Investigations
Rollover Side Curtain Air Bags
NHTSA Defect Petition DP15004 - closed, opened 2015-06-11 and involving the CHEVROLET CHEVROLET.
NHTSA investigation DP15004 is a Defect Petition opened on 2015-06-11 and currently closed. The subject of record is CHEVROLET CHEVROLET, which places this file inside the Office of Defects Investigation queue for CHEVROLET. Latest activity on this investigation was logged on 2017-03-07 - NHTSA updates that field whenever an Information Request goes out, a supplement is filed, or a status change is recorded in the public docket.
A Defect Petition like DP15004 starts when a person or group formally asks NHTSA to investigate a specific alleged defect. Petitioners submit evidence, NHTSA reviews it within 120 days, and either grants the petition (opening a PE) or denies it with a written explanation in the Federal Register.
Investigators summarized the matter as follows: "In June 2015, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this Defect Petition in response to a petition (see ODI 10568388) requesting a defect investigation of several alleged defects that can cause occupant ejecti..." Investigations are the early-warning layer of the federal auto-safety system, sitting upstream of formal recalls and defect orders. Whether this one closes without action or escalates into an Engineering Analysis, the full history stays in the ODI archive so researchers, litigators, and buyers can pull the paper trail at any time. Related CHEVROLET files, listed below, give context on whether this is an isolated concern or part of a broader pattern across the brand.
Investigation Summary
In June 2015, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this Defect Petition in response to a petition (see ODI 10568388) requesting a defect investigation of several alleged defects that can cause occupant ejections during rollover crashes in certain General Motors vehicles. The petition focused on a 2011 Texas crash involving a model year 2010 Chevrolet Tahoe, which allegedly resulted in multiple occupants to be ejected. One of the ejected occupants was fatally injured. In assessing the petitioner's request, ODI reviewed information from the petitioner, technical information related to rollover side curtain air bags from General Motors (note: ODI did not request GM's field incident data), NHTSA's prior testing and evaluation work related to FMVSS No. 226 "Ejection Mitigation," and potentially relevant reports in the NHTSA complaint and crash databases. Based on the information available at the present time, NHTSA does not believe that a safety-related defect currently exists in the design of the rollover side curtain air bags in the model year 2010 Chevrolet Tahoe and other similarly designed Tahoe and Yukon vehicles. Therefore, the petition is denied. However, the agency will take further action if warranted by changing future circumstances. The official petition denial, as published in the Federal Register, is available in the document file for this petition.
About This Investigation Type
A Defect Petition (DP) is initiated when an individual or organization formally petitions NHTSA to investigate a potential safety defect. NHTSA reviews the petition and decides whether to open an investigation.
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Data from NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. Cross-references: NHTSA recall campaign API and NHTSA FARS where fatality records overlap. PlainCars does not rate or recommend vehicles. about how PlainCars sources NHTSA data.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.