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Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Mar 2018
Posts: 4,754
Likes: 1,650
C7 Corvette Bent Wheel NHTSA Complaint Instructions
Title: Bent/Cracked Wheels – Reporting to NHTSA (National Highway Transportation Safety Admin.)
I believe that Bent or Cracked Wheels are both an Engineering Defect and Safety Issue.
GM has not acknowledged that there is a problem and denies warranty repair coverage leaving owners many times to have to cover the cost of repairs or purchase new wheels themselves. Wheels may cost thousands of dollars to and numerous owners have already had to purchase multiple wheels for their new or near new vehicles that should have been covered by GM's warranty. GM is blaming Corvette owners.
If you have had an issue with a Bent or Cracked OEM Wheel on your Grand Sport or Z06, you can file a complaint with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Your complaint will be added to a public NHTSA database after personally identifying information is removed. If the agency receives similar reports from a number of people about the same product, this could indicate that a safety- related defect may exist that would warrant the opening of an investigation.
Please consider filing your complaint. Not only will it benefit you but will benefit other Corvette owners and could potentially save someone from having a serious accident.
The process is simple and will not take much of your time. Here is how you can as proceed.
1) Access the NHTSA site thru: https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/VehicleComplaint/
2) Click on the red START THE FORM button.
3) In the first box type in your VIN.
4) In the second box enter your vehicle make, model, and model year separated by spaces (e.g., make model year) “Chevrolet Corvette 20XX” (separated by spaces, replace XX with the last 2 digits of your model year).
5) Click on the NEXT Button.
6) Click on the Wheels Box.
7) In the third box down, type in your specific issue with your wheels.
8) You can also upload any pictures that you have to show the problem.
9) Type in the date of occurrence.
10) Click on the Next button, and then the Next button again.
11) You will then be asked for contact information and your email address. (all this personal information will be protected)
12) Press verify your entries and submit to NHTSA.
Your complaint is now registered with the NHTSA.
If you would would like to view other similar bent/cracked wheel NHTSA complaints that have been filed, follow these instructions:
(your inputs shown in Red)
1) Access the NHTSA search website:
https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners...ues?prodType=E
2) Click and Highlight the “Keywords (Complaints Only)" box.
3) In the "Select Type:" Box Click on the "Vehicles" button.
4) Type in data entry field type in the words “wheel, crack, bent”. (making sure you include the commas) 5) In the "Narrative contains:" field, click on the "Any Keyword" button.
In the Optional: Section
In "Model Year range"
6) Click drop down arrow and select: Start: 2014
7) Click drop down arrow and select: End: 2019
8) Click drop down arrow and select: Make: Chevrolet
9) Click drop down arrow and select: Model: Corvette
10) Click the "GO" button.
You will then see the narratives other Corvette owners have posted, 5 at a time.
Personal information is not listed. Currently there are 25 Complaints as of the date of this link.
Would appreciate anyone who has had a cracked or bent wheel on their Corvette, please file a formal complaint to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Instructions are listed at top of this document.
I believe that Bent or Cracked Wheels are both an Engineering Defect and Safety Issue.
GM has not acknowledged that there is a problem and denies warranty repair coverage leaving owners many times to have to cover the cost of repairs or purchase new wheels themselves. Wheels may cost thousands of dollars to and numerous owners have already had to purchase multiple wheels for their new or near new vehicles that should have been covered by GM's warranty. GM is blaming Corvette owners.
If you have had an issue with a Bent or Cracked OEM Wheel on your Grand Sport or Z06, you can file a complaint with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Your complaint will be added to a public NHTSA database after personally identifying information is removed. If the agency receives similar reports from a number of people about the same product, this could indicate that a safety- related defect may exist that would warrant the opening of an investigation.
Please consider filing your complaint. Not only will it benefit you but will benefit other Corvette owners and could potentially save someone from having a serious accident.
The process is simple and will not take much of your time. Here is how you can as proceed.
