Recalls


CampaignManufacturerManufacturing dateType# of units affectedDate Owner notified MfgRecall Initiated byManufacturers of recalled vehicles/productsReport Recieved DateRecord Creation DateRegulation Part NumberFMVSS Number
VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - CONTROLS/WIRING
01I009000FORD MOTOR COMPANYfrom 08/01/1994 to 02/07/1997I56697908/29/2001ODIFORD MOTOR COMPANY07/09/200107/19/2001
Defect SummaryThis is not a safety recall in accordance with the safety act. however, it is deemed a safety improvement campaign by the agency. vehicle description: 1995-1997 ford contour and mercury mystique vehicles. the heater blower resistor could overheat causing the attached electrical connector to melt.
Consequence SummaryThis could create the potential for a fire.
Corrective SummaryFord will provide additional warranty coverage for the heater blower switch for 10 years from original date of sale of the vehicle or 150,000 miles, whichever comes first. dealers will install a new heater blower resistor and a new wire jumper harness free of charge.
NotesFord has decided to conduct an extended coverage program to extend the warranty coverage for potential heather blower resistor problems. owners can contact ford at1-866-436-7332, concerning this program.
VISIBILITY - WINDSHIELD
95V009000FORD MOTOR COMPANYfrom 11/01/1994 to 11/01/1994V (Vehicle)251202/17/1995MFRFORD MOTOR COMPANY01/24/199501/24/1995571205
Defect SummaryThe glass tempering process on the right hand rear door windows was not correctly performed. this does not meet the requirements of fmvss no. 205, glazing materials.
Consequence SummaryConsequence of non-compliance: if the window breaks, the glass fragments of the rear windows exceed the size specifications of fmvss no. 205.
Corrective SummaryDealers will replace the right rear door glass.
NotesSystem: visual systems; glass; window; door and side.vehicle description: passenger vehicles. note: if the vehicle is presented to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and the remedy is not provided free of charge within a reasonable time, please contact ford at 1-800-392-3673. also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-800-424-9393.

Bulletins


BulletinBulletin dateReplacement BulletinItem no.SummaryAdded
VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM
1506507/01/2001621067Some vehicles may exhibit a/c discharge air temperatures differences of greater than 10 degrees f from registers on left side of dash than on right. *tt09/06/2001
BC10601970505/01/199752881Climate control system vacuum motor links falling off may be repaired by adding the appropriate size internal star washer retainer to the end of the shaft after installing the link. *tw09/18/1997
BC224397050105/01/199752782Climate control system - vacuum motor links falling off - repair with locally procured star washer. *tw09/12/1997
BC103269702002/01/199751783Vehicles have a cabin air filter that must be changed every 15000 miles. *jd07/17/1997
VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - CONTROLS/WIRING
01M0708/01/2001624136Some vehicles may experience a loss of function with the heater blower motor switch in one or more switch positions. *slc11/01/2001
99M0111/01/199999M076089626Owner notification program providing additional coverage for replacement of the blower switch, resistor and attached wire connectors. this additional coverage is provided in case the vehicle owner experiences durability concerns with thes02/09/2000
99M0609/01/19996089620Owner notification program for additional coverage on heater blower switch and wire connector replacement. this additional coverage is provided in case the vehicle owner experiences durability concerns with the switch or connector. *tt02/09/2000
99M0709/01/19996089622Owner notification program for additonal coverage on heater blower switch, resistor and attached wire connectors replacement. this additional coverage is provided in case the vehicle owner experiences durability concerns with these compo02/09/2000
VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - HEATER CORE
0115608/06/2001623944Some vehicles may exhibit heater core leaks. *slc10/31/2001
BC328497020602/06/199751880Some early built 96 model year contour/mystique may be equipped with 95 level heater cores. *tw07/17/1997
VISIBILITY - GLASS, SIDE/REAR
BC050296111111/11/199650768Concerns of moulding at bottom of door window glass coming loose. *tw06/17/1997
VISIBILITY - POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS
BC018596010212/01/199546444Front door windows which bend or come out of the track may be repaired by the following procedure (refer to the service manual).04/25/1996
VISIBILITY - WINDSHIELD
972101/20/199751375Door glass - window belt line moulding loose or falls off - vehicles built through 10/31/96. *tw06/27/1997
9622110/21/199650940Windshield and interior glass - fog/film. *tw06/17/1997

Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM
06/15/2002112/01/2000
 Contours have a history of heater resistor defects and i believe in my car this is related damage to that defect. dt
09/15/20001001/01/2000
 We have experienced intermittent failures of the heater / air conditioner blower over the past year. last fall and winter, the blower would occasionally cease working for short periods of time, but would always come back on if the switch position was changed (or occassionally if the ignition was turned off and then turned back on). at that point, it was certainly an annoyance, but not a major problem. as time progressed, it began to become more difficult to get it to come back on and when the car was in for service at charlie watson ford in lebanon, oh on 2/19/2001 (mileage - 100,477), i asked the service writer about it. he indicated that they would take a look at it, but when i picked it up, they said that the blower operated fine whenever they checked it and that i should bring it back when it wasn't working. the vehicle was returned to them on 04/09/2001 (mileage - 101,988) when the blower stopped operating and wouldn't restart. when i picked the car up, i paid a $70.00 diagnostic fee and was told that although ford had an un-announced campaign on blower failures, my vehicle didn't qualify because 1) the campaign didn't cover vehicles over 100,000 miles and 2) the wiring on our car failed at the fuse block, not at the switch. when i pressed them, they indicated that they had spoken with ford about the mileage being just over 100,000 and felt they could overcome that issue but ford would only fix it if the wiring failure was at the switch. they quoted an estimate of $800.00 to repair / replace the wiring and fuse block. amazingly, when i got back into the car, the blower worked fine and continued to for about 6 weeks before we started having problems again. over the past 4 - 6 weeks, it hasn't operated at all. additionally, i have now begun to experience problems with the blower (works on high speed only) on my 1998 contour. this is an obvious safety concern (no defroster in wet/cold weather). why is ford not being held accountable? thanks.*ak
101/05/1998
 Heater and air conditioner fuseblock was charred and blower did not function. *slc
01/01/2001
 Consumer complained regarding heater system. when he had heater on highest setting, there was a burning smell that came from dashboard. smoke and fumes were so bad that had to stick head out of vehicle. currently, heater system cannot be turned on to highest settings. please provide any additional information/attachments. *ak
06/01/20001
 Air conditioner, heater, and defroster will not work, consumer sometimes can not see while driving due to windows fogging up. *slc
 Driving down interstate, airconditioner went out, smelled something melting, smoke from under hood when opened, told it was air, could drive, blew 2 head gaskets due to cooling system not working, cost over 600$. fan only runs on high and low. heater motor going out. manual transmission slips out of gear while driving. back doors squeak really loud, and oil don't work. check engine light on always. airbag lights on always. back seat belt broke. altonator going out. radiator leaks then stops, leaks then stops. fan makes a loud noise when running.
12/18/1999104/01/1996
 While driving smelled an awfull smell like wires burning. blower/ heater, and air conditioning stopped working. consumer spoke to a mechanic who said that it could have caught fire. *ak
VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - BLOWER
01/27/200345000
 I have a ford contour 1995 manufactured in 12/94 i have some complaints about my car. there are some recalls out on this vehicle. but there are not list for my contour vin # but i have the same problems. my car was taken to the robins ford delership in glenolden,pa for not starting. after they inspected the vehicle they called me and told me that i have a wiring harness defect that caused it to short circuit my spark plugs. they told me that the wires for this vehicle is out dated and for have been replacing them with updated wires. but they have not issued a recall for my vin# but it is a known manufacturer defect with this car. i also have some problems that have just started that ford have recalls on but again not my so called vin#. my seat belts on this car have been breaking off at the connection tab as well as my defroster not working. both have recalls on them. i also have concerns about other recalls they have open on this car that are safty haszerds one for which is a fuel tank assembly filler that can cause a flash fire and a fuel tank leakage that can cause a fire they also have a recall for their air bags. i have children that makes me very concered about their safty in this car. and the lack of concern by their ford manufacturer. how can i get this things fix so their will be no accidents.
