NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE14-008: Brake Surface Grease Contamination
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE14-008 on March 20, 2014 and closed it on October 7, 2014. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Palomino Columbus and 365RL Columbus Fifth Whee for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE14-008 (also written PE14008)
- 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 October 7, 2014
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturers
- Forest River, Inc.; PALOMINO RV
- Components
- Service Brakes; Service Brakes, Electric
- Vehicles and equipment
- Palomino Columbus and 365RL Columbus Fifth Whee
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 PE14-008.
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation based on 8 Vehicle Owner Questionnaires (VOQ) alleging grease contamination on the trailer brake shoes or drums.
This condition could potentially increase the towing vehicle's stopping distance and therefore increase the risk of a crash.
During the investigation, ODI received 2 additional VOQs alleging the same problem.
ODI sent Information Request letters to Forest River and the component supplier, Lippert Components, Inc. (LCI).
In response, each provided complaint and warranty information for the subject & peer vehicles and components respectively.
ODI visited multiple Recreational Vehicle (RV) dealers to survey their pre-delivery and maintenance inspections.
In addition to local dealerships, ODI visited the Columbus, Forest River and LCI axle plants.
ODI observed the hub assembly process at LCI and noted that the hub and bearings are assembled at a subassembly station and greased before transferring them to the main line for assembly on the axle.
This allows for grease to escape the seal before ever being assembled.
If the grease is not completely removed by the employee just prior to assembly, it may remain on the braking surface. A thorough review of the available data revealed one crash.
The crash was minor and although an injury was reported, ODI was not able to confirm as no police report had been generated.
ODI attempted to interview both parties; however, the subject vehicle owner was the only respondent.
At the time of the incident, no injuries were apparent and the police therefore did not respond.
The subject vehicle owner later learned that the other party claimed an injury.
ODI's review of warranty data indicated that most owners recognized an issue with their trailer brakes early in the life of the trailer.
RVs are typically returned to the dealer for warranty work after the first month or two of ownership.
Many units were corrected during this initial break in period.
Others were corrected when receiving the first annual service, as is recommended in the owner's manual.
Grease on the vehicle's braking surface can diminish the vehicle's brake performance.
However, as this issue exists at the time the trailer is originally purchased and does not get progressively worse over time and given that the trailers have one to two years in service with no significant events as the result of brake degradation, ODI does not believe this condition presents an unreasonable risk to safety.
Forest River has initiated an Owner Notification Program (ONP) and will alert each subject vehicle owner that their unit should be inspected for grease on the braking surfaces if they have not already done so. LCI claims to have improved their training and material handling practices to reduce future issues.
This investigation is closed as further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that no safety-related defect exists. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.
The ODI reports cited above can be reviewed at: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following complaint identification numbers: 110546092, 10560304, 10561961, 10563621, 10563591, 10564143, 10563464, 10567696, 10577479, 10587690
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE14-008. 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.
Palomino
All Palomino recallsWhat 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 PE14-008
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.