Chevrolet preliminary evaluation PE12010
Engine compartment fire. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the engine on 2 model years (2011–2012). Opened Mar 28, 2012, closed Jul 19, 2012 after 4 months. It led to safety recall 12V288000. became a recall
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedIn a June 21, 2012 letter to NHTSA, General Motors LLC. (GM) submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) identifying a defect in approximately 413,148 model year (MY) 2011 through 2012 Chevrolet Cruze vehicles manufactured from October 2, 2009 through May 31, 2012 (Recall 12V-288). According to GM, engine oil change procedures can result in spilling or dripping of oil on the engine shield. Also, manual transmission vehicles with a completely worn clutch may cause hydraulic fluid to be expelled from the clutch housing vent hole. If oil, debris or the burning hydraulic fluid contacts hot engine or exhaust system surfaces, and the engine shield, the shield may ignite and burn, leading to a possible engine compartment or vehicle fire. GM and its engine shield supplier, Hanwha, modified the engine shield to address factors that may contribute to engine compartment fire. The redesigned shields were completely implemented in production vehicles by June 2012. The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) analyzed complaint data provided by GM as well as complaints submitted to ODI from consumers. In total, there were 25 unique Chevrolet Cruze reports indicating hot surface ignition due to engine oil or hydraulic fluid contacting hot manifold, exhaust surfaces and the engine shield. Four additional fires were identified that resulted from other or unknown causes, including 1 attributed to a missing oil filler cap. Three fires of unknown cause all involved vehicles equipped with 1.4L L4 turbocharged engines. ODI will continue to monitor field experience in Cruze vehicles equipped with that engine. Owners of the recalled vehicles are notified to take their vehicle to a GM dealer, who will modify the engine shield to prevent oil fluids from contacting the shield. Also, on vehicles with a manual transmission, dealers are to apply a protective tape to the electronic power steering wire harness to prevent any incidents related to this issue. This preliminary evaluation is closed. The ODI reports cited above can be viewed at www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID under the following identification numbers (ODI Nos.): 10456338, 10453754, 10450556, 10446718.
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 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: 2011 Chevrolet Cruze; 2012 Chevrolet Cruze.
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 PE12010 a recall?
No — it is the investigation that led to one. Recall 12V288000 is the campaign; its page carries the remedy.
Is PE12010 still open?
No. It closed on Jul 19, 2012 and led to recall 12V288000.
Which vehicles does PE12010 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 2 model years: 2011 Chevrolet Cruze, 2012 Chevrolet Cruze. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.