Nissan preliminary evaluation PE12023
SRS Warning Light Illumination. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the frontal on 1 model year (2012). Opened Aug 15, 2012, closed Jan 22, 2013 after 5 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedThe Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation after receiving Nissan early warning reports (EWR) concerning supplemental restraint system (SRS) light illumination on model year (MY) 2012 Nissan Versa vehicles. Information in the reports suggested that the SRS spiral cable harness from the spiral cassette to the driver?s air bag module became pinched within the steering wheel assembly during installation. The pinching condition was apparently causing a short to ground condition. As reported by Nissan, the shorts were the result of isolated operator errors, specifically errors in the way the harness was routed in the steering wheel area. Nissan advised that a production countermeasure was implemented on December 10, 2011 in order to reduce misrouting the spiral cable harness. If an electrical short does occur, the red air bag warning light is designed to continuously flash to alert the driver. However, a shorted harness may prevent the air bag from deploying in a frontal collision. The opening resume originally identified the subject vehicle population as all 2012 Nissan Versa vehicles. It was noted by Nissan that the MY 2012 Versa Sedan and MY 2012 Versa Hatchback vehicles were built on different platforms and varied significantly in design, specifically in that they are equipped with different steering column and air bag module components. Accordingly, the subject vehicle population for analysis was limited to 2012 Nissan Versa Sedan models. Through analysis of the data Nissan provided, ODI determined that 13 manufacturer reports and 39 warranty claims submitted were potentially a result of pinched and/or shorted spiral cable assemblies. These reports occurred prior to the assembly process change on December 10, 2011. ODI notes that an additional six warranty claims occurred after the process change, but this population had a significantly lower rate of failure than those occurring beforehand. Therefore the subject vehicle population shown above covers sedan vehicles built from the start of production through December 9, 2011. ODI?s analysis indicated that this condition typically occurred early in the life of the vehicle with 40% occurring prior to vehicle sale or delivery, and 69% with less than 2 months in service. When compared to ODI investigations involving similar air bag concerns, this investigation has a low rate of failure. ODI has not yet received any related consumer complaints and no injuries or crashes have been reported that relate to the alleged problem. Therefore, a safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted. Accordingly, this investigation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist. The agency will monitor this issue and reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.
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: 2012 Nissan Versa.
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 PE12023 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 PE12023 still open?
No. It closed on Jan 22, 2013 without a recall.
Which vehicles does PE12023 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 1 model year: 2012 Nissan Versa. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.