Volkswagen preliminary evaluation PE10027
Engine Compartment Fire. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the electrical system on 2 model years (2002–2003). Opened Jul 26, 2010, closed Feb 7, 2011 after 6 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedODI has received 11 complaints alleging that a fire started in the engine compartment of the vehicle that may be related to ignition coil failure, and 9 complaints of ignition coil failure that did not result in a fire. Reports state that the vehicle hesitated or lost power, and the check engine or dashboard lights illuminated. The vehicles were repaired by replacing the faulty ignition coil(s). Some of the complaints indicated that the ignition coils were replaced more than once. The scope of PE10-027 focused on Model Years (MY)2002-2003 Passat vehicles. Volkswagen provided data regarding their analysis of the vehicle fires and faulty ignition coils for these vehicles as well as other MY Passat vehicles. ODI needs to further investigate this issue. To facilitate the acquisition and analysis of additional information, this investigation has been upgraded to an Engineering Analysis, EA11-002.
A Preliminary Evaluation is the first formal stage: NHTSA has decided the complaints and other information it screened are worth a closer look, and asks the manufacturer for its own data on the 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 | 2010 | |
| Closing resume | INCLA | 2010 | |
| Information request to the manufacturer | INIM | 2010 | |
| Manufacturer's response — data | INRD | 2010 | 14 files 1234567891011121314 |
| Manufacturer's response — full submission | INRL | 2010 | |
| Filed document | INLM | 2010 | |
| Correspondence | INLO | 2010 |
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 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: 2002 Volkswagen Passat; 2003 Volkswagen Passat.
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 PE10027 a recall?
No. A preliminary evaluation 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 PE10027 still open?
No. It closed on Feb 7, 2011 without a recall.
Which vehicles does PE10027 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 2 model years: 2002 Volkswagen Passat, 2003 Volkswagen Passat. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.