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NHTSA defect investigation · Preliminary Evaluation

Toyota preliminary evaluation PE12002

Power Window Master Switch Fire. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the electrical system on 13 model years (2007–2009). Opened Feb 6, 2012, closed Jun 14, 2012 after 4 months without a recall. closed

What NHTSA says

Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filed

ODI has identified certain Toyota vehicles experiencing a higher rate of fire and thermal event incidents among all Toyota vehicles that use the same power window master switch design. They include a total of approximately 1.4 million model year (MY) 2007 through 2009 Camry, Camry Hybrid, RAV4 and Yaris vehicles built from approximately September 2006 through August 2008, as well as all MY 2008 Highlander Hybrid vehicles. This Preliminary Evaluation has been upgraded to an Engineering Analysis (EA12-006) to further study the alleged defect and its consequences. The ODI reports cited above can be viewed at www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following identification numbers: 10461220, 10460691, 10460166, 10459730, 10457955, 10457854, 10456438, 10456353, 10455614, 10455540, 10451821, 10450641, 10450606, 10450568, 10450133, 10449270, 10447947, 10447845, 10447515, 10447444, 10447419, 10447417, 10447416, 10446699, 10436663, 10429983, 10411328, 10407290, 10394453, 10392622, 10360414, 10323848.

Stage Preliminary Evaluation — NHTSA works to complete one within eight months Opened Feb 6, 2012 Closed Jun 14, 2012 Manufacturer Toyota Motor Corporation Components Electrical System, Structure › Body, Unknown Or Other

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 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: 2007 Toyota Camry; 2008 Toyota Camry; 2009 Toyota Camry; 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid; 2008 Toyota Camry Hybrid; 2009 Toyota Camry Hybrid; 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid; 2007 Toyota RAV4; 2008 Toyota RAV4; 2009 Toyota RAV4; 2007 Toyota Yaris; 2008 Toyota Yaris; 2009 Toyota Yaris.

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 PE12002 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 PE12002 still open?

No. It closed on Jun 14, 2012 without a recall.

Which vehicles does PE12002 cover?

NHTSA opened it on 13 model years: 2007 Toyota Camry, 2008 Toyota Camry, 2009 Toyota Camry, 2007 Toyota Camry Hybrid, 2008 Toyota Camry Hybrid, 2009 Toyota Camry Hybrid 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.