Jeep preliminary evaluation PE12032
Engine stall, fuel delivery failure. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the delivery on 2 model years (2011–2012). Opened Oct 15, 2012, closed May 3, 2013 after 7 months. It led to safety recall 13V120000. became a recall
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedIn a letter dated April 3, 2013, Chrysler Group LLC submitted a Defect Information Report (DIR) to NHTSA identifying a safety defect in the fuel delivery system in approximately 20,532 model year (MY) 2012 Jeep Patriot (11,624) and Compass (8,908) vehicles manufactured from October 18, 2011 through May 7, 2012 and equipped with certain fuel tanks produced between October 18, 2011 and January 26, 2012 (Recall 13V-120).According to Chrysler, Jeep Patriot and Compass vehicles equipped with saddle type fuel tanks built during the affected period may experience low siphoning rate through the transfer tube from the secondary to the primary side of the fuel tank. Chrysler's investigation determined that a material change by the transfer tube supplier (TI Automotive) led to malformed tubes being shipped to the final tank assembly supplier (Kautex).The malformed transfer tubes may make the siphoning process more difficult to start and maintain under certain operating conditions. Sustained driving during this condition may deplete fuel in the primary side of the fuel tank and lead to engine stall without warning. Kautex established a 100% sort on January 26, 2012 as a countermeasure for the malformed tubes being used in production. Chrysler is able to trace fuel tank build dates by vehicle identification number and Recall 13V-120 only includes vehicles equipped withsaddle tanks made during the affected period. Approximately 97 percent of the recalled Patriot vehicles (11,277 out of 11,624) were from October 18, 2011 through January 26, 2012. Chrysler determined that a few suspect tanks were used on vehicles produced as late as May 7, 2012 and is including any such vehicles in the recall. The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) analyzed complaint data provided by Chrysler as well as complaints submitted to ODI from consumers to identify stalling incidents related to fuel delivery. ODI's analysis identified a total of 64 engine stall incidents related to fuel delivery, all of which involved Patriot 4x4 vehicles equipped with saddle type fuel tanks. The Patriot 4x4 vehicles account for a little over half of the subject vehicle population (59,783 vehicles).Forty-nine (49) of the incidents involved the approximately 11,277 Patriot 4x4 vehicles that were built from October 18, 2011 and January 26, 2012 and equipped with tanks from the period associated with the transfer tube material change. This equates to a complaint rate of 434.5 incidents per 100,000 vehicles sold. Fifteen (15) fuel delivery related engine stalls were identified in the remaining 48,506 Patriot 4x4 vehicles, resulting in a complaint rate of 30.9 incidents per 100,000 vehicles. The rate in the non-recalled Patriot 4x4 vehicles increases to 68.0 incidents per 100,000 vehicles if stalls with no-restart and unknown cause are added to the analysis. The Patriot front-wheel drive vehicles are equipped with single reservoir fuel tanks and are not affected by the saddle-tank fuel delivery issue. Owners of the recalled vehicles will be notified to take their vehicle to a Jeep dealer, who will replace the fuel tank transfer tube to prevent any incidents related to this issue. Chrysler will begin notifying dealers and owners in May 2013. 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.): 10481572, 10481452, 10481279, 10481254, 10481222, 10481141, 10481126, 10481110, 10501057, 10478934, 10472705, 10470121, 10468517, 10467488, 10466357, 10464745, 10464449, 10464135, 10462338, 10459383, 10421019, 10410937, 10481392.
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 Jeep Patriot; 2012 Jeep Patriot.
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 PE12032 a recall?
No — it is the investigation that led to one. Recall 13V120000 is the campaign; its page carries the remedy.
Is PE12032 still open?
No. It closed on May 3, 2013 and led to recall 13V120000.
Which vehicles does PE12032 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 2 model years: 2011 Jeep Patriot, 2012 Jeep Patriot. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.