US closes probe into 2 million Nissan vehicles without seeking recall
A US auto safety agency on Wednesday closed a seven-year-old investigation into 2.03 million
Nissan Motor
vehicles over issues related to rear
suspension control arm failure
without seeking a recall.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation, which covered 2013-2018
Nissan
Altima and 2016-2018
Nissan Maxima
vehicles, was opened in 2018 and upgraded to an engineering analysis in 2019.
The probe reviewed whether the lower control arm of the rear suspension system could separate from the chassis due to corrosion posing safety risks.
Nissan implemented a design change in January 2018 to improve the durability of the lower control arm. Nissan did not immediately comment on Wednesday.
NHTSA
said it reviewed about 1,300 reports of the issue and a small number of complaints suggested they had been in near crashes. Just one complaint said a vehicle made physical contact with another object, bumping into the trailer hitch of a truck.
"Nissan acknowledges that a crack can develop in affected control arms due to stress loading from normal use and that salts commonly used for roadway snow and ice treatment may result in corrosion that exacerbates the progression of the crack," the agency said.
Most reports occurred in salt-belt US states prone to corrosion issues with vehicles averaging over 113,000 miles (181,856 km) at the time of failure. No injuries have been reported.
More than 47,000 vehicles were repaired with a new part under a Nissan customer satisfaction campaign announced in 2019 and some vehicles received a warranty extension to 10 years.
"With a declining trend of reports and Nissan's actions to implement a countermeasure and extended warranty coverage, further investigation of the issue does not appear to be warranted at this time," NHTSA said.
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Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
US closes probe into 2 million Nissan vehicles without seeking recall
A US auto safety agency on Wednesday closed a seven-year-old investigation into 2.03 million Nissan Motor vehicles over issues related to rear suspension control arm failure without seeking a recall. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation, which covered 2013-2018 Nissan Altima and 2016-2018 Nissan Maxima vehicles, was opened in 2018 and upgraded to an engineering analysis in 2019. The probe reviewed whether the lower control arm of the rear suspension system could separate from the chassis due to corrosion posing safety risks. Nissan implemented a design change in January 2018 to improve the durability of the lower control arm. Nissan did not immediately comment on Wednesday. NHTSA said it reviewed about 1,300 reports of the issue and a small number of complaints suggested they had been in near crashes. Just one complaint said a vehicle made physical contact with another object, bumping into the trailer hitch of a truck. "Nissan acknowledges that a crack can develop in affected control arms due to stress loading from normal use and that salts commonly used for roadway snow and ice treatment may result in corrosion that exacerbates the progression of the crack," the agency said. Most reports occurred in salt-belt US states prone to corrosion issues with vehicles averaging over 113,000 miles (181,856 km) at the time of failure. No injuries have been reported. More than 47,000 vehicles were repaired with a new part under a Nissan customer satisfaction campaign announced in 2019 and some vehicles received a warranty extension to 10 years. "With a declining trend of reports and Nissan's actions to implement a countermeasure and extended warranty coverage, further investigation of the issue does not appear to be warranted at this time," NHTSA said.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Time of India
Honda recalls more than 259,000 cars across the US due to brake pedal issue
Honda is recalling more than 259,000 of its cars across the U.S. due to a problem that can cause the brake pedal to shift out of position, potentially interfering with a driver's ability to stop or slow down. According to documents published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the recall covers certain Honda Pilots between model years 2023 and 2025 - as well cars under the auto maker's luxury Acura brand: 2021-2025 Acura TLX and 2023-2025 Acura MDX vehicles. The NHTSA's recall report notes that the brake pedal pivot pin in some of these vehicles was not secured properly during production. That can lead the pedal to shift out of place and "may lead to unintended application," the report notes, increasing crash risks. "The issue could also cause an abnormal brake pedal feeling during operation, illuminate the brake malfunction light in the instrument cluster, or cause the vehicle's brake lights to remain lit even when the brake pedal is not applied," America Honda said in a statement Wednesday. As a remedy, Honda says authorized dealers will inspect the vehicles covered by this recall and replace the brake pedal assembly if necessary, free of charge. Per the NHTSA's report, the company estimates 1% of these vehicles have this issue. Dealer notifications began on June 13. And mailed owner notification letters are set to follow on July 28. In the meantime, drivers can also confirm if their specific vehicle is included in this recall and find more information using the NHTSA site or Honda's recall lookup. Between February 2024 and June 5, the NHSTA notes, Honda received three warranty claims related to this issue - but no reports of injuries. Honda began investigating the faulty brake pedal in April 2024, after receiving a report of a vehicle experiencing this issue. The company later determined that improper assembly of the brake pedal pivot pin occurred at a supplier's U.S. plant, which has since been closed. Production was transferred to a plant in Mexico - where the supplier now uses a camera sensor "to verify whether the pivot pin is staked," the recall report notes.