07/09/2002
 Engine overheated and melted the positive temperature indicator device. fan motor bearings were too tight. please provide any information.*ak
VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - CONTROLS/WIRING
10/18/2001
 Recall 01f127000 repairs on heater blower switch were done, yet vehicle is still overheating on a regular basis.*ak
12/30/2001307/25/1995
 Consumer was traveling about 50mph on highway and noticed a smoke smell coming through the vents. he pulled over to the shoulder and vehicle was on fire. dealership was aware of problem.*ak prior to recall 00v367, engine was overheating and burning excess oil from overheated piston rings, after recall repairs, there was an internal antifreeze leak that was going into motor oil, engine cooling fans were operating intermittently when engine was hot, dealer found upper radiator hose at water pump had a pinhole leak, engine cooling fan wiring overheated and burned out at fan relay and fan connectors, then consumer received recall 01i009 and had these repairs completed on vehicle, after recall repairs, engine and in-dash wiring overheated and burned, dealer installed recall parts for blower motor again, consumer later informed a new motor was needed due to no compression due to overheating damage. this took place prior to vehicle fire. headlight and taillight lenses replaced. overdrive light was inoperative, shift lever internal sliding bezel had a stress crack, at times it was hard to get out of park when temperature was cold. a/c did not blow cold air and was noisy. fuel door would not open at times. speedometer cable was replaced due to a ticking noise. *jb
10/20/19971
 The blower control switch was hard to turn, stuck one then broke, dealer replaced blower motor and soldered in new connector for blower motor switch. nlm
12/18/20001
 Consumer was traveling on highway, and vehicle started to overheat. pulled over to the shoulders, and vehicle cooled down. about 25 minutes later, there was a burning smell inside of vehicle coming through the vents. also, engine was replaced. *ak the manufacturer had issued recall notice and the vehicle was fixed. recall # 00v-367. *yh
12/11/1999104/01/1996
 Consumer could smell blower switches melting while driving on highway. nlm
07/26/1997
 Fan speed knob stopped working, shorted out burned wire, which could have resulted in possible fire. *yc
 Heater switch and wiring melted. *ak
12/01/1998102/17/1995
 At 37,000 miles the head gaskets are blown, causing the water pump to leak/engine not cool. heater also failed to work, heater motor replaced at 3,000 miles. *ak *ml
209/02/1997
 Blower motor switch locked up and burned.
03/02/199803/07/1996
 Electric heater connector fan started smoking under the dash on the passenger side.
VISIBILITY - DEFROSTER/DEFOGGER SYSTEM - WINDSHIELD - HEATER CORE
07/01/2000107/23/2001
 The core always running hot, causing the vehicle to damaged. *yh
01/24/2001303/01/1995
 I had the heater blower fixed under warranty on feb1,2000. on nov 17 2000, i had it replaced again at my own cost. on jan 24, 2001 i had it fixed again. this time i had to replace the fuse box junction panel as well. this has been fixed three time in the last 12 months. everyone i know who owns a contour has had this problem. i don't think i should have to pay for a known defect like this. they wouldn't fix it under the recall the last two times because i had over 72000 miles on it and i spent over 300.00 of my money on it the last two times. thank you for you time
01/01/19990
 Engine head gasket blewout without prior warning and vehicle overheated. also, consumer was traveling on highway and heard a screeching noise, air conditioner went out, and heater motor burned out, there was no heat. she has contacted dealership. *ak
VISIBILITY - GLASS, SIDE/REAR
05/17/19957
 Windows do not roll down properly. *ak
VISIBILITY - POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS
04/08/20041
 Consumer was unable to use the power control to roll up the windows. consumer had to manually push the window up to close. it. dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *ak
10/15/20030
 I was rear-ended earlier this year and took my car in to the dealership for bumper replacement. dealership did not inform me that ford discontinued my bumper model, so they repaired it instead of replacing it -- without my permission! silver plastic strip that runs through center of bumper was re-installed as-is - cracked - since bumper was not being made anymore and new part wasn't available. both horns were replaced, in spite of rarely being used. rubber window strips loosen, pop up easily. one power window in rear can only go down about 6 inches, squeaking terribly as it moves down; too expensive to fix. outer gas door release sticks. both methods of opening the door (floor lever and trunk strap) stopped working this year. paid for repair at dealership, but both methods stopped working again after a few days. i now have to open up my trunk every time i go to the gas station, pull the release strap and rap lightly on the outer door in order for it to pop open. i am scheduled for a new repair in a few days at the dealership for rough idle and stalling. problem involves mass air flow sensor and/or pcm, and is detailed in tsb article no. 98-20-7. had contacts cleaned on radiator tank and driver's door panel (beeping signal for when door opens and key is left in ignition stopped working). had complete tune-up at dealership this summer, with mileage at only 40,000. driver's side speaker wire has loosened, with sound drifting in and out depending on bumps hit on the road. driver's door lock collapsed inside keyhole. lock cylinders are only available in sets of five, so all five of my lock cylinders had to be replaced by dealership. replacement cylinder on my glove compartment vibrates too much while driving. reverse lights stopped working. wiring had to be repaired. paint is thin and scratches easily, even from non-abrasive contact. driver's window opens all the way, sliding down at a quick speed. very indifferent treatment by dealership.
