NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Power Train complaints
176 reportsClear category filterMileage unknown · Jul 8, 2023
Power TrainSteering
I was on a trip in my 2015 honda civic and going down the highway and all of a sudden the RPM went way up and then the vehicle lost power completely. It left me stranded in the middle of nowhere. Turns out the CVT belt came apart causing metal fragments to gather on the speed sensor and make it malfunction. This is a common know…
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I was on a trip in my 2015 honda civic and going down the highway and all of a sudden the RPM went way up and then the vehicle lost power completely. It left me stranded in the middle of nowhere. Turns out the CVT belt came apart causing metal fragments to gather on the speed sensor and make it malfunction. This is a common know issue and well documented on online forums. The cause of failure is excessively high hydraulic pressure within the transmission due to a computer programming error. A Honda recall updated the software. Some Civics have an internal component that was not hardened as much as it should have been. Honda believed they identified, by manufacture date, the Civics that did not receive that weak part and therefore left those Civics out of the recall. However, many, many other Civic owners including me have still experienced catastrophic failure of our transmissions. The software update that the Oct. 2015 recall provided took 20 minutes and cost Honda $33.33 in labor. Those of us with failed transmissions are having to pay $5000-$6000. The cars have to be towed to a dealer for diagnosis for even the possibility of having Honda cover the repair. Generally Honda refuses. This is an extreme safety concern if it fails while traveling in traffic and a nightmare to try to replace. Prior to the transmission failure, I had noticed that the fill plug on the transmission had popped off which was weird. I replaced it and it kept popping off. Turns out after looking online that countless other 2014-15 owners have also experienced this problem caused by pressure buildup within the transmission. I recommended that at minimum Honda be required to issue a software update for all 2014-15 Honda civics regardless of whether they have the internal hardened parts! Really hoping something can be done about this to protect future drivers and keep our roads safe. Thank you!!
NHTSA ODI #11531058
Mileage unknown · Jun 4, 2023
Power Train
After owning my car for 2 years I got curious about transmission fluid and wanted to check it, when I couldn't find I went to Google and discovered I had a plug and no dipstick, I Googled where the plug was located and found out it was missing either since I bought it or sometime it came out in the first 2 years. I just got thro…
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After owning my car for 2 years I got curious about transmission fluid and wanted to check it, when I couldn't find I went to Google and discovered I had a plug and no dipstick, I Googled where the plug was located and found out it was missing either since I bought it or sometime it came out in the first 2 years. I just got through going through forums and group discussions and I've learned that this is an extremely extremely extremely common issue and people's transsmissions are failing while driving and locking up the front wheels. I'm very scared of what might happen to me. I'm at 90k miles and all the reports seem to be around 70k to 120k miles. I don't want it to fail with my daughter in the car and on top of that people are saying it's costing them 6000 dollars to fix the transmission after it fails. All of this is due to the transsmission plug missing. Please for my sake and all other honda owners just look up "honda civic tran plug missing" and you will find 100s of reports from many sources
NHTSA ODI #11525283
Mileage unknown · May 30, 2023
Power Train
The transmission went out and requires full replacement after being inspected by my local Honda dealership. It is available for further inspection upon request. My car stopped accelerating while on the interstate and required a tow on the shoulder of a 65-MPH highway. The vehicle and component issues were confirmed by my loca…
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The transmission went out and requires full replacement after being inspected by my local Honda dealership. It is available for further inspection upon request. My car stopped accelerating while on the interstate and required a tow on the shoulder of a 65-MPH highway. The vehicle and component issues were confirmed by my local Honda dealership. No. There were two warning messages that populated immediately as the car died. By that time it was to late and the vehicle was inoperable. No other warning messages or lamps prior to the incident. My VIN is associated with a previous safety recall (15V-574) that was issued for the same year, make, and model of vehicle. My VIN is identical to the range provided down to the production number. I believe that it is not a coincidence that it was manufactured in the same place and time down to the week of vehicles identified in that recall down to the production number, that is only barely out of range.
NHTSA ODI #11524456
116,000 miles · May 15, 2023
Power Train
The contact owns a 2015 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The transmission warning light and several other unknown warning lights were illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle made grinding sounds while driving. The vehicle was towed to a frie…
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The contact owns a 2015 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The transmission warning light and several other unknown warning lights were illuminated. Additionally, the vehicle made grinding sounds while driving. The vehicle was towed to a friend's body shop. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to tow the vehicle to a local dealer for a diagnostic test. The failure mileage was approximately 116,000.