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Nissan reaffirms commitment to India, plans three new vehicle launches by 2027
Nissan Motor Co has a defined product introduction plan for India, where it intends to continue its operations, global CEO Ivan Espinosa told ET, dispelling speculation that the Japanese automaker could exit the market. 'India is a very important market for Nissan and we're in India to stay,' said Espinosa. 'We have a very clear roadmap of our product portfolio and also the capacity required to produce these vehicles.' Elaborating on the plans, he said, 'In the next 18 to 24 months, we will have a lot of activity of product introduction for India…these vehicles will not only be for India, but they will also be exported to many, many markets around the world.' The top Nissan executive's comments follow partner Renault SA announcing this March the acquisition of the former's 51% stake in a car manufacturing joint venture factory in Tamil Nadu. Post completion of the deal, Renault Nissan Automotive India Pvt Ltd (RNAIPL) will become a wholly owned unit of the French automaker. RNAIPL would eventually evolve into a contract manufacturer for Nissan, producing existing and new models slated for launch in India and for exports. Nissan's decision triggered speculation that the company may exit the Indian market, much like American carmakers Ford and General Motors in the past. Espinosa clarified that Nissan's decision to cut industrial footprint to 10 vehicle plants globally from 17 is part of the company's plan to trim costs, leverage partnerships wherever feasible, and channel investments in mass market products to grow business sustainably and profitably in future. He emphasised that low motorisation rates in India, coupled with strong cost competitiveness and engineering capability offer a lot of potential to grow Nissan's business in the country. To be sure, the Tokyo-headquartered automaker has faced limited success in its stint in India. It sold only 27,881 units in India's 4.3-million unit passenger vehicle market last fiscal year, due to sparse product offerings. The company however ranks among India's top car exporters, shipping 71,334 vehicles in FY25. Espinosa however expressed confidence that Nissan Motor India would turnaround its business, backed by the launch of three new vehicles in the next 18-24 months. This will comprise a multipurpose vehicle, a five-seater SUV, and a seven-seater SUV. Nissan currently sells the locally-produced Magnite compact SUV in India, besides importing the X-Trail SUV model. Espinosa explained that the new vehicles—positioned at the heart of the market in the country's fast-growing utility vehicle segment— will give the company's dealer partners 'a lot of opportunities for business' and also help cover many requirements of customers in India. 'We will have a much broader range that will help us cover the market in a more intelligent, smart way,' he said. Nissan aims to nearly its grow its sales in India nearly threefold to 100,000 vehicles annually once the new SUVs are rolled out, by 2027-end. An additional 100,000 vehicles will be exported. 'The scale of what we're doing is relatively big. This is why India is such an important thing for Nissan, and this is why we're determined to stay and to keep working with the assets that we have built in India, not only for the domestic operations, but also to capitalise these values and export outside of the Indian market,' Espinosa said. He said the company additionally has a very competent engineering footprint in India. Going forward, Nissan will leverage the joint venture Renault Nissan Technology & Business Centre in Chennai, not only to produce and develop vehicles in India jointly with partner Renault, but also for enabling new product development under Nissan's global portfolio. 'The Indian talent and engineering is very, very competent and that is something that our engineers in Japan value a lot. There's a lot of collaboration happening with the engineering team in India, to help us develop products for many of Nissan's world operations,' he said. Overall, Espinosa said while every market has its challenges, one of the positives in India is that the motorisation ratio still has a lot of potential to grow. He said that 'there's still a lot of potential for the Indian market to grow, but we do need to keep working hand in hand with the governments to keep the competitiveness that today India has. The cost competitiveness is quite good; the engineering capability is quite good. But how do we make this sustainable for the future?'. For one, as India transitions to cleaner mobility solutions such as battery electric vehicles, 'a solid roadmap' has to be put in place to expand infrastructure. Espinosa said government support is also needed to make EVs viable in the future in India. 'So, a lot of work to be done, which is not only specific to India. But a lot of work needs to be done to keep the (growth in sales of) electric vehicles at the pace governments or some of the governments are intending.'
