Investigations
Engine Compartment Fire
NHTSA Engineering Analysis EA11002 - closed, opened 2011-01-26.
NHTSA investigation EA11002 is a Engineering Analysis opened on 2011-01-26 and currently closed. The subject is tracked inside the Office of Defects Investigation queue. Latest activity on this investigation was logged on 2012-02-17 - NHTSA updates that field whenever an Information Request goes out, a supplement is filed, or a status change is recorded in the public docket.
An Engineering Analysis like EA11002 is the deeper technical phase that follows a PE. NHTSA requests design, warranty, and field-failure data from the manufacturer, conducts its own testing when needed, and determines whether the evidence supports a safety defect finding that would compel a recall.
Investigators summarized the matter as follows: "In July 2010, the Agency opened PE10-027 to investigate allegations of coil on plug (COP) ignition coil fires in MY2002-2003 VW Passat vehicles. The investigation was upgraded in January 2011 to include all MY2001-2007 4..." 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.
Investigation Summary
In July 2010, the Agency opened PE10-027 to investigate allegations of coil on plug (COP) ignition coil fires in MY2002-2003 VW Passat vehicles. The investigation was upgraded in January 2011 to include all MY2001-2007 4-cylinder VW Passat, gasoline, turbo-charged vehicles. Based on the analysis of VW's response, and including ODI's consumer complaints, ODI has since identified 135 unique engine fire reports attributable to the COP coils. After further review of the details as contained in each report, ODI determined that 43 of the 135 fire reports were actual fire/flame incidents, 83 fire reports were thermal events (smoke, spark, heat or wire melt), and another 9 fire reports were undetermined in severity due to the lack of information. These COP coil fires were characterized as initiated from within the COP coil circuit located at the top of the engine block and below the plastic engine cover. The fires observed were contained in the engine compartment and did not reach into the passenger compartment in contrast to those caused by an overheated catalytic converter examined in ODI’s investigation in 2007 and 2008. There were no reports of crashes or personal injury in this examination. A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted. Accordingly, this investigation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist. The agency will monitor this issue and reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances See the Closing Report for additional details.
About This Investigation Type
An Engineering Analysis (EA) is the in-depth phase following a Preliminary Evaluation. NHTSA engineers conduct testing, collect data from manufacturers, and perform detailed technical analysis to determine whether a safety defect exists. An EA may lead to a voluntary recall by the manufacturer or, in rare cases, a mandatory recall order.
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.