Honda preliminary evaluation PE14033
Electric Power Steering Failure. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the electric power assist system on 1 model year (2013). Opened Nov 4, 2014, closed Oct 6, 2015 after 11 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedThe Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE14-033 to investigate 24 complaints alleging loss of power steering while driving in model year (MY) 2013 Honda Accord vehicles equipped with electric power steering (EPS).Analysis of service data for the original 24 complaints and 33 additional complaints received after PE14-033 was opened found that 85 percent of the vehicles with diagnostic trouble codes available to identify the faulty component had a code indicating torque sensor failure (DTC 53).In its response to ODI's information request letter for PE14-033, Honda identified two manufacturing process conditions that may have affected the quality of some early production torque sensors. Analysis of warranty returns and manufacturing processes determined that a relatively small number of torque sensors were potentially affected by the conditions, which were corrected by the supplier (Bourns) relatively early in production. Analysis of warranty data indicates that both conditions were early-life failure concerns and most of the affected sensors have already failed, resulting in a cumulative failure rate of less than 0.2 percent. Of the 20 VOQ's that appear to be related to torque sensor failure, 6 reported failure dates in 2013, 12 in 2014, and just 2 to date in 2015. ODI's analysis identified 2 minor crashes with no injuries that may have been related to torque sensor failure in the subject vehicles. This investigation is closed because the low failure rate and a declining trend indicate that failures are rare. The closing of this preliminary evaluation does not constitute a determination that no defect exists or that power steering failures do not present an unreasonable risk to safety. The VOQ's referenced in this resume are:10515618, 10515696, 10537336, 10542360, 10545177, 10563724, 10588425, 10595068, 10605909, 10627926, 10629629, 10630852, 10644762, 10654768, 10661240, 10664234, 10667364, 10672452, 10676256, and 10695191
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: 2013 Honda Accord.
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 PE14033 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 PE14033 still open?
No. It closed on Oct 6, 2015 without a recall.
Which vehicles does PE14033 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 1 model year: 2013 Honda Accord. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.