1) Access the NHTSA site thru: https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/VehicleComplaint/
2) Click on the red START THE FORM button.
3) In the first box type in your VIN.
4) In the second box enter your vehicle make, model, and model year separated by spaces (e.g., make model year) “Chevrolet Corvette 20XX” (separated by spaces, replace XX with the last 2 digits of your model year).
5) Click on the NEXT Button.
6) Click on the Wheels Box.
7) In the third box down, type in your specific issue with your wheels.
8) You can also upload any pictures that you have to show the problem.
9) Type in the date of occurrence.
10) Click on the Next button, and then the Next button again.
11) You will then be asked for contact information and your email address. (all this personal information will be protected)
12) Press verify your entries and submit to NHTSA.
Your complaint is now registered with the NHTSA.
If you would would like to view other similar bent/cracked wheel NHTSA complaints that have been filed, follow these instructions:
(your inputs shown in Red)
1) Access the NHTSA search website:
https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners...ues?prodType=E
2) Click and Highlight the “Keywords (Complaints Only)" box.
3) In the "Select Type:" Box Click on the "Vehicles" button.
4) Type in data entry field type in the words “wheel, crack, bent”. (making sure you include the commas) 5) In the "Narrative contains:" field, click on the "Any Keyword" button.
In the Optional: Section
In "Model Year range"
6) Click drop down arrow and select: Start: 2014
7) Click drop down arrow and select: End: 2019
8) Click drop down arrow and select: Make: Chevrolet
9) Click drop down arrow and select: Model: Corvette
10) Click the "GO" button.
You will then see the narratives other Corvette owners have posted, 5 at a time.
Personal information is not listed. Currently there are 25 Complaints as of the date of this link.
Would appreciate anyone who has had a cracked or bent wheel on their Corvette, please file a formal complaint to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Instructions are listed at top of this document.
Last edited by MMD; Dec 20, 2018 at 05:20 PM.
Thread Starter
Safety Car
Joined: Mar 2018
Posts: 4,754
Likes: 1,650
I've read many of the posts on this subject and some of the threads on the C7 forum. Just a comment about contacting NHTSA. Moving forward with this complaint may yield results, but I'd be surprised if it did. Have there been any accidents where it was determined a bent rim caused the wreck? Where there any serious injuries? I can tell you that there will be no action by the NHTSA unless there are accidents with confirmation that the bent rims in question caused the wreck and that said accidents caused or reasonably could cause serious injuries or death.
Also everyone should be aware that NHTSA can not make a company take action. They can only tell the firm they will take the issue to court. Depending on how serious the issue is will determine the type of action they seek within the legal system. In two of the instances that I followed up on, the corrective action was less expensive than fighting the NHTSA in court and, the NHTSA had slam/dunk type evidence that the problem would re-occur with the expectation of personal injury.
My point is, even if you are successful in getting NHTSA attention, even if they decide the issue is serious enough to take back to GM, there's no guarantee that GM will agree or that any final action will satisfy what many here expect. I don't want to discourage anyone from taking action by filing with NHTSA, but I would recommend seeking other means to obtain action from GM in addition to contacting NHTSA.
https://www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.do...lls_808795.pdf
Information presented in this brochure contradicts your post. This brochure states on page 1: "The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act gives NHTSA the authority to issue vehicle safety standards and to require manufacturers to recall vehicles that have safety-related defects or do not meet Federal safety standards."
The brochure goes on "Manufacturers voluntarily initiate many of these recalls, while others are either influenced by NHTSA investigations or ordered by NHTSA via the courts . If a safety defect is discovered, the manufacturer must notify NHTSA, as well as vehicle or equipment owners, dealers, and distributors. The manufacturer is then required to remedy the problem at no charge to the owner." These statements counter your claims regarding what the NHTSA cannot do.
Bent wheels may not measure up to what NHTSA thinks is serious enough to take action.
