Ford preliminary evaluation PE10036
Fuel Tank Strap Corrosion/Rust. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the tank assembly on 5 model years (1997–2001). Opened Sep 7, 2010, closed May 23, 2011 after 8 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedOne or both of the steel straps holding up the fuel tank and attaching it to the truck frame can corrode and break. If one strap breaks, the tank may tilt and drop and possibly contact the road surface. If both straps break, the entire tank may drop to the road. If either failure occurs while the vehicle is being driven, contact with the road can abrade the tank and create a hole from which gasoline can spill. When the tank drops, it remains attached to the vehicle only by the fuel filler hose and/or supply lines, or in rare instances, by the skid plate, if present. This raises the possibility that the weight of the dropped tank could sufficiently strain the hoses and fittings to cause separation and fuel leaks between those components. The fire hazard created by the leaking gasoline is increased by the possible presence of sparks created by the metal tank being dragged along the road. The sparks could ignite the escaped fuel. ODI has included in its incident counts reports it has received from consumers and reports provided by Ford in which either the complaint involved confirmed strap corrosion or ODI's investigation yielded information that strongly suggests the subject defect as the cause of the reported problem. Among the incidents reported to NHTSA or Ford, 243 involved the fuel tank dropping below the vehicle and/or dragging on the ground, 95 involved fuel leakage, and nine included reports of sparks from the tank being dragged on the road. ODI has received one report of strap failure in which the leaking fuel ignited but self-extinguished. Ford reported another incident in which the leaking fuel ignited and the resultant fire destroyed the vehicle. There have been no injuries associated with these incidents. ODI has received reports of corrosion induced tank strap failures with other model year F-150 vehicles. ODI is upgrading this investigation to further investigate the frequency, severity and scope of this problem.
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 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: 1997 Ford F-150; 1998 Ford F-150; 1999 Ford F-150; 2000 Ford F-150; 2001 Ford F-150.
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 PE10036 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 PE10036 still open?
No. It closed on May 23, 2011 without a recall.
Which vehicles does PE10036 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 5 model years: 1997 Ford F-150, 1998 Ford F-150, 1999 Ford F-150, 2000 Ford F-150, 2001 Ford F-150. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.