NHTSA on the Hot Seat: What is Standard Operating Procedure?
By Michelle Krebs February 22, 2010At Congressional hearings this week, federal administrators responsible for automotive 
safety will be on the hot seat as much as Toyota executives will be.
Amid accusations of foot dragging and influence pedaling regarding the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Toyota and their handling of consumer complaints and recalls, safety administrators likely will be grilled about what is standard operating procedure in dealing with consumers' complaints. The overriding question at the hearings will be was NHTSA lax in holding Toyota's feet to the fire on vehicle problems.
Edmunds.com's analysis of NHTSA databases reveals little consistency in dealing with consumer complaints. The analysis shows no clear pattern in terms of the number of consumer complaints that trigger an agency investigation. The length of time it takes from an investigation to a recall being issued varies widely.
Whether NHTSA's process works properly and quickly enough and whether it is transparent enough is highly questionable. Ultimately, this week's Congressional hearings may be as revealing in uncovering defects at NHTSA as defects in Toyotas.
NHTSA Investigations: Little Consistency
Edmunds.com's analysis of NHTSA data bases of consumer complaints and defects investigations shows no consistency in the number of complaints it takes to trigger an investigation that ultimately results in a recall. As few as five complaints have triggered an investigation that led to a recall; other investigations that led to a recall haven't started until 1,500 complaints had accumulated.
Edmunds.com's analysis going back to 1990 models further shows once an investigation is launched, it takes an average of 262 days to conclude and result in a recall. However, the range varied widely from an investigation that lasted a mere 10 days before a recall was issued to another that languished for six years before vehicles were recalled.
Congressional Hearings Start
Two House of Representatives committees will stage hearings on Tuesday and Wednesday. The focus will be Toyota's high-profile recalls of millions of vehicles for sticking accelerator pedals and floormats that can trap the gas pedal - both of which have the potential to cause "unintended acceleration."
At 11 a.m. Tuesday, the House Energy and Commerce committee will hold a hearing entitled "Response by Toyota and NHTSA to Incidents of Sudden Unintended Acceleration." Testifying will be Toyota Motor Sales President and CEO Jim Lentz and NHTSA Administrator David Strickland.
At 10 a.m. on Wednesday, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform holds a hearing titled "Toyota Gas Pedals: Is the Public at Risk?" Toyota President Akio Toyoda has agreed to appear before the committee.
A Senate hearing is set for March 2.
Tale of Two Small Cars with Steering Complaints
A close look at consumer complaints regarding problematic steering on two small cars -- the Chevrolet Cobalt and Toyota Corolla -- paints a picture of how NHTSA's process works -- at least in these specific cases.
Last week, on the heels of three recalls covering about 8 million vehicles for sticky gas pedals, floormats and brakes, the Toyota Corolla's steering was called into question based on consumer complaints filed with NHTSA.
Toyota publicly acknowledged it, too, had received complaints about the Corolla's steering.
Late Friday, NHTSA confirmed it had opened an official investigation that could cover approximately 487,000 2009-2010 Toyota Corolla and Corolla-based Toyota Matrix models. The agency said it had 168 consumer complaints about steering "becoming unresponsive or loose at highway speeds." NHTSA said complaints came from eight people who said they had accidents, resulting in a total of 11 injuries.Toyota said it would cooperate in the investigation announced a recall of the vehicles.
In early February, General Motors confirmed that NHTSA had launched a formal investigation into consumer complaints regarding steering on its Chevrolet Cobalt, a small car that competes against the Toyota Corolla.
A line-by-line analysis by Edmunds.com engineers and statisticians of the NHTSA consumer complaints about steering on both cars reveals:
- an exponentially higher number of complaints were lodged by customers against the Cobalt compared with the Corolla.
- complaints against the Cobalt go back to the 2005 model-year version. The official investigation was launched early February of this year. The bulk of Corolla complaints are on the recent 2009 and 2010 model-year versions.
- complaints on the Cobalt appear far more serious, including total loss of steering, than do the complaints against the Corolla, which involve steering that wanders or veers in one direction or another more often than total steering loss.
Cobalt Complaints Outnumber Corolla Complaints
Total complaints about steering on the Cobalt covering the 2005 to 2010 model years total 1,157. Total complaints about steering on the Corolla covering the same model-year period total 84.
The bulk of the Cobalt complaints occurred on the 2005 and 2006 model. General Motors introduced the Chevrolet Cobalt in the 2005 model year, equipping it with Electronic Power Steering (EPS). It would appear GM recognized problems with the steering because changes obviously were made after the Cobalt's introduction. Steering complaints gradually tapered off over the following model years to the point that none had been filed on the 2010 version as of Feb. 1.
It was early February - at the height of the media frenzy surrounding Toyota's multiple recalls -- that NHTSA opened its official investigation of the Cobalt - even though the first hefty batch of complaints were filed on the 2005 models.
