23E094 – Steering Gear Assembled Incorrectly – R.H. Sheppard Steering Gear Assemblies

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OMB Control No.: 2127-0004
Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094
The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573
Manufacturer Name : Submission Date :
R.H. Sheppard Co., Inc. DEC 20, 2023 NHTSA Recall No. : 23E-094 Manufacturer Recall No. : NR Manufacturer Information :
Manufacturer Name : R.H. Sheppard Co., Inc. Address : 101 Philadelphia Street
P.O. Box 877 Hanover PA 17331-0877
Company phone : 717-637-3751
Population :
Number of potentially involved : 274 Estimated percentage with defect : 1 %
Equipment Information : Brand / Trade 1 :
Model : Sheppard HD94P Part No. : various Size : not applicable Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – NOV 29, 2023 Brand / Trade 2 :
Model : Sheppard M100P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps. Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – NOV 29, 2023 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 2 Brand / Trade 3 :
Model : Sheppard HD94S Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Brand / Trade 4 :
Model : Sheppard M110P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Brand / Trade 5 :
Model : Sheppard M83P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – MAR 31, 2023 The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 3 Brand / Trade 6 :
Model : Sheppard MD83 Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Brand / Trade 7 :
Model : Sheppard SD110P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Brand / Trade 8 :
Model : Sheppard XD120P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Description of Defect :
Description of the Defect : The defect is a steering gear assembled with fewer than the required number of recirculating balls.
FMVSS 1 : NR FMVSS 2 : NR The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 4 Description of the Safety Risk : A steering gear with fewer than the required number of recirculating balls
may bind when loads are applied. In some cases, the balls may align on the same side of the gear’s worm-shaft and concentrated loads may cause the gear’s internal part to fracture resulting in the loss of steering. Loss of steering increases the likelihood of a crash.
Description of the Cause : An error of the steering gear recirculating ball insertion process occurred during assembly. A gap in the rework process allowed for potentially less than the required number of balls to be installed into the gear without detection. Identification of Any Warning
that can Occur : Preceding the internal fracture, the steering may be perceived as strained by the driver. No audible or visual warning is available. Involved Components : Component Name : HD94P Component Description : Steering Gear Component Part Number : various Component Name : M100P Component Description : Steering Gear Component Part Number : various Component Name : HD94S Component Description : Steering Gear Component Part Number : various Component Name : XD120P Component Description : Steering Gear Component Part Number : various Component Name : M83P Component Description : Steering Gear Component Part Number : various The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 5 Component Name : MD83P Component Description : Steering Gear Component Part Number : various Component Name : SD110P Component Description : Steering Gear Component Part Number : various Component Name : M110P Component Description : Steering Gear Component Part Number : various Supplier Identification : Component Manufacturer
Name : n/a Address : NR
NR
Country : NR Chronology :
Nov 2022: Improved ball drop stations released to production with visual inspection remaining in place. March 2023: visual inspection eliminated after 6 months of overlap with permanent process controls.
Nov 27 2023: a gear built on Nov 19, 2023 failed the final test stand was disassembled for analysis. During the tear-down, it was found that the gear did not have the required number of balls installed. The gear had not left the manufacturing plant.
Nov 27 2023: Containment was put in place: Re-implementation of visual inspection.
Nov 28 2023: Sheppard initiates a quality investigation to collect facts. Quality alert is created with segregating gears in-house for analysis. Tear-down and manual inspection performed. No other gears are found to be defective.
Nov 29 2023: A safety risk assessment team is created to evaluate if other gears may have been assembled and been shipped to customers containing the defect.
Dec 4 2023: The Sheppard product safety committee (PSC) is updated on initial investigation of manufacturing records, warranty returns, customer returns. No cases with the reported defect had been reported from the field. The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 6 Dec 11, 2023: The Sheppard product safety committee is updated. Manufacturing data indicates that a gap in the rework process logic existed. The gap may have allowed some gears that had been reworked to pass without certainty of containing the correct number of recirculating balls. The PSC out of abundance of caution determined that 274 specific gears should be recalled. Description of Remedy :
Description of Remedy Program : The specific gears with identified serial numbers will be recalled and
replaced with remedy gears. Sheppard will work with the vehicle manufactures to provide gears at no cost the the OEM. How Remedy Component Differs from Recalled Component : Identify How/When Recall Condition was Corrected in Production : The remedy gears are assembled after the additional steps were added to confirm that any rework certainly contains the corrected number of recirculating ball gears.