NHTSA ODI #11522055
Mileage unknown · Apr 21, 2023
Power TrainUnknown Or Other
For the second time in 6 months, my car has malfunctioned at a stop light. Both times, the vehicle was unresponsive when I tried to go from fully stopped at a red light. In both instances, the (red) oil light and the battery light came on at the same time/after (meaning they weren’t on before) and the brake locked up. Pressing t…
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For the second time in 6 months, my car has malfunctioned at a stop light. Both times, the vehicle was unresponsive when I tried to go from fully stopped at a red light. In both instances, the (red) oil light and the battery light came on at the same time/after (meaning they weren’t on before) and the brake locked up. Pressing the gas pedal did nothing. Turning the car off completely and restarting cleared the issue in both cases, but I’m worried that it could happen again. Today when it happened, a vehicle behind me behaved aggressively toward me (even though I put my hazard lights on when I realized the problem), and brake checked me once I was moving again. The first time it happened, I took my car to a Honda dealership and they weren’t able to find anything wrong with the car. There were no codes that gave them any info about the issue and they weren’t able to replicate it. At that time, they did recommend a transmission fluid exchange, which I got. The car drove somewhat better (it had been jerky before) after the service, but the improvement was temporary as the jerkiness has returned. While this problem has only presented itself at stoplights l’m terrified of what might happen on a highway or in a situation where the people around me are even more aggressive than the man I encountered today.
NHTSA ODI #11518317
Mileage unknown · Apr 4, 2023
Power Train
Car when Accelerator. is depressed The transmission searches bogs Down Loss of power switches gears jerks around Which makes it extremely unsafe when trying to pull out into traffic. Had a mechanic look at it and you stated. This is extremely common with this year in type of Car. Honda put a unsafe transmission in them and shoul…
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Car when Accelerator. is depressed The transmission searches bogs Down Loss of power switches gears jerks around Which makes it extremely unsafe when trying to pull out into traffic. Had a mechanic look at it and you stated. This is extremely common with this year in type of Car. Honda put a unsafe transmission in them and should replace. Especially with only 50 Thousand miles on it
NHTSA ODI #11515462
Mileage unknown · Apr 2, 2023
Power TrainUnknown Or OtherVehicle Speed ControlCrash
Failure of transmission control module Description fits exact diagnosis in recall. Check transmission light on at 45,000 miles. Andy Mohr wants money to inspect it. I an more than willing to if they will inspect it for free but it is not drivable. If they would come pick it up I would be happy to let them drive it all they wan…
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Failure of transmission control module Description fits exact diagnosis in recall. Check transmission light on at 45,000 miles. Andy Mohr wants money to inspect it. I an more than willing to if they will inspect it for free but it is not drivable. If they would come pick it up I would be happy to let them drive it all they want. The problem came with no warning on the Highway. car wouldn’t no longer switch to second gear. Purchased at Andy Mohr Honda in Bloomington at 17,000 miles off lease from some someone who barely drove it. Certified Preowned by Honda. Paid in full, feel ripped off. Yes, available for inspection on request No warning: transmission complete failure 2015 Silver Honda Civic Has been discussed with mechanics at Curry Buick in.Bloomington as well as our Winslow marathon which has great mechanics, they told me to contact you. The issue according to the NTHSB is the “TCM” or transmission control module. resulting in cars wheels locking up, or spinning out of control and not changing gears (this is what happened to me and repeated itself when I waited a week and tried driving around my neighborhood ) the issue is supposed to result in transmission and Powertrain failure, making engine wanting to redline very easily. I’m lucky I didn’t burn my engine up. I didn’t purchase a car in 2018 at 17,000 miles and expect the transmission to fall out at 45,000 miles. That’s unacceptable and I was never notified, and Andy mohr purports that my vehicle was either serviced or software changed resulting in no issue, however a transmission dying at 45,000 mi on a Honda Civic is not right and I suspect Honda notified the previous lessee and they did not service the car or had it improperly serviced. Otherwise I see no reason to have a car fall apart at 45,000 miles. I drive like grandma.
