Chevrolet engineering analysis EA13007
Simultaneous Loss of Low-Beam Headlights. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this engineering analysis about the exterior lighting on 6 model years (2005–2007). Opened Aug 23, 2013, closed Jun 24, 2014 after 10 months. It led to safety recall 14V251000. became a recall
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedOn May 14, 2014, General Motors (GM) submitted a Part 573 defect information report initiating NHTSA Safety Recall 14V-251 to remedy the subject vehicles. GM will remedy a defect condition in the underhood bussed electrical center (UBEC) by modifying the vehicle's electrical harnessing. GM also announced a customer satisfaction bulletin to address this issue on model year (MY) 2008-2013 Chevrolet Corvettes. Both programs will be conducted free of charge. According to GM, when the engine heats up and cools down (from normal use), the plastic material in the UBEC housing expands at a different rate than an electrical conductor routed within it. The difference in expansion rates results in bending of the conductor, a control circuit for the low beam headlights. After multiple thermal cycles, often taking several years of use, the conductor fractures resulting in an open circuit. When this occurs the low-beam headlights will not illuminate. After the engine is turned off and the UBEC cools, the conductor may temporarily reconnect and restore low-beam function, although subsequent failures will occur. This condition does not affect high-beam headlights, marker lamps, turn signals or fog lamps. Simultaneous loss of low-beam headlights could reduce the driver's visibility, increasing the risk of a crash. The ODI report counts noted above, involving the loss of low beam headlights, represents those received at the time of GM's recall filing; however NHTSA has since received additional complaints. GM submitted similar complaints in response to the agency's information request. Among the complaints reported to NHTSA, five alleged minor crashes in which the vehicle ran off the road or into roadside objects due to the sudden loss of headlights. Two of these complaints alleged minor injuries and three alleged property damage. Several other reports to NHTSA alleged close calls due to the loss of lighting. GM states that it has received no reports of crashes, injuries or fatalities as a result of this condition. GM's recall action appears to adequately address the safety risks in the subject vehicles of concern to ODI. Accordingly, the investigation is closed. In addition to recalling the subject vehicles, GM is covering MY 2008-2013 Corvettes, which contain essentially the same UBEC, under a customer satisfaction campaign. ODI notes that these vehicles exhibit a lower likelihood of failure due to their comparatively shorter service life. The VOQs cited above can be viewed at www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following identification numbers: 10400308, 10415603, 10415867, 10416531, 10421639, 10424391, 10424543, 10445971, 10451733, 10454919, 10460674, 10460750, 10463546, 10466342, 10466857, 10468128, 10469057, 10470616, 10471595, 10474350, 10474368, 10475257, 10486597, 10491670, 10496592, 10496788, 10498100, 10502059, 10505606, 10508507, 10510052, 10511467, 10511517, 10511576, 10511696, 10511699, 10511789, 10511837, 10511994, 10512072, 10512093, 10512154, 10512292, 10512341, 10512856, 10513422, 10514576, 10514802, 10514978, 10515162, 10515311, 10515821, 10519426, 10519879, 10520155, 10521036, 10521585, 10522260, 10523059, 10523064, 10523190, 10525646, 10531602, 10531631, 10532221, 10532439, 10533227, 10533251, 10533339, 10536835, 10537561, 10537612, 10538184, 10541749, 10542468, 10542540, 10542576, 10542708, 10542726, 10543187, 10543970, 10544083, 10544810, 10545441, 10545516, 10547343, 10547561, 10547600, 10548492, 10548588, 10548687, 10548982, 10549272, 10549487, 10550079, 10550260, 10551233, 10551867, 10551926, 10551978, 10552019, 10553258, 10554456, 10554573, 10556002, 10556433, 10556844, 10556984, 1
A Engineering Analysis is the deeper stage, usually upgraded from a Preliminary Evaluation: NHTSA tests, requests engineering documents and decides whether a safety defect exists. 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 became a recall. The campaign page carries the manufacturer’s filed defect, risk and remedy, the build window and every model year covered; whether one specific vehicle is included is settled by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themAlso named: 2005 Chevrolet Corvette; 2006 Chevrolet Corvette; 2007 Chevrolet Corvette; 2005 Chevrolet Corvette Z06; 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06; 2007 Chevrolet Corvette Z06.
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 EA13007 a recall?
No — it is the investigation that led to one. Recall 14V251000 is the campaign; its page carries the remedy.
Is EA13007 still open?
No. It closed on Jun 24, 2014 and led to recall 14V251000.
Which vehicles does EA13007 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 6 model years: 2005 Chevrolet Corvette, 2006 Chevrolet Corvette, 2007 Chevrolet Corvette, 2005 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, 2006 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, 2007 Chevrolet Corvette Z06. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.