The gap in the manufacturing control logic was corrected for the reworked gears. Additional inspection steps are added to confirm that any rework certainly contained the corrected number of recirculating balls. Recall Schedule :
Description of Recall Schedule : Only OEMs will be notified and they will notify end customers All of the recalled gears where shipped to OEM vehicle manufactures. Vehicle manufacturers will administer and report on recall progress. Communication with the vehicle manufacturers will begin Dec 18, 2023 and is expected to be complete by Feb 17, 2024 No Dealer or Owner notification is expected because no gears were supplied directly to owners or dealers. Planned Dealer Notification Date : NR – NR Planned Owner Notification Date : NR – NR Purchaser Information :
The following manufacturers purchased this defective/noncompliant equipment for possible use or installation in new motor vehicles or new items of motor vehicle equipment: The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 7 Name : Paccar Address : 10620 NE 38th Place Kirkland WA Country : US
Company Phone : 425 828 5201 Name : Navistar Address : 2701 Navistar Dr
Lisle IL 60532 Country : US
Company Phone : 3313321590 Name : AM General Address : 105 N. Niles
South Bend IN 46617 Country : US Company Phone : NR Name : Volvo Trucks North America Address : 7900 National Service Rd Greensboro NC 27409-9416 Country : US
Company Phone : 7175735972 Name : Daimler Truck North America Address : 4555 N. Channel Ave Portland OR 97217 Country : US
Company Phone : 5037457707 Name : oshkosh Address : 2307 oregon st
oshkosh WI 54903 Country : US Company Phone : NR Name : Autocar LLC Address : 551 South Washington St Hagerstown IN 47346 Country : US
Company Phone : 8882183611 The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094
Page 8
The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573
Name : New Flyer of America Address : 711 Kermaghan Ave
Winnipeg Matitoba 00 R2C 2T4 Country : CA Company Phone : NR Name : Meritor Address : 2135 West Maple Rd Troy MI 48084 Country : US
Company Phone : 9204245307 Name : Battle Motors Address : 1951 Reiser Ave
New Philadelphia OH 44663 Country : US
Company Phone : 888 328 5443
* NR – Not Reported

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OMB Control No.: 2127-0004
Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094
The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573
Manufacturer Name : Submission Date :
R.H. Sheppard Co., Inc. DEC 18, 2023 NHTSA Recall No. : 23E-094 Manufacturer Recall No. : NR Manufacturer Information :
Manufacturer Name : R.H. Sheppard Co., Inc. Address : 101 Philadelphia Street
P.O. Box 877 Hanover PA 17331-0877
Company phone : 717-637-3751
Population :
Number of potentially involved : 274 Estimated percentage with defect : 1 %
Equipment Information : Brand / Trade 1 :
Model : Sheppard HD94P Part No. : various Size : not applicable Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – NOV 29, 2023 Brand / Trade 2 :
Model : Sheppard M100P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps. Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – NOV 29, 2023 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 2 Brand / Trade 3 :
Model : Sheppard HD94S Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Brand / Trade 4 :
Model : Sheppard M110P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Brand / Trade 5 :
Model : Sheppard M83P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – MAR 31, 2023 The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 3 Brand / Trade 6 :
Model : Sheppard MD83 Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Brand / Trade 7 :
Model : Sheppard SD110P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Brand / Trade 8 :
Model : Sheppard XD120P Part No. : various Size : n/a Function : Steering
Descriptive Information : A small number of steering gears may have been assembled without the required number of recirculating balls. The recall population was determined by evaluating the manufacturing data generated on the assembly line for indications of a gap in the process control steps.
Production Dates : MAR 01, 2023 – OCT 31, 2023 Description of Defect :
Description of the Defect : The defect is a steering gear assembled with fewer than the required number of recirculating balls.
FMVSS 1 : NR FMVSS 2 : NR The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 4 Description of the Safety Risk : A steering gear with fewer than the required number of recirculating balls
may bind when loads are applied. In some cases, the balls may align on the same side of the gear’s worm-shaft and concentrated loads may cause the gear’s internal part to fracture resulting in the loss of steering. Loss of steering increases the likelihood of a crash.
