Cadillac preliminary evaluation PE20019
Rear Toe Link Adjuster Separation. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the suspension on 6 model years (2010–2015). Opened Nov 6, 2020, closed Dec 23, 2021 after 14 months. It led to safety recall 21V473000. became a recall
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedOn November 06, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a Preliminary Evaluation (PE20-019) to assess the remedy and scope of General Motors (GM) recall 14V-571. ODI had received a total of 9 complaints with allegations of rear toe links separating while the vehicle was in motion. There were 4 complainants indicating that the remedy for recall 14V-571 had been performed on their vehicle. The other 5 complaints were outside the original recall scope but exhibited the same failure mode as addressed by recall 14V-571 and reported uncontrolled swaying while driving. ODI's review focused on all 2010-2015 Cadillac SRX vehicles that experienced a rear toe link failure while the vehicle was in motion under various driving conditions. The failures were the same or similar to those addressed by the remedy associated with recall 14V-571. The remedy for recall 14V-571 was to inspect the rear toe link adjusters and replace them if necessary as well as tighten both jam nuts to a manufacturer specified torque. The remedy can be reversed when the vehicle gets a rear alignment adjustment and the jam nuts are not properly re-torqued to the manufacturer's specification. ODI's data review confirmed a high toe link failure rate in vehicles that either had and had not received the remedy associated with recall 14V-571. On June 24, 2021, GM filed a defect information report recalling all 2010-2016 Cadillac SRX and 2011-2012 Saab 9-4X vehicles to remedy the potential failure of the rear toe link adjuster while driving. The remedy replaces adjustable toe links with non-adjustable toe links. The recall (21V-473) includes vehicles that were remedied under 14V-571. In view of the recall action being taken by GM, ODI is closing this Preliminary Evaluation. NHTSA reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. The ODI complaints cited above can be viewed at www.nhtsa.gov. The ODI identification numbers for the complaints cited above can be found in a separate document attached to this closing resume.
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: 2010 Cadillac SRX; 2011 Cadillac SRX; 2012 Cadillac SRX; 2013 Cadillac SRX; 2014 Cadillac SRX; 2015 Cadillac SRX.
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 PE20019 a recall?
No — it is the investigation that led to one. Recall 21V473000 is the campaign; its page carries the remedy.
Is PE20019 still open?
No. It closed on Dec 23, 2021 and led to recall 21V473000.
Which vehicles does PE20019 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 6 model years: 2010 Cadillac SRX, 2011 Cadillac SRX, 2012 Cadillac SRX, 2013 Cadillac SRX, 2014 Cadillac SRX, 2015 Cadillac SRX. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.