IC BUS preliminary evaluation PE18015
Lap seat belts fail to latch. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the buckle assembly on 3 model years (2011). Opened Dec 17, 2018, closed Sep 11, 2019 after 9 months. It led to safety recall 19V478000, 19V479000. became a recall
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedThe Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) of the National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTSA), received a complaint from a school bus fleet alleging seat belt failures in their model year 2011 Navistar IC (Navistar) school buses, equipped with AmSafe non-retractable passenger two-point seat belts. Following receipt of this complaint, ODI reached out to multiple school bus fleets across the country operating similar buses and confirmed the problem also existed in other buses. Following confirmation of similar seat belt failures in other school districts, NHTSA opened investigation (PE18-015) on December 17, 2018 to assess the manufacturer's data including warranty claims, field reports, design changes, etc. The scope of this investigation included all model year 2011 through 2016 Navistar school buses. Analysis of the manufacturer data provided to NHTSA in response to this investigation showed high seat belt failure rates in model year 2011 Navistar BE, CE and RE school buses when compared to peer vehicles. The elevated failure rates dropped on vehicles produced after two design changes made by the manufacturer during the production of 2011-2016 seat belts. Navistar implemented a dimensional change to the metal tongue on April 25, 2012 and started utilizing a more robust (car-type) seat belt starting April 3, 2015. The combination of these two changes significantly decreased the seat belt warranty rates in model year 2012-2016 buses. Navistar?s testing and engineering analysis showed that long term cycle fatigue (buckling and unbuckling the seat belt) can cause the plastic fingers attached to the metal tongue to crack and fall off. The missing fingers can result in an elevated force necessary to latch the tongue in the buckle. The elevated force required can prevent the buckle from latching, increasing the risk of an injury in the event of a crash. By a letter dated June 21, 2019 Navistar notified NHTSA of a safety defect in their model year 2011 Navistar IC BE, CE and RE school buses built with AmSafe non-retractable passenger two-point seat belts and initiated safety recall 19V-478. With recall action 19V-478 taken by Navistar this investigation is closed. Further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist on other model or MY vehicles outside of the recall scope. The agency 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 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 IC BUS BE; 2011 IC BUS CE; 2011 IC BUS RE.
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 PE18015 a recall?
No — it is the investigation that led to one. Recall 19V478000, 19V479000 is the campaign; its page carries the remedy.
Is PE18015 still open?
No. It closed on Sep 11, 2019 and led to recall 19V478000, 19V479000.
Which vehicles does PE18015 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 3 model years: 2011 IC BUS BE, 2011 IC BUS CE, 2011 IC BUS RE. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.