Description of the Cause : An error of the steering gear recirculating ball insertion process occurred during assembly. A gap in the rework process allowed for potentially less than the required number of balls to be installed into the gear without detection. Identification of Any Warning
that can Occur : Preceding the internal fracture, the steering may be perceived as strained by the driver. No audible or visual warning is available. Involved Components : Component Name : not applicable Component Description : NR
Component Part Number : NR Supplier Identification : Component Manufacturer
Name : n/a Address : NR
NR
Country : NR Chronology :
Nov 2022: Improved ball drop stations released to production with visual inspection remaining in place. March 2023: visual inspection eliminated after 6 months of overlap with permanent process controls.
Nov 27 2023: a gear built on Nov 19, 2023 failed the final test stand was disassembled for analysis. During the tear-down, it was found that the gear did not have the required number of balls installed. The gear had not left the manufacturing plant.
Nov 27 2023: Containment was put in place: Re-implementation of visual inspection.
Nov 28 2023: Sheppard initiates a quality investigation to collect facts. Quality alert is created with segregating gears in-house for analysis. Tear-down and manual inspection performed. No other gears are found to be defective.
Nov 29 2023: A safety risk assessment team is created to evaluate if other gears may have been assembled and been shipped to customers containing the defect. The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 5 Dec 4 2023: The Sheppard product safety committee (PSC) is updated on initial investigation of manufacturing records, warranty returns, customer returns. No cases with the reported defect had been reported from the field.
Dec 11, 2023: The Sheppard product safety committee is updated. Manufacturing data indicates that a gap in the rework process logic existed. The gap may have allowed some gears that had been reworked to pass without certainty of containing the correct number of recirculating balls. The PSC out of abundance of caution determined that 274 specific gears should be recalled. Description of Remedy :
Description of Remedy Program : The specific gears with identified serial numbers will be recalled and
replaced with remedy gears. Sheppard will work with the vehicle manufactures to provide gears at no cost the the OEM. How Remedy Component Differs from Recalled Component : Identify How/When Recall Condition was Corrected in Production : The remedy gears are assembled after the additional steps were added to confirm that any rework certainly contains the corrected number of recirculating ball gears.
The gap in the manufacturing control logic was corrected for the reworked gears. Additional inspection steps are added to confirm that any rework certainly contained the corrected number of recirculating balls. Recall Schedule :
Description of Recall Schedule : All of the recalled gears where shipped to OEM vehicle manufactures.
We expect that the vehicle manufacturers will administer and report on recall progress. No Dealer or Owner notification is expected because no gears were supplied directly to owners or dealers. Communication with the vehicle manufacturers will begin Dec 18, 2023 and is expected to be complete by Jan 17, 2023
Planned Dealer Notification Date : NR – NR Planned Owner Notification Date : NR – NR Purchaser Information :
The following manufacturers purchased this defective/noncompliant equipment for possible use or installation in new motor vehicles or new items of motor vehicle equipment: The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094 Page 6 Name : Paccar Address : 10620 NE 38th Place Kirkland WA Country : US
Company Phone : 425 828 5201 Name : Navistar Address : 2701 Navistar Dr
Lisle IL 60532 Country : US
Company Phone : 3313321590 Name : AM General Address : 105 N. Niles
South Bend IN 46617 Country : US Company Phone : NR Name : Volvo Trucks North America Address : 7900 National Service Rd Greensboro NC 27409-9416 Country : US
Company Phone : 7175735972 Name : Daimler Truck North America Address : 4555 N. Channel Ave Portland OR 97217 Country : US
Company Phone : 5037455508 Name : oshkosh Address : 2307 oregon st
oshkosh WI 54903 Country : US Company Phone : NR Name : Autocar LLC Address : 551 South Washington St Hagerstown IN 47346 Country : US
Company Phone : 8882183611 The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573 Part 573 Safety Recall Report 23E-094
Page 7
The information contained in this report was submitted pursuant to 49 CFR §573
Name : New Flyer of America Address : 711 Kermaghan Ave
Winnipeg Matitoba 00 R2C 2T4 Country : CA Company Phone : NR Name : Meritor Address : 2135 West Maple Rd Troy MI 48084 Country : US
Company Phone : 9204245307 Name : Battle Motors Address : 1951 Reiser Ave
New Philadelphia OH 44663 Country : US
Company Phone : 888 328 5443
* NR – Not Reported

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