NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE18-003: Air bags may be disabled during crash
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE18-003 on March 16, 2018 and closed it on August 30, 2019. NHTSA's investigations file lists 5 models from 2 makes for it and links 3 recalls to it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE18-003 (also written PE18003)
- 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 30, 2019
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturers
- Kia America, Inc.; Hyundai Motor America
- Components
- Air Bags; Air Bags — Air Bag/Restraint Control Module; Air Bags — Frontal; Air Bags — Frontal — Driver Side — Inflator Module; Air Bags — Frontal — Passenger Side — Inflator Module; Air Bags — Side/Window; Seat Belts — Pretensioner
- Recalls linked by NHTSA
- 18V-137: Air Bags/Seat Belt Pretensioners may be Disabled, reported
- 18V-363: Air Bags/Seat Belt Pretensioners may be Disabled, reported
- 18E-043 (NHTSA record)
- Vehicles and equipment
- 5 models from 2 makes, including the Kia Forte and Kia Forte Koup
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE18-003.
try.vin does not copy NHTSA's investigation documents; NHTSA's investigation record lists the ones NHTSA has published.
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE18-003 on 3/16/18 to investigate incidents involving crashes, resulting in significant collision related damage, where the frontal airbags failed to deploy. ODI reviewed complaint data, available design, test, and field data on the model year (MY) 2011 Hyundai Sonata, MY 2012-2013 Kia Forte and Forte Koup vehicles. ODI also evaluated data from the automotive air bag system supplier, ZF-TRW (ZF), to review vehicles that may contain the same air bag control unit (ACU) used in the subject vehicles. Hyundai Motor America (HMA) issued recall No. 18V-137 for MY 2011-2013 Sonata and MY 2012 Sonata Hybrid vehicles. Kia Motors America (KMA) issued recall No. 18V-363 for MY 2010-2013 Kia Forte and Forte Koup, MY 2011-2013 Optima, MY 2011-2012 Optima Hybrid, and MY2011-2012 Sedona vehicles. The two recalls address vehicles containing ACUs manufactured without adequate circuit protection by installing a wire harness filter kit to prevent internal damage to the ACU. In the event of a crash, ACU damage may result in the disablement of the vehicle's airbags. Each respective manufacturer has mailed letters to affected vehicle owners informing them of the remedy and its availability. ODI plans to evaluate the susceptibility of the subject ACU to electrical signals, as well as other vehicle factors that can either lead to, or reduce the likelihood of, an electrical overstress event in other vehicles manufactured with the subject ZF ACU.Accordingly, this Preliminary Evaluation has been upgraded to an Engineering Analysis (EA19-001), to expand the scope of the investigation to include the Tier-one supplier and any manufacturers who installed the subject ACU in production vehicles. Additional information is available with the closing resume available at NHTSA.gov (see Associated Documents).
The ODI complaints cited above can be viewed at www.NHTSA.gov under the following ODI identification numbers: 10781050, 10849839, 11099038, 11080341.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE18-003. 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.
Free VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE18-003
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.