Honda defect petition DP10004
Braking Performance. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this defect petition about the control unit/module on 3 model years (2005–2007). Opened Nov 18, 2010, closed Dec 14, 2011 after 13 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedThe Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a defect petition requesting that it open an investigation and recall MY 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid vehicles for a possible safety defect related to braking performance. The petitioner in a defect petition letter and in a complaint filed with ODI under Vehicle Owner Questionnaire (VOQ) 10329383 alleging ineffective braking performance of the Honda Accord Hybrid vehicle while driving over rumble strips along side of the highway and simultaneously attempting to the brake. The petitioner alleges this began a chain of events, where the vehicle accelerated uncontrollably, the passenger attempted to stop the vehicle by pulling the parking brake and eventually the vehicle crossing over into traffic flowing in the opposite direction. The result was a crash fatally injuring the passenger and severely injuring the petitioner and two occupants of another vehicle. During the defect petition review, ODI analyzed complaints involving similarly equipped Honda Accord Hybrid vehicles and first and second generation Honda Civic Hybrid vehicles, reviewed data provided to ODI by Honda in response to an information request letter and performed testing of braking performance of a 2005 Honda Accord Hybrid vehicle at NHTSA's Vehicle Research and Test Center in East Liberty, Ohio. Based on this review, ODI does not believe additional investigation is likely to result in a finding that a defect related to motor vehicle safety exists. Therefore, in view of the need to allocate and prioritize NHTSA?s limited resources to best accomplish the agency's safety mission, the petition is denied. This action does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist. The agency will take further action if warranted by future circumstances. For more information, see the Federal Register notice in the DP10-004 file (www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/defects).
A Defect Petition is a petition from a member of the public asking NHTSA to open a defect investigation; the agency grants or denies it and publishes the reasons. The summary is the agency’s own text from its investigation file, unedited; the opening and closing resumes with the full reasoning are on NHTSA’s site under this number.
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 closed without a recall. That means NHTSA found no defect trend it chose to act on at the time, or the manufacturer addressed the condition another way (a service campaign or a bulletin, which have their own pages). A closed file can be reopened if new reports arrive.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themAlso named: 2005 Honda Accord; 2006 Honda Accord; 2007 Honda Accord.
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 DP10004 a recall?
No. A defect petition 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 DP10004 still open?
No. It closed on Dec 14, 2011 without a recall.
Which vehicles does DP10004 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 3 model years: 2005 Honda Accord, 2006 Honda Accord, 2007 Honda Accord. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.