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NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Recall Query RQ03-006: REFUELING SPIT BACK

  • Closed

NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Recall Query RQ03-006 on August 15, 2003 and closed it on February 3, 2004. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 1998–2001 Kia Sephia for it.

Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file

Key facts

NHTSA number
RQ03-006 (also written RQ03006)
Investigation type
Recall Query An investigation into whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or whether its remedy works, run much like a Preliminary Evaluation.
Status
Closed February 3, 2004
Opened
Closed
Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
Kia America, Inc.
Components
Fuel System, Gasoline; Fuel System, Gasoline — Storage; Fuel System, Gasoline — Storage — Tank Assembly; Fuel System, Gasoline — Storage — Tank Assembly — Filler Pipe and Cap; Fuel System, Other — Storage — Tank Assembly; Fuel System, Other — Storage — Tank Assembly — Filling/Charging
Vehicles and equipment
1998–2001 Kia Sephia

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 Recall Query RQ03-006.

IN JUNE 2000, KIA NOTIFIED ODI OF A DEFECT CONDITION IN APPROXIMATELY 100,000 MY 1998-99 SEPHIA PASSENGER VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM OCTOBER 17, 1997 TO MAY 16, 1999, THAT COULD RESULT IN FUEL SPIT BACK WHILE REFUELING (EA99-034, RECALL 00V-175).

ACCORDING TO KIA, MANUFACTURING CHANGES MADE TO THE ONBOARD REFUELING VAPOR RECOVERY (ORVR) VALVE COULD CAUSE FUEL SHUT OFF BEFORE THE TANK REACHED 95% OF NOMINAL CAPACITY DURING REFUELING.KIA STATED THAT IF THE CONSUMER THEN ATTEMPTED TO ADD MORE FUEL TO THE TANK, FUEL SPILLBACK OR SPITBACK FROM THE FUEL FILLER NECK COULD OCCUR.KIA REPLACED THE ORVR VALVES IN THE RECALLED VEHICLES.ODI HAS RECEIVED 16 COMPLAINTS OF FUEL SPIT BACK ON VEHICLES THAT HAVE RECEIVED THE RECALL AND 5 COMPLAINTS ON VEHICLES THAT WERE NOT COVERED BY THE RECALL.KIA HAS IDENTIFIED 2 FUEL SPIT BACK COMPLAINTS ON VEHICLES THAT WERE RECALLED AND 8 COMPLAINTS ON VEHICLES NOT COVERED BY THE ORIGINAL RECALL.KIA HAS ALSO PROVIDED WARRANTY INFORMATION SHOWING 191 CLAIMS POTENTIALLY RELATED TO FUEL SPITBACK ON NON-RECALLED VEHICLES. ODI HAS UPGRADED ITS INVESTIGATION TO AN ENGINEERING ANALYSIS TO FURTHER ASSESS THE SCOPE, FREQUENCY, AND TREND OF THE FUEL SPITBACK RISK ASSOCIATED WITH THE ALLEGED DEFECT IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.

Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation

NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Recall Query RQ03-006. 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.

Kia

All Kia 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.

Kia VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.

Sources

NHTSA's investigation record for RQ03-006

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.