NHTSA ODI #11514998
190,000 miles · Mar 20, 2023
Air BagsPower TrainService Brakes, Air
The contact owns a 2015 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration with the ABS and air bag warning lights illuminated. Additionally, the transmission was slipping while coming to a stop. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, and the dealer confirmed…
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The contact owns a 2015 Honda Civic. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration with the ABS and air bag warning lights illuminated. Additionally, the transmission was slipping while coming to a stop. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, and the dealer confirmed that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V574000 (Power Train) however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 190,000.
NHTSA ODI #11512874
Mileage unknown · Mar 12, 2023
Power Train
When I was merging onto the highway, my car suddenly stopped being able to move forward when the gas pedal was pressed. I was able to steer it to a safe location and tested the rest of the shifter positions but the car would not move at all in any of them. After having it towed to a dealership it was found that the CVT belt had …
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When I was merging onto the highway, my car suddenly stopped being able to move forward when the gas pedal was pressed. I was able to steer it to a safe location and tested the rest of the shifter positions but the car would not move at all in any of them. After having it towed to a dealership it was found that the CVT belt had come apart, necessitating a full transmission replacement.
NHTSA ODI #11511399
Mileage unknown · Feb 18, 2023
Electrical SystemPower Train
I bought the 2015 Honda Civic in 2019 and had to replace the transmission in 2020 and now in February of 2023 I need to replace the transmission again. No service lights came on for transmission until the shop told me my trans was going out and I would need to replace it again. He said it is a common problem for the 2015 Honda c…
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I bought the 2015 Honda Civic in 2019 and had to replace the transmission in 2020 and now in February of 2023 I need to replace the transmission again. No service lights came on for transmission until the shop told me my trans was going out and I would need to replace it again. He said it is a common problem for the 2015 Honda civic because of the CVT transmission.
NHTSA ODI #11507957
NHTSA investigations
2EA21002 · Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture
Opened Sep 17, 2021 · No close date supplied
Status: open (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module; Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 Blomquist Report at www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.Consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substance that traps and holds moisture) in US vehicles are under recall. These "non-desiccated" inflators either have been or are required to be replaced.In some cases, the remedy part for these recalled inflators was, or will be, an inflator using either propellant 2004 or 2004L that does contain a desiccant. None of these "desiccated" remedy parts (which were installed in older model year vehicles) are currently under recall for a degradation concern. Certain subsets of desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004 for use as original equipment, however, have been recalled for a degradation concern. All Takata inflators produced with propellant 2004L contain desiccant, and none of these desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L are under recall for a degradation concern. There have been no reported field ruptures in any non-recalled desiccated PSAN inflators.It is understood that desiccants fully saturate at some threshold, at which point any additional moisture will not be captured. This means the degradation process observed in non-desiccated inflators using propellant 2004 may also occur in non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004, assuming additional moisture enters the inflator and high temperature cycling occurs. Based on available information, desiccant saturation can occur within the first five years in the worst environments, and the time required for full saturation is affected by multiple factors. While no present safety risk has been identified, further work is needed to evaluate the future risk of non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004.Three entities -- Takata (now known as TK Global), the Independent Testing Coalition, and Exponent -- have been studying the long-term behavior of Takata desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004L (as well as 2004) in the presence of moisture and temperature cycling. The research efforts, which include development of predictive modeling techniques and field sample analysis, are ongoing. To date, none of the researchers have identified field evidence showing that propellant 2004L is undergoing a degradation process that leads to aggressive deployment and potential rupture. However, the time in service of such inflators remains short compared to that of the inflators using propellant 2004. Further study is needed to assess the long-term safety of desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L.The Office of Defects Investigation is opening this investigation to examine whether a safety defect related to propellant degradation exists in non-recalled desiccated PSAN frontal inflators manufactured by Takata. This investigation will require extensive information on Takata production processes and surveys of inflators in the field. Lists of recall actions that may have used desiccated PSAN inflators as remedy parts, as well as the makes and models originally manufactured with them, is available with the downloadable version of this document (see nhtsa.gov/recalls?nhtsaId=EA21002 -- note this information is subject to change/revision as the investigation proceeds). This investigation does not supersede EA15-001, which remains open.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Air Bags:frontal:driver Side:inflator Module