Customer complaints about Toyota's sticky gas pedals were occurring on 2007 models, prompting critics to charge NHTSA and Toyota with foot-dragging on fixing the problem.
As for the Corolla, NHTSA received only one steering complaint per model year in 2005, 2006 and 2007; two on the 2008 model. The number jumped to 64 on 2009 version. Another 15 complaints have been filed on the 2010 model as of Feb. 3. 
Cobalt More Serious Complaints
Edmunds.com's reading of the steering complaints on both vehicles reveal the complaints about the Cobalt's steering are far more serious and more dangerous than are the complaints about the Corolla's steering.
Almost all Cobalt drivers filing NHTSA complaints report they could not steer the vehicle. One complaint described an accident involving a family riding in their 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt when the power steering failed and the car ran off the road onto the median, causing a head injury to a child onboard. Other owners report they have some near-misses.
A Cobalt owner who makes a living delivering Chinese food and pizza reports that his steering typically fails 10 times over the course of a three-hour shift, requiring the shut off and re-start of the vehicle. A steering repair has been quoted at $2,000 - typical of what other Cobalt owners said in their reports -- and unaffordable on a delivery person's wage, notes the customer. "I'm truly scared that I'll end up dead or severely inured as long as this problem persists."
A few examples from NHTSA complaints on the Chevrolet Cobalt, which shares its underpinnings with the Pontiac G5:
"Power steering motor failure, nearly caused a crash because I could not turn the vehicle."
"The power steering goes out at random intervals on my 2006 Chevy Cobalt. This has nearly led to several accidents."
"I was driving on the highway and my power steering went out. I had no control of the wheel and felt my life was in danger. So I pulled on the side of the road and cut the car off and the problem went away for a minute and came back within 5 min. Can you please help me!!!!"
"I was almost involved in a head on collision due to the power steering failure of my 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt."
Dan Edmunds, director of vehicle testing for Edmunds.com who has read every complaint, suggests the Cobalt problem likely is a failure of the Electronic Power Steering system. In some cases, the problem is resolved when the driver turns off the car and restarts it. But in some cases, the failure affects other vehicle systems, including the throttle and the anti-lock brakes.
Cobalt owners report they have had computer chips replaced and tire pressures checked to no avail. Some have been told the entire steering mechanism needs to be replaced, at their expense and to the tune of a couple thousand dollars.
Of the 84 complaints about the Corolla's steering, three reported loss of steering control. No less unsettling, the typical complaint describes the Corolla's steering problem - on the 2009 model in particular - as "pulling" in one direction or the other from center, "veering" or "wandering" from a straight line at highway speeds. Some specific comments include:
"Above 55 mph the car likes to wander all over the highway."
Corolla owners say they, too, have taken their vehicles to dealerships. In some cases, minor adjustments were made that didn't necessarily fix the problem; in other cases, technicians said they found no problem.
Both Cases Result in Unhappy Customers
In the case of both the Cobalt and Corolla, customers are unhappy, leading some to ask in their complaints filed with NHTSA such things as: "Why isn't there a recall?" "How many people have to be seriously injured before this issue is resolved through a recall?
These are questions NHTSA should answer about the Cobalt, Corolla and other vehicles. - Michelle Krebs, Senior Analyst and Editor at Large
Edmunds.com's chief of vehicle testing Dan Edmunds and analyst Danny Zhou provided the technical and data analysis for this report.
Photo by manufacturers and Edmunds.com
1 - 2009 Toyota Corolla (photo by Toyota)
2 - 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt (photo by Edmunds.com's InsideLine)
LEAVE A COMMENT
Click here to comment on this entry.While both issues are certainly very serious, I have to ask whether these complaints might be connected to the choice of tire and the road surface. Certain tire brands follow the grooves in the road more than others.
Btw, great job on the research! That must've taken tons of hours.
Good analysis, although the Cobalt seems to have many fewer complaints in the last two years. Hence why the Corolla is being recalled for 2009-2010.
guy1974 -- don't forget that there are plenty of 2005 and 2006 Cobalts still on the road, with almost 500 complaints each and still counting. It's not too late to recall them, too!
Excellent research. Remind me to pass on a Cobalt for my daughter's first car.
Being a retired engineer, I've taken great interest of the automotive industry for a good part of my life. I've notice through the last five years, Toyota has had many defects with little fanfare with the news media. Probably because Consumer Report has always given them great marks. Somehow, I knew one day Toyota's luck would run out...and that is just what happened.
To go back to 1974 to justify Toyota's defects is ludicrous. We have to look at cars that are on the road today not thirty five years ago. Toyota's problem is greatly made worse by the fact in how they handle the problem. A grade of F must be given to them for the way they misinformed us, I truly hope they find the real problem so once again the highways can be safe.
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