Investigations
Driver's Power Window Master Switch
NHTSA Engineering Analysis EA11004 - closed, opened 2011-04-11.
NHTSA investigation EA11004 is a Engineering Analysis opened on 2011-04-11 and currently closed. The subject is tracked inside the Office of Defects Investigation queue. Latest activity on this investigation was logged on 2012-10-24 - 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 EA11004 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: "This investigation was prompted by Preliminary Evaluation (PE) 10-047 and was based on reports from consumers alleging that smoke and/or fire, as defined in 49 CFR § 579.4, had occurred inside of the driver's door. The s..." 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
This investigation was prompted by Preliminary Evaluation (PE) 10-047 and was based on reports from consumers alleging that smoke and/or fire, as defined in 49 CFR § 579.4, had occurred inside of the driver's door. The subject vehicles, model year (MY) 2006 CR-V, were manufactured at two different assembly plants. The vehicles manufactured in Japan (Sayama plant) were produced with a power window master switch (PWMS) supplied by the Thai Toyo Denso Company, Ltd. (Denso). The vehicles manufactured in the United Kingdom (UK, Swindon, England plant) were produced with a PWMS supplied by the Omron Corporation (Omron). Honda provided 45 reports on the subject vehicles responsive to this investigation. Of this number, 24 reports concerned Japan-built vehicles, 19 reports on UK-built vehicles, and two reports without a vehicle identification number which could not be identified by assembly plant. Four of Honda's reports were duplicative of ODI reports. ODI received nine reports on the subject vehicles: five on Japan-built and four on UK-built vehicles, and one additional report on a MY 2005 UK built vehicle. The ODI reports can be reviewed at http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following identification (ODI) numbers: 10343884, 10307287, 10321646, 10375324, 10386750, 10425406, 10437807, 10439880, 10469350, and 10406979. In most cases, it was reported that the PWMS and/or its electrical wiring harness had sustained heat related damage requiring replacement of the affected component(s). However, in three of the cases involving an Omron PWMS (UK built), a fire breached the driver's door panel and spread into the vehicle interior. Two of the three vehicles were determined to be a total loss by insurance companies, and one was repaired. All three fires occurred as the vehicles were parked with the ignition switch turned off. On September 6, 2011 Honda submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to recall 80,111 subject vehicles built in Japan. In it's DIR
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.