NHTSA probing whether to call Nissan to the carpet over Versa unintended acceleration

Mon, 30 Jun 2014

The Nissan Versa and Versa Note may have a carpeting problem that could make the little cars risky to drive. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is launching a preliminary evaluation into the 2012-2014 model year versions of the Versa, Versa Sedan and Versa Note, affecting an estimated 360,000 vehicle. In these vehicles, it's possible that the driver's foot could be caught where the carpet meets a trim panel near the accelerator. The regulator has four reported instances of the issue, but it's still collecting data from Nissan about any further cases.

According to the complaints, the tunnel carpet cover trim panel can possibly snag the drivers' right shoe where it meets the carpet, and can either keep their foot on the accelerator or prevent moving it to the brake pedal. In one case, the problem was bad enough that the driver had to free his foot using his hand, while driving. In two of the four reported cases, the vehicles were rental cars.

This is actually the second ongoing preliminary evaluation for some of these models. In late May, NHTSA started looking into the 2013-2014 Versa and 2014 Versa Note for long brake pedal travel.

Nissan sent a prepared statement to Autoblog saying that it's "cooperating fully with the Agency's request." You can read the full text below. Also, Scroll down to read the entire NHTSA preliminary evaluation document or download it as a PDF to see two images of the alleged flaw, here.

ODI RESUME
Investigation: PE 14-018
Date Opened: 06/24/2014
Investigator: Stephen Mchenry
Reviewer: Jeff Quandt
Approver: Frank Borris
Subject: Pedal Operation Interference

MANUFACTURER & PRODUCT INFORMATION
Manufacturer: Nissan North America, Inc.
Products: MY 2012-2014 Nissan Versa and Versa Note
Population: 360,000 (Estimated)
Problem Description: Drivers describe incidents of interference between the tunnel carpet cover trim panel and the driver's right shoe when attempting to release the accelerator pedal, allegedly resulting in brief incidents of unwanted acceleration or delayed brake application.






FAILURE REPORT SUMMARY
	ODI	Manufacturer	Total
Complaints:	4	TBD	TBD
Crashes/Fires:	0	TBD	TBD
Injury Incidents:	0	TBD	TBD
Number of Injuries:	0	TBD	TBD
Fatality Incidents:	0	TBD	TBD
Number of Fatalities:	0	TBD	TBD

ACTION / SUMMARY INFORMATION

Action: A Preliminary Evaluation has been opened.
Summary: The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received four complaints alleging that the tunnel carpet cover trim panel on Model Year (MY) 2012 through 2014 Nissan Versa, Versa Sedan and Versa Note vehicles has trapped the edge of the driver's shoe. The alleged condition interfered with the driver's ability to reduce the rate of acceleration as desired and also interfered with the driver's ability to apply the brakes when needed.

One complainant, VOQ 10597004, alleges that their foot was trapped by the trim panel such that they had to use their right hand to grab their leg and pull up to get their foot free, almost causing a crash during the event. The trim panel in question (Figure 1) is located next to the accelerator pedal and the lower corner is positioned such that it is near the right outer edge of the driver's shoe. The complainant supplied a photograph (Figure 2) showing how the edge of the panel wedged itself in the driver's shoe. Complainant 10573057 alleged that when attempting to remove their foot from the accelerator pedal to apply the brake, their shoe was caught by the trim panel which delayed braking ability several times. Two of the four complainants note that the vehicles were rental cars.

A Preliminary Evaluation has been opened to asses the scope, frequency and safety-related consequence of the alleged defect.

The VOQs associated with this investigation are: 10597004, 10573057, 10503811, and 10498000. A fifth VOQ (10578373) is from a foreign country and is not counted in this resume.

Nissan Statement

Nissan received a request for information from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) concerning four customer complaints on MY2012-2014 Versa vehicles. We are cooperating fully with the Agency's request.

Nissan is committed to a high level of customer safety, service and satisfaction and seeks to provide an outstanding ownership experience to Nissan Versa owners. We look forward to discussing this matter with the agency, and we will carefully review their request. As always, we will work with the regulators to fully answer their questions.

By Chris Bruce