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NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Preliminary Evaluation PE85-016: ENGINE COMPARTMENT FIRES

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE85-016 on December 3, 1984 and closed it on March 22, 1985. NHTSA's investigations file lists 16 models from 5 makes for it and links recall 85V-034 to it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
PE85-016 (also written PE85016)
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 22, 1985
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
General Motors, LLC
Component
Engine and Engine Cooling
Recall linked by NHTSA
Vehicles and equipment
16 models from 5 makes, including the Buick Century and Buick Skyhawk

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE85-016. 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.

Buick

All Buick recalls

Cadillac

  • Cadillac Cimarron

    • 1983, 1984
All Cadillac recalls

Chevrolet

  • Chevrolet Camaro

  • Chevrolet Cavalier

  • Chevrolet Celebrity

    • 1983, 1984

  • Chevrolet Citation

    • 1983, 1984
All Chevrolet recalls

GMC

  • GMC (model not given)

    • 1983, 1984
All GMC recalls

Oldsmobile

  • Oldsmobile Ciera

  • Oldsmobile Firenza

    • 1983, 1984

  • Oldsmobile Omega

    • 1983, 1984
All Oldsmobile recalls

Pontiac

  • Pontiac 2000

    • 1983, 1984

  • Pontiac 6000

    • 1983, 1984

  • Pontiac Fiero

  • Pontiac Firebird

  • Pontiac Phoenix

    • 1983, 1984
All Pontiac recalls

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 PE85-016

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.