The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Activities Involving Ford Transmission "Park-to-Reverse" Incidents

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO discussed its ongoing review of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) actions in connection with a transmission defects case. GAO found that: (1) NHTSA has monitored the results of a settlement agreement and the complaint rate, rather than individual actions of vehicle owners to place warning labels in their vehicles; (2) NHTSA believed that a warning letter to owners served as the primary mechanism for alerting them to recommended safety precautions; (3) NHTSA reported that the number and rate of transmission incidents has declined every year since the settlement; (4) fatality data showed that, while there was a decline in fatalities in the first year following the settlement, there was an overall increase after that; (5) NHTSA made a commitment to inform the public how to properly and safely park vehicles, including a general news release on safe driving practices that was distributed as a public service announcement; and (6) NHTSA changed the language used in responding to consumer calls and written inquiries to be more specific about the case investigation and the potential safety problem associated with the vehicles.