Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | ||||||
| DP05005 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 09/22/2005 | 01/04/2006 | SPARK PLUG EJECTION FROM CYLINDER HEAD | ||
| On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehicle stalled without restart.information contained in the odi consumer complaints and obtained from 72 telephone interviews with complainants showed the following:(1) 99% of the complaints were on my 1997 to 2002 subject vehicles.(2) most the complainants reported hearing a loud pop while driving or upon starting up the vehicle followed by a loud, repetitive clicking or popping sound.(3) many of the complainants reported that the popping sound was accompanied by some loss of vehicle power; however, in 99% of the incidents reported, the vehicle did not stall.in the very few incidents where the vehicle did stall, most vehicles could be restarted.(4) only a small percentage of the complainants cited that they smelled gas or a slight burning smell when the incident occurred.(5) in all but a very few incidents, vehicle damage was limited to the engine.in one incident, the complaint reported that the fuel rail was damaged and replaced after one of the spark plugs ejected from the engine; however, the complainant reported that the damage did not result in any type of fuel leak or fire.in another incident, the only incident where a fire was alleged, the complainant reported that no fluid leak was observed, but that a fire resulted after the spark plug had ejected from the engine and he had restarted the vehicle and driven to another location.none of the complainants reported any damage to the vehicle hood.(6) only two complainants reported that they observed what appeared to be some drops of fuel coming from the cylinder where the spark plug had failed or on the spark plug itself; however, each of these complainants reported that there was no smoke or flames as a result of his incident.as the petitioner noted, and odi | ||||||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | ||||||
| DP05005 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 09/22/2005 | 01/04/2006 | SPARK PLUG EJECTION FROM CYLINDER HEAD | ||
| On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehicle stalled without restart.information contained in the odi consumer complaints and obtained from 72 telephone interviews with complainants showed the following:(1) 99% of the complaints were on my 1997 to 2002 subject vehicles.(2) most the complainants reported hearing a loud pop while driving or upon starting up the vehicle followed by a loud, repetitive clicking or popping sound.(3) many of the complainants reported that the popping sound was accompanied by some loss of vehicle power; however, in 99% of the incidents reported, the vehicle did not stall.in the very few incidents where the vehicle did stall, most vehicles could be restarted.(4) only a small percentage of the complainants cited that they smelled gas or a slight burning smell when the incident occurred.(5) in all but a very few incidents, vehicle damage was limited to the engine.in one incident, the complaint reported that the fuel rail was damaged and replaced after one of the spark plugs ejected from the engine; however, the complainant reported that the damage did not result in any type of fuel leak or fire.in another incident, the only incident where a fire was alleged, the complainant reported that no fluid leak was observed, but that a fire resulted after the spark plug had ejected from the engine and he had restarted the vehicle and driven to another location.none of the complainants reported any damage to the vehicle hood.(6) only two complainants reported that they observed what appeared to be some drops of fuel coming from the cylinder where the spark plug had failed or on the spark plug itself; however, each of these complainants reported that there was no smoke or flames as a result of his incident.as the petitioner noted, and odi | ||||||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE | ||||||
| DP05005 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY | 09/22/2005 | 01/04/2006 | SPARK PLUG EJECTION FROM CYLINDER HEAD | ||
| On september 6, 2005, odi received a petition requesting that the agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 ford vehicles with triton v-8 and v-10 engines.odi received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of december 8, 2005, odi is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, odi is aware of only two incidents where the vehicle stalled without restart.information contained in the odi consumer complaints and obtained from 72 telephone interviews with complainants showed the following:(1) 99% of the complaints were on my 1997 to 2002 subject vehicles.(2) most the complainants reported hearing a loud pop while driving or upon starting up the vehicle followed by a loud, repetitive clicking or popping sound.(3) many of the complainants reported that the popping sound was accompanied by some loss of vehicle power; however, in 99% of the incidents reported, the vehicle did not stall.in the very few incidents where the vehicle did stall, most vehicles could be restarted.(4) only a small percentage of the complainants cited that they smelled gas or a slight burning smell when the incident occurred.(5) in all but a very few incidents, vehicle damage was limited to the engine.in one incident, the complaint reported that the fuel rail was damaged and replaced after one of the spark plugs ejected from the engine; however, the complainant reported that the damage did not result in any type of fuel leak or fire.in another incident, the only incident where a fire was alleged, the complainant reported that no fluid leak was observed, but that a fire resulted after the spark plug had ejected from the engine and he had restarted the vehicle and driven to another location.none of the complainants reported any damage to the vehicle hood.(6) only two complainants reported that they observed what appeared to be some drops of fuel coming from the cylinder where the spark plug had failed or on the spark plug itself; however, each of these complainants reported that there was no smoke or flames as a result of his incident.as the petitioner noted, and odi | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - COOLING SYSTEM | |||
