When you think of the recent news, all the new jobs to Michigan, the large profit-sharing checks for employees, it’s safe to say that things have been going quite well for Ford. However, recently the auto giant announced that it will be recalling over 570,000 of its vehicles. The cars are being recalled in North America and Europe due to two different issues. The first being the risk of engine fires and the second is door latches that malfunction causing the doors to fly open unexpectedly.
Ford announced that recall will cut pretax earnings by nearly $295 million. The engine recall is for over 360,000 vehicles across North America and Europe. A few of the North American vehicles on the recall list are the Escape SUVs from 2014, Fiesta ST 2014 and 2015, the 2013 and 2014 Fusion midsize car, and the Transit Connect, a small van, models 2013 through 2015.
In Europe, the recall extends to C-Max hybrid models 2010-2015, the Focus, and the Transit Connect models 2013-2015. All these vehicles, as well as the ones listed above, carry the 1.6-Liter four-cylinder turbocharged engine.
What makes the engine a threat is the lack of coolant circulation throughout the engine. This could lead to engine overheat which could cause the cylinder head to crack. Ford warns that if this were to happen pressurized oil could leak through the crack. If the oil hits any hot surface that is what would result in engine fire. There has already been 29 reports of fires in the United States and Canada, yet luckily there are no reports of injuries.
In the meantime, a spokesperson for Ford told a source that car owners can still drive the vehicles and park them in their garages or other places safely. Ford says it will soon take initiative to mail out instructions as well as owner’s manuals on how to check and refill coolant. Dealers will also start checking coolant for owners. It is also stressed that if vehicle owners notice leaking coolant they should take their car to a dealer.
Dealers will then be able to install sensors that will be able to detect coolant levels. A warning light will also be installed in cars so that drivers will be alerted when coolant levels get low.
Yet the engines aren’t the only faulty parts making the recall list. Ford added over 211,000 cars to a 2015 recall on faulty door latches. This recall includes vehicles like 2014 Fiesta, both the Lincoln MKZ and Fusion 2013 and 2014 models. With these new additions, the number of recalls on the 2015 to over 757,000 cars.
Over the past three years, door latches have posed to be quite an issue for Ford. They were such a big problem that it led to an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration which then resulted in the recall of over 3 million Ford vehicles.
The company says that cause of the default was a pawl in the door that can break. This will cause the door from closing or cause the door to open while the car is being operated.
Just last fall the company had to recall over 2.3 million cars because the door latches weren’t working as they should have been. Those 2.3 million cars included the 2012-2015 Ford Focus as well as the 2013 through 2015 Ford C-Max and Escape. Later that summer Ford had to recall 692,700 Escape SUVs for the same issue.
Those door latch recalls last year cost Ford over $640 million dollars.
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