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 Blomquist Report at www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.Consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substance that traps and holds moisture) in US vehicles are under recall. These "non-desiccated" inflators either have been or are required to be replaced.In some cases, the remedy part for these recalled inflators was, or will be, an inflator using either propellant 2004 or 2004L that does contain a desiccant. None of these "desiccated" remedy parts (which were installed in older model year vehicles) are currently under recall for a degradation concern. Certain subsets of desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004 for use as original equipment, however, have been recalled for a degradation concern. All Takata inflators produced with propellant 2004L contain desiccant, and none of these desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L are under recall for a degradation concern. There have been no reported field ruptures in any non-recalled desiccated PSAN inflators.It is understood that desiccants fully saturate at some threshold, at which point any additional moisture will not be captured. This means the degradation process observed in non-desiccated inflators using propellant 2004 may also occur in non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004, assuming additional moisture enters the inflator and high temperature cycling occurs. Based on available information, desiccant saturation can occur within the first five years in the worst environments, and the time required for full saturation is affected by multiple factors. While no present safety risk has been identified, further work is needed to evaluate the future risk of non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004.Three entities -- Takata (now known as TK Global), the Independent Testing Coalition, and Exponent -- have been studying the long-term behavior of Takata desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004L (as well as 2004) in the presence of moisture and temperature cycling. The research efforts, which include development of predictive modeling techniques and field sample analysis, are ongoing. To date, none of the researchers have identified field evidence showing that propellant 2004L is undergoing a degradation process that leads to aggressive deployment and potential rupture. However, the time in service of such inflators remains short compared to that of the inflators using propellant 2004. Further study is needed to assess the long-term safety of desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L.The Office of Defects Investigation is opening this investigation to examine whether a safety defect related to propellant degradation exists in non-recalled desiccated PSAN frontal inflators manufactured by Takata. This investigation will require extensive information on Takata production processes and surveys of inflators in the field. Lists of recall actions that may have used desiccated PSAN inflators as remedy parts, as well as the makes and models originally manufactured with them, is available with the downloadable version of this document (see nhtsa.gov/recalls?nhtsaId=EA21002 -- note this information is subject to change/revision as the investigation proceeds). This investigation does not supersede EA15-001, which remains open.
Air Bags:frontal:passenger Side:inflator Module
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 Blomquist Report at www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.Consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substance that traps and holds moisture) in US vehicles are under recall. These "non-desiccated" inflators either have been or are required to be replaced.In some cases, the remedy part for these recalled inflators was, or will be, an inflator using either propellant 2004 or 2004L that does contain a desiccant. None of these "desiccated" remedy parts (which were installed in older model year vehicles) are currently under recall for a degradation concern. Certain subsets of desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004 for use as original equipment, however, have been recalled for a degradation concern. All Takata inflators produced with propellant 2004L contain desiccant, and none of these desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L are under recall for a degradation concern. There have been no reported field ruptures in any non-recalled desiccated PSAN inflators.It is understood that desiccants fully saturate at some threshold, at which point any additional moisture will not be captured. This means the degradation process observed in non-desiccated inflators using propellant 2004 may also occur in non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004, assuming additional moisture enters the inflator and high temperature cycling occurs. Based on available information, desiccant saturation can occur within the first five years in the worst environments, and the time required for full saturation is affected by multiple factors. While no present safety risk has been identified, further work is needed to evaluate the future risk of non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004.Three entities -- Takata (now known as TK Global), the Independent Testing Coalition, and Exponent -- have been studying the long-term behavior of Takata desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004L (as well as 2004) in the presence of moisture and temperature cycling. The research efforts, which include development of predictive modeling techniques and field sample analysis, are ongoing. To date, none of the researchers have identified field evidence showing that propellant 2004L is undergoing a degradation process that leads to aggressive deployment and potential rupture. However, the time in service of such inflators remains short compared to that of the inflators using propellant 2004. Further study is needed to assess the long-term safety of desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L.The Office of Defects Investigation is opening this investigation to examine whether a safety defect related to propellant degradation exists in non-recalled desiccated PSAN frontal inflators manufactured by Takata. This investigation will require extensive information on Takata production processes and surveys of inflators in the field. Lists of recall actions that may have used desiccated PSAN inflators as remedy parts, as well as the makes and models originally manufactured with them, is available with the downloadable version of this document (see nhtsa.gov/recalls?nhtsaId=EA21002 -- note this information is subject to change/revision as the investigation proceeds). This investigation does not supersede EA15-001, which remains open.
