Tag: probe

Nissan Pathfinder, Infiniti JX in transmission safety probe

Filed under: Budget, Recalls, Safety, Crossover, Infiniti, Nissan, Luxury

2013 Nissan Pathfinder

2013 Infiniti JX35Nissan may be forced to recall 110,000 Pathfinder and Infiniti JX35 crossovers, due to a number of customer complaints. Consumers report suddenly losing power, with repair facilities blaming the issue on faulty transmission cooler line connections. Both the Pathfinder and JX35 use a continuously variable transmission. As of right now, the only vehicles being investigated are from model year 2013.

Nissan has been cooperating with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, according to a report from Reuters, and it has developed a fix for the affected vehicles. It’s not clear whether this will develop into a full-blown recall, as there have been no known cases of injuries or crashes. But with a potential 110,000 vehicles prone to sudden power loss, a recall seems to be a likely outcome.

Nissan Pathfinder, Infiniti JX in transmission safety probe originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 05 Sep 2013 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nissan Pathfinder, Infiniti JX in transmission safety probe

Filed under: Budget, Recalls, Safety, Crossover, Infiniti, Nissan, Luxury

2013 Nissan Pathfinder

2013 Infiniti JX35Nissan may be forced to recall 110,000 Pathfinder and Infiniti JX35 crossovers, due to a number of customer complaints. Consumers report suddenly losing power, with repair facilities blaming the issue on faulty transmission cooler line connections. Both the Pathfinder and JX35 use a continuously variable transmission. As of right now, the only vehicles being investigated are from model year 2013.

Nissan has been cooperating with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, according to a report from Reuters, and it has developed a fix for the affected vehicles. It’s not clear whether this will develop into a full-blown recall, as there have been no known cases of injuries or crashes. But with a potential 110,000 vehicles prone to sudden power loss, a recall seems to be a likely outcome.

Nissan Pathfinder, Infiniti JX in transmission safety probe originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 05 Sep 2013 10:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Jeep Grand Cherokee in headliner fire probe

Filed under: SUV, Safety, Jeep

2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is launching an investigation into 146,000 Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs from the 2012 model year, The Detroit News reports. This comes as the result of the government safety agency receiving three complaints from owners who cited fires inside the Jeep’s cabin.

According to the report, NHTSA says:

“The customers reported a burning odor and visible smoke coming from the headliner while the vehicle was being driven. This was followed by flames from the headliner itself. Customers lowered the windows in an effort to clear the smoke but this increased the fire’s intensity. All three vehicles had to be extinguished with a fire extinguisher or by the fire department as they continued to burn after the vehicle was turned off.”

And it gets worse. In one incident, the fire apparently caused the sunroof to shatter, and in another, the fire spread to the passenger seat because the burning sun visor fell from the headliner. A Chrysler spokesperson tells The Detroit News that the automaker will be fully cooperating with NHTSA’s investigation of these Grand Cherokee models. Chrysler is reportedly investigating this problem itself, as well.

Depending on the results of the investigation, a recall may be issued to prevent future fires from occurring in other Grand Cherokees. If that happens, hopefully it won’t create as much controversy as the last time NHTSA requested that Jeep vehicles be recalled.

Jeep Grand Cherokee in headliner fire probe originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 23 Aug 2013 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Probe finds no evidence of misconduct among ex-NHTSA employees

Filed under: Government/Legal

nhtsa logo

Would you raise an eyebrow if you knew that former NHTSA workers took jobs with automakers after their tenure with the Feds? A few senators experience vertical eyebrow movement, and decided they’d like a few questions answered. Was it possible that misconduct was underfoot related to automaker recalls, and did current NHTSA employees provide special treatment for their former co-workers?

A probe was conducted by the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Transportation, and over the past 10 years, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has seen 15 employees move on to jobs with automakers or their respective law firms.

The investigation found that all parties were compliant and adhered to the rules established by the US Office of Government Ethics. So employees of NHTSA, both current and former, are supposedly playing by the rules.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Report: Probe finds no evidence of misconduct among ex-NHTSA employees originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 09 Apr 2011 15:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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FTC to probe auto dealer practices

Filed under: Car Buying, Government/Legal

Car dealerThe Federal Trade Commission will hold a series of roundtable discussions about car dealers’ business practices next month. The talks will be held across the country in an effort by the FTC to get a feel for how car dealers are conducting themselves and whether their practices are fair to the consumer.

The discussions kick off on April 12 at Wayne State University Law School in Detroit and are free and open to the public. The main topic will be dealer financing, which is almost always a confusing, complicated process that can wind up costing car buyers more money than they originally intended.

The FTC is in the process of identifying experts in the field to attend the talks, including auto industry representatives and consumer advocates. More meeting times and discussion schedules will be posted to the FTC website as they’re made public.

[Source: FTC via The Truth About Cars]

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FTC to probe auto dealer practices originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 13 Mar 2011 12:35:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: NHTSA getting serious about Ford Windstar axle rust probe

Filed under: Minivan/Van, Government/Legal, Recalls, Safety, Ford

Ford Windstar

The Ford Windstar is already being examined by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The rear axles were the initial target of investigation but now the review has widened due to claims of the Windstar’s front subframe also being prone to corrosion. So far, NHTSA says it has logged 346 complaints directly related to Ford Windstar engine cradles cracking or showing excessive rust and corrosion, which has led to three reported accidents.

Ford is cooperating with NHTSA with regards to the subframe investigation and it’s also stated that replacement rear axles will be available in the beginning of 2011. Ford has issued recalls for approximately 492,650 Windstars due to the problems surrounding the axle. The subframe problem is related to the same model year Windstar minivans that had the axle rust problem, which were produced from 1998 to 2003.

[Source: The Detroit News]

Report: NHTSA getting serious about Ford Windstar axle rust probe originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 22 Dec 2010 13:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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