Ford recalls vehicles for glitch affecting airbags, seat belts

By Bradford Wernle, Crain News Service

DETROIT (Sept. 29, 2014) — Ford Motor Co. is recalling 850,050 2013- and 2014-model vehicles for an electrical flaw that could cause airbags and seat belt pretensioners to malfunction in the event of a crash.

The affected vehicles include the 2013-14 Ford C-Max, Fusion, Escape and Lincoln MKZ. Ford said in a statement today the restraints-control module in the vehicles could short circuit, causing the airbag warning indicator to illuminate.

This is the 12th recall of the 2013 Escape, although a spokeswoman said last month that no single Escape has been involved in all the recalls.

Flaws that other recalls on the Escape have addressed include fluid leaks that could cause an engine fire, doors that can open while the vehicle is moving and rollover airbags that may not deploy quickly enough.

“Depending on the location of the short circuit, the deployable restraint systems (e.g. airbags, pretensioners, side curtains) may not function as intended in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury,” Ford said in a release. “The short circuit may also affect the function of other systems that use data from the restraints control module, including stability control,” also lighting the corresponding warning indicators.

Ford said it was not aware of any accidents or injuries resulting related to a malfunction of the module. Dealers will replace the restraint control modules free of charge, the company said.

A Ford spokeswoman said a letter will go out to affected customers Nov. 10. She said the repair takes less than half a day. If circumstances dictate the repairs will take longer, Ford will put customers in loaner vehicles, she said.

Ford has sufficient replacement restraints-control modules for all affected vehicles except the Fusion, for which there is a backlog, she said.

Vehicles involved

Affected vehicles include 2013-14 C-Maxes manufactured at the Michigan Assembly Plant in suburban Detroit between Jan. 19, 2012, and Nov. 21, 2013; certain 2013-14 Fusions built at the Hermosillo (Mexico) Assembly plant between Feb. 3, 2012, and Aug. 24, 2013; certain Escapes built at the Louisville Assembly Plant between Oct. 5, 2011, and Nov. 1, 2013; and certain Lincoln MKZs built in Hermosillo between April 25, 2012 and Sept. 30, 2013.

Ford said 746,842 of the affected vehicles were sold in the U.S. and federalized territories and 82,962 in Canada.

The Escape has been among the most recalled vehicles in the country since it was redesigned in 2013, though the recalls have had little, if any, noticeable effect on U.S. sales. It is the second most-popular crossover, only slightly behind the Honda CR-V, and posted a 9 percent gain in August.

The vehicle was Ford's third-best selling vehicle in the U.S. during the first eight months of the year, with sales of 208,444 units, up 1 percent from the same period last year.

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Reporter Nick Bunkley contributed to this report, which appeared on autonews.com, the website of Automotive News, a Detroit-based sister publication of Tire Business.