⌘K
HomeRecallsInvestigations EQ12010
NHTSA defect investigation · Equipment Query

Ford, Honda and 3 others equipment query EQ12010

Stabilus Rear Liftgate Struts Failing. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this equipment query about the support device/strut on 12 model years (2004–2009). Opened Sep 28, 2012, closed Dec 31, 2012 after 3 months without a recall. closed

What NHTSA says

Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filed

Please see the attached closing resume summary. It has been attached to this document as a PDF.

Stage Equipment Query Opened Sep 28, 2012 Closed Dec 31, 2012 Manufacturer Ford Motor Company Components Structure › Body › Hatchback/Liftgate › Support Device/Strut

A Equipment Query is a query about a piece of equipment — a component, a tire, a child seat — rather than a whole vehicle. 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

Also named: 2004 Ford Freestar; 2005 Ford Freestar; 2006 Ford Freestar; 2005 Honda Odyssey; 2008 Honda Odyssey; 2009 Honda Odyssey; 2004 Mercury Monterey; 2005 Mercury Monterey; 2006 Mercury Monterey; 2004 Toyota Sienna; 2005 Toyota Sienna; 2006 Toyota Sienna.

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 Investigation

Is EQ12010 a recall?

No. A equipment 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 EQ12010 still open?

No. It closed on Dec 31, 2012 without a recall.

Which vehicles does EQ12010 cover?

NHTSA opened it on 12 model years: 2004 Ford Freestar, 2005 Ford Freestar, 2006 Ford Freestar, 2005 Honda Odyssey, 2008 Honda Odyssey, 2009 Honda Odyssey and more. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.