Honda audit query AQ14004
Honda EWR Reporting. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this audit query about the air bags on 2 model years (2001–2005). Opened Oct 30, 2014, closed Apr 21, 2016 after 18 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedIn a Consent Order executed on December 29, 2014, American Honda Motor Co. (Honda) admitted that it violated the Safety Act by failing to report certain death and injury incidents that were required to be reported to NHTSA under 49 C.F.R. ? 579.21(b), and by failing to report certain customer satisfaction campaigns, special warranty extensions, and warranty claims that involved goodwill, third-party vehicle service contracts, or Honda-certified, pre-owned vehicles, as required by 49 C.F.R. ? 579.21(c).As part of the Consent Order, NHTSA assessed a total civil penalty of $70 million against Honda for its violations of the TREAD Act and associated regulations. Honda timely paid the civil penalty in full on January 20, 2015. Honda also agreed to develop written procedures for comprehensive early warning reporting in compliance with 49 C.F.R. Part 579, Subpart C; to train appropriate personnel on its early warning reporting requirements and written procedures; and to complete two third-party audits of its TREAD Act reporting. NHTSA opened this audit query (AQ) investigation in order to investigate the extent and scope of Honda's failure to report early warning information pursuant to the TREAD Act, as well as the reason(s) for such failures and the steps being taken by Honda to assure full compliance with TREAD reporting requirements. Based on the Consent Order, Honda's admissions that it violated the law, and the completion of its performance obligations, this audit query, AQ14-004, is closed. Closure of this AQ has no bearing on the terms of the Consent Order and does not represent a determination by the Agency as to Honda's performance under the Consent Order.
A Audit Query is an audit of whether the manufacturer met its early-warning reporting obligations — the data and reports it must send NHTSA — rather than of a vehicle condition. The summary is the agency’s own text from its investigation file, unedited; the resumes carrying the full reasoning are linked below.
The paperwork NHTSA filed
Source: every document on this action, at nhtsa.gov- Opening resume — ODI’s own summary of why it opened this — the subject, what prompted it, and the vehicles in scope.
- Closing resume — ODI’s own summary of why it closed this, and what it concluded.
| Document | Code | Filed | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opening resume | INOA | 2014 | |
| Closing resume | INCLA | 2014 | |
| Memo to the investigation file | INME | 2014 | |
| Filed document | INLM | 2014 | 2 files 12 |
| Correspondence | INOT | 2014 | 3 files 123 |
| Filed document | INLE | 2014 | 2 files 12 |
These are NHTSA’s own files, served from the agency’s site — the resumes are what ODI wrote when it opened and closed the action, and the rest is the correspondence behind them, including what the manufacturer sent when the agency asked. They are linked, not copied: where a document names the people who wrote in, that redaction is the agency’s to make and its copy is the one you should read.
What this means for an owner
Source: and what happens nextAn investigation is not a finding that a defect exists, and it puts no duty on anyone. NHTSA opens a Preliminary Evaluation when complaints and other reports suggest a condition worth asking the manufacturer about; it upgrades to an Engineering Analysis when the answers warrant testing; it closes either when it recommends a recall, when the manufacturer recalls on its own, or when no defect trend is found. The agency’s own goals are about four months for a petition, eight for a Preliminary Evaluation or a Recall Query and eighteen for an Engineering Analysis; many run longer.
This one is closed. A audit query ends with NHTSA’s finding on the recall it examined — the remedy stands, is widened, or a new campaign follows; the file names the recall it concerned and NHTSA’s closing resume carries the reasoning.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themAlso named: 2001 Honda Accord; 2005 Honda Civic.
A vehicle page’s investigation list carries the same action; a name here is the scope NHTSA opened, not a list of affected VINs.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects InvestigationIs AQ14004 a recall?
No. A audit query is NHTSA asking questions, not a recall. A safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number and a duty to repair for free; this one closed without one. Whether one particular vehicle has an open recall is a VIN question at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Is AQ14004 still open?
No. It closed on Apr 21, 2016 without a recall.
Which vehicles does AQ14004 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 2 model years: 2001 Honda Accord, 2005 Honda Civic. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.