NHTSA defect investigation · Defect Petition

Semi-Trailer defect petition DP21004

Semi-Trailer Side Underride Guards. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this defect petition about the underride. Opened Nov 17, 2021, closed Jun 22, 2022 after 7 months without a recall. closed

DP21004 at nhtsa.gov →Every investigation on file →

What NHTSA says

Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filed

See the attached evaluation report.

Stage Defect Petition — NHTSA works to complete one within four months Opened Nov 17, 2021 Closed Jun 22, 2022 Manufacturer Generic Manufacturer Components Structure › Underride

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 next

An 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 them

NHTSA filed this action against Generic Manufacturer without naming a model year — an equipment or manufacturer-level query.

Common questions

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Is DP21004 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 DP21004 still open?

No. It closed on Jun 22, 2022 without a recall.

Which vehicles does DP21004 cover?

NHTSA filed it against Generic Manufacturer without naming a model year.

From here

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