MI Ford Dealers May Receive More Complaints as NHTSA Expands Recall Investigation

March 30, 2012 - PRLog -- DETROIT – MI Ford dealers may be hearing from more customers as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has announced a widening of their scope in an ongoing Ford model investigation. On Sunday, March 11, the NHTSA announced they were opening a preliminary investigation into one Ford model due to complaints from owners.
The multiple complaints talked about a random occurrence of 2005-2006 Ford Taurus models suddenly accelerating, and the cause was found to be detached cruise control cables. Upon further investigation over the next two days, the NHTSA announced on Monday that instead of the original 360K 2005-2006 Ford Taurus sedans being looked into, the agency would now broaden its investigation to include the 2001-2005 Taurus and Mercury Sable.
The total number of cars in the investigation has increased from 360,000 to 1.92 million vehicles.
In a preliminary investigation, the NHTSA will often look at other models that are similar to the possibly affected models to check a more broad population. This offers the investigators a basis for comparison that can be useful in the final decision of the vehicle’s conditions.
MI Ford dealers may have already received complaints from owners and will be waiting to hear if the agency requests a recall. So far, Ford Motor Corp is cooperating with the investigation with no problems.
As of now, the NHTSA has received 14 complaints that stated that “the engine revved as high as 4,000 RPMs after shifting into park or neutral.” Other complaints said that the owners had problems trying to stop the vehicle while others said they didn’t stop on time and had to cross into an intersection on a red light before the vehicle finally stopped. No crashes or injuries have been reported at this point of the investigation.
MI Ford dealers will know soon if the NHTSA decides on a recall. Check back with MI Auto Times to follow the investigation.
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