NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE15-004: Seat Belt Buckle Inoperative
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE15-004 on February 3, 2015 and closed it on May 27, 2015. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2014 Stallion 900 for it and links recall 15E-016 to it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE15-004 (also written PE15004)
- 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 May 27, 2015
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Stallion Bus And Transit Corp.
- Components
- Seat Belts; Seat Belts — Rear/Other — Buckle Assembly; Seat Belts — Front — Buckle Assembly
- Recall linked by NHTSA
- 15E-016 (NHTSA record)
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2014 Stallion 900
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE15-004.
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) was in contact with a fleet that experienced multiple incidents of driver and passenger seatbelt buckle assemblies failing to unlatch.
The seatbelts, manufactured by Taizhou TIANDA Rope and Belt Co, are original equipment on certain Stallion 900 motorcoaches.
Preliminary evaluation suggested that two significantly different buckle assembly designs exist for a single part number 67RB1-04021.
At the time of this investigation, failures appear to be limited to the earlier design. Shortly after opening this investigation, Taizhou Tianda Rope & Belt Co. Ltd decided to recall the earlier design buckles with safety recall 15E-016.
An information request letter was not delivered before the recall was announced.
Based on this action by the manufacturer, this investigation is closed.
The ODI reports cited above can be reviewed at www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following identification (ODI) numbers: 10631019, 10632409, 10633199 and 10633213.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE15-004. 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.
Stallion
Stallion 900
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 PE15-004
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.