05/11/19965
 The drivers side window grinds when going up, the glass tracks are uneven going up causing the rear edges to come out of the track, the dealer has replaced the regulator and motor 5 times, the consumer believes this defect is an engineering flaw, the consumer is requesting reimbursement. nlm
109/01/1995
 Electric mirror failed.
1
 Power window failure.
VISIBILITY - REARVIEW MIRRORS/DEVICES
11/21/20001
 When trunk was shut rear passenger's window was shattered. contacted dealer about a recall that consumer saw, and dealer said that this vehicle was not part of recall. *ak
VISIBILITY - SUN ROOF ASSEMBLY
11/09/1995105/01/1995
 While driving at low speed the air bags prematurely deployed, windshield shattered, damaged both air bag modules both had to be replaced. tt alos sunroof was damaged.*jb
VISIBILITY - WINDSHIELD
06/17/2002
 Driver's side door cannot be opened from inside of vehicle. also, driver's side window fails to roll up or down. driver's side door can only be opened from inside. consumer afraid in an emergency situation driver's side occupant would become trapped in vehicle. consumer has contacted dealer, dealer has yet to determine cause of problem. please provide further details. *ak
102/01/2002
 No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak
07/31/19961
 Loose bolts caused the drivers side window to rattle/loose when going down, dealer also lubed slide track and window felt. nlm
08/17/1997
 Consumer was driving approx. 65 mph when the hood flew open . consumer stopped pulled to side of road and the windsheild had shattered. the hood is bent, the front top of roof has caved in. *ak
06/19/1997
 Car was parked in the garage and the windshild just cracked for no obivious reasons such as a rock or some one hitting it. *ak
10/05/1996
 Failure on the brakes, the consumer needed to change the brakes too often, also failure on the rear windshield, the rear windshield shattered, sending glass fragments into the vehicle.*ak
 The front windshield has stripes, purchased car new . please describe .*ak
05/29/19969
 Drivers window molding peeling.
04/03/1996210/01/1995
 Recall related, 95v228000 and 95v232000 contacted dealership on 3/11/95, will order parts by apr.20,1995, no parts available as 4/3/95. *ak consumer was also having problems with the driver's side seat track, driver;s side air bag, and the driver's side window, and was also told a new filler neck ws needed for gas tank, also needed new wiper, starter needed to be replaced,switch for windshield wiper on steering wheel was coming off and would not snap back into place.*jb
03/02/19962
 Rear window exploded while driving down the road. (ohio state police report) *dsh
08/05/19955
 Window handles are located backwards. *ak
01/02/1995
 Stress cracks developed in windshield. describe in more detail. tt
VISIBILITY - WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER
05/16/19966
 Windshield washer nozzle misaligned, doesn't spray on windshield.
08/19/19959
 Windshield wiper arms work from right to left instead of moving from left to right, throwing water heavily on driver's side/passenger's side stays clear. *ak
VISIBILITY - WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER - LINKAGES
03/01/2001108/01/1996
 When consumer turned on the windshield wipers, the wiper assembly fell apart, there was a loud grindindg noise when she turned windshield wipers on.*ak during a rain storm the drivers side windshield wiper failed.*ak. the dealer informed consumer that the entire assembly housing needed to be replaced.*yh
VISIBILITY - WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER - MOTOR
12/06/19941
 Windshield wiper motor failed. *skd
VISIBILITY - WINDSHIELD WIPER/WASHER - SWITCH/WIRING
04/03/1996210/01/1995
 Recall related, 95v228000 and 95v232000 contacted dealership on 3/11/95, will order parts by apr.20,1995, no parts available as 4/3/95. *ak consumer was also having problems with the driver's side seat track, driver;s side air bag, and the driver's side window, and was also told a new filler neck ws needed for gas tank, also needed new wiper, starter needed to be replaced,switch for windshield wiper on steering wheel was coming off and would not snap back into place.*jb