provided normal and harddeceleration capability with reasonable increases in pedal effort.
Less than one percent of reports and claims analyzed by ODI included evidence indicating a complete loss of power assisted braking occurred and this mode requires operation for a significant period of time with multiple audible and visual warnings.
Repair expense was cited in many of the complaints reviewed by ODI, especially those related to the Brake Actuator, which had repair costs exceeding $3,000 according to some complaints.
High repair cost appears to have been a factor in the only crash identified by ODI for the fault conditions identified by Toyota, which involved a Brake Actuator failure that was diagnosed but the owner declined repair approximately eight months prior to the reported crash incident.
This preliminary evaluation is closed.
The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding that a safety-related defect does not exist.
For additional information regarding this investigation, including analysis of the Brake Actuator, Brake Pedal Stroke Sensor, and Brake Reservoir Tank fault conditions and failure experience, see Attachment A to this closing resume.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE14-001. 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.
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 PE14-001
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.