EA19001 · Electrical Overstress
Opened Apr 19, 2019 · Closed Sep 19, 2024
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Air Bags: Air Bag/restraint Control Module
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation to determine if the failure of airbags to deploy during severe crashes, in certain vehicles, was the result of a safety related defect. During the investigation a complex failure was studied that can result in non-deployment of subject vehicle air bags and other restraint system devices in severe crash events. The subject vehicles may be equipped with an airbag control unit (ACU) for the supplemental restraint system (SRS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) manufactured by ZF-TRW. The ECU receives signals from crash sensors mounted in the vehicle and deploys the vehicle air bags and seat belt pretensioners in accordance with manufacturer design specifications. The ECU in the subject vehicles contains a model DS84 application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) which controls the communication of the crash sensor signal, firing commands (i.e., when to deploy the airbag(s) and/or pretensioners), and fault information (e.g., diagnostic trouble codes). In September 2016, FCA announced recall 16V-668 for certain model year (MY) 2010 to 2014 Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep products manufactured with the subject ZF-TRW ACU. In this recall, FCA discussed an EOS condition that resulted in a failure of the subject DS84 ASIC, which caused air bag non-deployment. FCA noted that the defect condition had only been observed in vehicles equipped with sensor harnessing routed across the front of the vehicle. Other FCA vehicles that also used the subject ACU, but were not equipped with cross-car harnessing, had not experienced EOS failures, despite similar time in service. During the course of this investigation, ODI sent two separate Information Request (IR) letters to six vehicle manufactures (including FCA, Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Mitsubishi, and Toyota) and one IR letter to ZF-TRW. These IR letters resulted in ODI receiving comprehensive data from these manufacturers and suppliers. Studies of this data found that the DS84 ASIC does not have sufficient protection against negative electrical transients or electrical overstress (“EOS”) that can be generated in certain severe crashes. An electrical transient occurs when the electrical power supplied to a circuit changes momentarily over a short duration of time. In these severe crash cases, the crash sensors and other powered wiring can be damaged and short circuited so as to create a negative electrical transient of sufficient intensity and duration (that are outside the vehicle manufacturer's specification) to damage the ASIC before the restraint device deployment signal is received by the SRS ECU. This damaged signal can lead to incomplete or nondeployment of the air bags and/or pretensioners. Airbag non-deployment and/or lack of pretensioner operation can increase the risk or severity of injury in a crash.A total of 8 fatalities and 14 injuries were associated with known EOS events. The common element in all investigated manufacturers vehicles is the SRS ECU containing a DS84 ASIC manufactured by ZF-TRW. The risk associated with the ASIC is equally shared among all OEMS involved in the investigation. The actual real-world risk can be mitigated by other factors which were assessed by ODI during this investigation. The first mitigating factor involves protections built into the ACU design which protect the DS84 ASIC from damage. There are multiple strategies and levels of protection employed by different OEMs that provide effective EOS mitigation. The two most common strategies at the ACU level are circuit protection diodes on the remote senor signal lines, and current limiting resistors that protect critical components. The second mitigating factor is found at the vehicle level and involves the location and routing of the wires leading from the crash sensors to the SRS ECU. If the wires are well protected in a crash and are not routed with other power wires carrying large currents, the risk for an EOS event is significantly reduced or eliminated. These design specific factors combine to produce a spectrum of risk for the vehicles equipped with ACUs using the DS84 ASIC. Given the many of years of field exposure, it is possible to divide the subject population into two groups; vehicles which have experienced EOS events, and vehicles which have not experienced EOS field events. Four of the six OEMs involved in this investigation have experienced EOS field events on at least one of their models equipped with a DS84 ASIC. All vehicle models (including the Toyota models identified in the Failure Report Summary of the opening resume for this investigation) with field events have been recalled. In an abundance of caution, ODI kept this investigation open five years to monitor field performance and did not identify any field events on vehicles not included in existing safety recalls. Given the spectrum of risk identified in this investigation and that all vehicles with a demonstrated unreasonable risk have been recalled, ODI is closing this investigation. ODI is closing this investigation with the following manufacturer safety recalls: 16V-668, 18E-043, 18V-137, 18V-363, and 20V-024. With the recall actions taken by the subject vehicle and equipment manufacturers, this investigation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exists on other model or model year vehicles outside of the recall scopes. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.