Ford Recalls 3.8 Million Pickups, SUVs

[Jim Wynne]

This just in:

Ford recalls 3.8 million SUVs and pickups for fire hazard
WASHINGTON (AP) — Ford said Wednesday that it will recall 3.8 million pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles for a cruise control switch suspected of causing engine fires.
It is the fifth largest auto recall in U.S. history.

Ford said the recall of 1994-2002 model-year vehicles includes the company's hot-selling F-150 pickup truck, Ford Expedition, Lincoln Navigator and Ford Broncos. The company said it will start sending recall notices to vehicle owners immediately.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the No. 2 U.S.-based automaker have been investigating complaints of engine fires linked to the switch.

NHTSA has received more than 550 complaints of engine fires from the cruise control switch. There have been allegations of three deaths in cases cited in news reports or lawsuits in Iowa, Georgia and Arkansas.

The affected vehicles include: 1994-2002 F-150 pickups, 1997-2002 Expeditions, 1998-2002 Navigators and 1994-1996 Broncos equipped with factory-installed speed control.

"We have a solution that fixes the problem, and we're confident that this is going to be the right remedy," said Ford spokeswoman Kristen Kinley.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/...tm?POE=NEWISVA

[SailorWard]

It's apparently not on the "official" list but my '99 F250 with V8 "spontaneously combusted" just before New Year's Day, 2001. After 4 hours of investigation by 4 auto fire experts there was no firm answer on the cause. Makes me wonder. . . .

I'm just glad the truck was 3 inches too tall to fit through my garage door! As it was, the truck was a total loss but the house and family were unscathed.

[Al Rosen]

Originally Posted by SailorWard

It's apparently not on the "official" list but my '99 F250 with V8 "spontaneously combusted" just before New Year's Day, 2001. After 4 hours of investigation by 4 auto fire experts there was no firm answer on the cause. Makes me wonder. . . .

I'm just glad the truck was 3 inches too tall to fit through my garage door! As it was, the truck was a total loss but the house and family were unscathed.

Maybe vehicles should be built with HALON fire extinguishing systems under the hood.

[Baldrick]

Wow - 550 fires and 3 deaths (allegedly). And only now is it economically viable to issue the recall.

What's the odds that this will turn out to be a "supplier problem"? If so, Ford should be made to reveal the extent to which that supplier had been screwed down on price in the past 5 years.

We'll have to wait and see the outcome, but given that TS16949 implies that suppliers to the automotive industry cannot pass the buck for their poor quality onto their suppliers, wouldn't Ford blaming a supplier be a little on the hypocritical side?