| 12/25/2006 | 52000 | 1 | 12/13/2003 |
| The intake manifold blow a hole at the crossover exchange, causing coolant to explode out like a guyser and got on my face when i opened the hood to see what the smoke was coming from! it is out of warranty and i was never notified about a recall or class action settlement in 2005. can i be reimbersed the product has been knowingly and widely viewed be evrybody as defective. | |||
| 03/13/2003 | 2100 | 2 | 02/10/2003 |
| After driving to work one morning, once i parked i noticed that coolant was leaking from bottom radator hose. dealer replaced cooling hoses and clamps. also the paint were the hood scoop meets the hood started to chip, water gets caught under the hood scoop making it difficult the keep it clean.*ak | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||
| 11/09/2007 | 34000 | 1 | 05/15/2006 |
| On cold start, there is a ticking sound. took it to mechanic and he gave me a technical service bulletin article #03-25-6, dated 12/22/03, regarding ford, lincoln and mercury engines built before 9/17/2003. emailed ford motor company to find out what could be done to rectify the situation as it is a known defect of the car although it is not a safety issue. all they could tell me is there is no recall and take it to an authorized dealer to have it diagnosed and repaired if need. *tr | |||
| 03/15/2007 | 52000 | 1 | 07/26/2002 |
| 1) everything was running fine, no problems detected. maintenance on vehicle was up to date. was turning a corner and there was a pop and after that the engine started to mis-fire. 2) was able to limp the 2 miles to the ford service center. there, they told me that the spark plug had blown out of the engine block and that this happens on occasion. i had two options: the first was to pay $610 to put a patch in that wasn't provided with a warranty and they told me it could last 2 years or blow 2 miles down from the shop after i left, or pay $2500 and have a new cylinder put in. after researching this issue, i found that this is a very common occurrence with ford vehicles, that ford is aware of but is not taking care of. i was also told that even if the car was still under warranty that the warranty would not cover this and i would still have to pay out of pocket. i am now stuck with a car i can't afford to fix for a while and a car maker who can't admit that they built a faulty engine and fix their problem. 3) nothing has been done to fix this yet, as i am looking for someone who can fix it right at a lower cost. *jb | |||
| 07/15/2003 | 13980 | 2 | 03/17/2003 |
| Driving down the road about 35 mph and put on the brakes and the car shut off (shutting off the power steering and power brakes). this has happened to me twice. the second time was a couple of days ago i was getting off the interstate and when i applied the brakes the car shut off, i was lucky there was nobody in that intersection... *jb | |||
| 05/27/2003 | 20 | 0 | 07/15/2002 |
| 2003 cobra. vehicle stalls during deceleration. typical scenario involves light to moderate braking while out of gear. clutch engagement will not recover car. brakes rapidly fade and vehicle loses steering capability. occurred at least 2-3 times a week from date of purchase, july 02. abated during winter months and retained in spring. dealer duplicated stall but no repair available. still stalls to date. *tt | |||
| 04/09/2003 | 2896 | 6 | 01/18/2003 |
| Engine stalls when clutch pedal is pressed and brake applied resulting in a loss of power steering and power brakes. extreme safety hazard. *jb | |||
| 04/05/2003 | 2600 | 1 | 01/18/2003 |
| Car stalls when clutch pressed down and brake applied. loss of power steering and power brakes making car extremely unsafe. *jb | |||
| 03/17/2003 | 1000 | 3 | 01/18/2003 |
| Car stalls under braking. getting onto highway from access ramp, i accelerated to 70 mph then touched brakes to slow to 65 and the car stalled. i lost power steering, power brakes, and acceleration. a car cut me off and i almost ran into the back of the vehicle due to the loss of braking power and tried to swerve onto the shoulder but the steering was tough due to the lack of power. *jb | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE | |||
| 06/20/2003 | 600 | 12 | 06/01/2003 |
| I own a 2003 mustang gt 5-speed. it has died numerous times and after the first time i called the ford consumer hotline and was brushed off. but they did refer me to a local dealer, the same dealer that less than 10mins after the first failure took my car for a short spin and said that my car was a little low on gas and that was the likely cause. i was driving approx. 35mph and was not on the clutch or accelerating. it just died. this is an extremely dangerous problem and needs to be acknowledged. i finally had a dealer diagnose the problem and they replaced my cars iac valve. my car has still died several times but now its when coming to a stop and its been isolated. i feel that a tsb or recall on this long overdue. | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - EXHAUST SYSTEM - EMISSION CONTROL - CATALYTIC CONVERTOR | |||
| 11/07/2005 | 4 | 12/12/2004 | |
| Dt: contact states the vehicle she owns has been to the dealership numerous times for brakes, the seat belts, and the computer chip that made the vehicle start. now, the catalytic converter malfunctioned. the repairs were being made at no charge because the vehicle was still under warranty. | |||