American Lafrance preliminary evaluation PE14002
Front spindle failure. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the arm on 1 model year (2008). Opened Jan 30, 2014, closed Dec 23, 2014 after 11 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedOn January 30th 2014 the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-002 based on Vehicle Owner's Questionnaire (VOQ) No. 10554304 alleging that the front wheel completely separated on a model year 2008 American LaFrance Eagle aerial-ladder fire truck. During this investigation, ODI sent American LaFrance an Information Request (IR) letter seeking further information. After sending the IR, ODI learned that under direction from its owner Patriarch Partners LLC, American LaFrance had ceased operation and closed its manufacturing facilities. Subsequent communications with Patriarch Partners revealed that the records necessary to respond to ODI's IR could not be obtained. As a result of this information not being available, ODI was not able to conduct a complete investigation or locate the owners of existing vehicles. In an effort to notify owners of the vehicles about the potential safety issue, ODI released a consumer alert. This alert was distributed to the Emergency Responder community via the firstresponder.gov web site. Copies of both the alert and website where it was published can be found in the public file for this investigation. Information will continue to be collected from any operators who contact ODI who will be advised of the risks and how best to prevent future failures. Due to the inability to locate production, owner, and failure or warranty data, ODI is closing this Preliminary Evaluation. A safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that no safety-related defect exists. The agency reserves the right to take further action if additional data becomes available.
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: 2008 American Lafrance Eagle.
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 PE14002 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 PE14002 still open?
No. It closed on Dec 23, 2014 without a recall.
Which vehicles does PE14002 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 1 model year: 2008 American Lafrance Eagle. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.