NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE15-034: Hitch Failure
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE15-034 on October 16, 2015 and closed it on March 2, 2016. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Bear Trailer (model not given) for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE15-034 (also written PE15034)
- 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 March 2, 2016
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Bear Trailer Manufacturing, Inc.
- Component
- Trailer Hitches
- Vehicles and equipment
- Bear Trailer (model not given)
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 PE15-034.
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this Preliminary Evaluation (PE) based on an owner report and the lack of required TREAD act reporting (49 CFR 579) from Bear Trailer MFG (Bear).
The Vehicle Owner'sQuestionnaire (VOQ) reported a crack in the trailer tongue.
This is a critical component for the safe operation of a trailer.
The subject component of this investigation is a patented design known as the Trail Guard tongue.
This is a removable tongue which includes the electrical harness and serves two purposes.
Removal of the tongue shortens the trailer, reducing the amount of storage space required and also prevents trailer theft.
With the tongue and coupler removed it is impossible to connect a tow vehicle to the trailer or operate the trailer's electrical system.
ODI sent Bear an Information Request (IR) letter to gather relevant data about the subject component and vehicles.
Bear responded to the letter and addressed all questions from ODI.Bear also took action addressing its failure to comply with TREAD reporting requirements.
The VOQ reported a cracked tongue.
Vehicle control was maintained.
The failure was discovered prior to complete separation.
There were no other known failures of the subject component on 2,338 trailers with over 6 years of exposure.
ODI reviewed the patent designs as submitted in 2005 and 2006.
Bear did not report any design changes.
The failure reported in the VOQ appears to be an isolated incident and no defect trend was detected by ODI.Further use of agency resources does not appear warranted. This investigation is closed. The agency may take further action if new information is discovered in the future.
ODI opened this investigation to determine the scope and severity of the alleged defect. The ODI reports cited above can be reviewed at: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following complaint identification numbers: 10759570
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE15-034. 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.
Bear Trailer
Bear Trailer (model not given)
- model year not given
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 PE15-034
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.