Recalls


CampaignManufacturerManufacturing dateType# of units affectedDate Owner notified MfgRecall Initiated byManufacturers of recalled vehicles/productsReport Recieved DateRecord Creation DateRegulation Part NumberFMVSS Number
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
07V336000FORD MOTOR COMPANYfrom 02/05/1992 to 02/28/1998V (Vehicle)360000008/13/2007ODIFORD MOTOR COMPANY08/03/200708/03/2007
Defect SummaryOn certain pickup trucks, passenger vehicles, sport utility vehicles, and motor homes chassis, the speed control deactivation switch may, under certain conditions, leak internally and then overheat, smoke, or burn.
Consequence SummaryThis could result in an underhood fire.
Corrective SummaryDealers will install a fused wiring harness. owners of the passenger cars included in this campaign will be instructed to return their vehicles to their dealers to have the speed control deactivation switch disconnected as an interim repair. as soon as repair parts are available (expected october 2007), owners will be instructed to return to the dealers for installation of a fused wiring harness. the recall began on august 13, 2007, and mailing completed by september 19, 2007. owners may contact ford at 1-888-222-2751.
NotesFord recall no. 05s28.customers may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration;s vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov.
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL - CRUISE CONTROL
08V051000FORD MOTOR COMPANYfrom 02/05/1992 to 10/31/1997V (Vehicle)22500002/18/2008MFRFORD MOTOR COMPANY02/04/200802/04/2008
Defect SummaryFord is recalling 225,000 my 1992-2003 econoline, my 1993-1995 taurus sho, my 1992-1998 crown victoria, my 1993 bronco, f-series, my 1995-1997 f-series super duty stripped chassis, my 1992-1998 mercury grand marquis, and my 1992-1995 lincoln town car vehicles. the affected vehicles were previously repaired using a wiring harness that is not compatible with the vehicle circuit polarity.
Consequence SummaryAs a result, the fuse is located in the output circuit rather than in the intended input power feed circuit, and may not offer the intended protection in the event of an electrical short to ground.
Corrective SummaryDealers will install a new wiring harness, or replace the mating electrical component. the recall began on february 18, 2008. owners may contact ford at 1-800-392-3673.
NotesFord recall no. 08s01.customers may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (tty 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov.

Bulletins


BulletinBulletin dateReplacement BulletinItem no.SummaryAdded
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL - CRUISE CONTROL
BC879495010301/01/199537911Vehicles may exhibit a moan or hoot noise from the idle air bypass valve. *tw02/08/1995

Investigations


NHTSA IDManufacturerDate openDate closeSubjectRecall campaign
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL - LINKAGES
DP02007FORD MOTOR COMPANY08/22/200212/04/2002FUEL-FED FIRES
 The fars data shows that the risk of fire from impact in all directions in the subject vehicles is the same as all other sedans.the subject vehicles are not over represented with respect to the risk of fire in real-world high-energy crashes.a further discussion of issues related to post crash fires in the subject vehicles is set out in the closing report for sq 01-014 and that report is in the docket for this petition.after reviewing the petition and its supporting materials, as well as information furnished by ford and gm, and information within the agency's possession from previous investigations and other related actions,nhtsa has concluded that futher investigation concerning post-crash fires in the subject vehicles is not likely to lead to a decision that the vehicles contain a safety defect.
EA95011FORD MOTOR COMPANY03/29/199501/30/1997UNDERCARRIAGE FUEL LINE INTERFERENCE
 There is no summary currently available
PE94077FORD MOTOR COMPANY11/04/199403/29/1995FUEL LINE INTERFERENCE
 There is no summary currently available

Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
01/29/2010800001
 Smoke was coming out from under the hood while driving the car using cruise control. pulled over and checked the fluids on the car. no problem. started driving again and began to have problems. pulled over again and saw smoke then flames coming out. car was a total loss. *tr
10/14/20090
 Tl*the contact owns a 1992 mercury grand marquis ls. while driving 55 mph with the cruise control activated, smoke engulfed the front-end of the vehicle followed by an underhood fire that caused the front windshield to break. there were no injuries. the fire department was unable to extinguish the flames with their equipment and the vehicle was completely destroyed. she was in the process of notifying the manufacturer to inquire about the level of safety of the cruise control. the failure mileage was unknown.
09/05/2007107/01/2003
 Tl*the contact owns a 1992 mercury grand marquis. the contact received a recall notice regarding the vehicle speed control. while parked in the driveway, the contact heard a loud bang. she then noticed flames rising from under the hood. a police report was filed. the recall number and mileages were unknown.
03/06/2003212/22/1995
 The speedometer shows a much less speed than actual speed traveling. contacted a couple of ford dealership who informed me that they do not and cannot fix this problem and i was referred to a local speed test shop. the vehicle was tested on a certified machine, the test results were as follows (speedometer indication/actual vehicle speed): 25/30 30/37 35/43 40/50 45/54 50/60 55/66 60/72 65/80 also, the odometer registers 95 miles for every 100 miles traveled. the vehicle has about 103,000 miles on it, and the malfunction has caused financial problems (speed violation) as well as endangering self and others without even being aware of the fact that the car is traveling at dangerous speeds, especially on 65 mph and 70 mph expressways. the test shop informed me that the speed differential increases at higher speeds and could result in speeds way over 30 mph above the speedometer indication.*jb
08/17/2001
 Reported by insurance carrier. no safety defect noted. *ak
10/25/2001210/01/1992
 While driving on highway about 65 mph with speed control on, consumer stepped on brake pedal to reduce speed, engine shutdown. consumer had to drive to side of road. after a few minutes engine would start working again. *ak consumer was informed by dealer that cruise control was not a factor, however they could not determine the cause of the problem.*jb
06/01/2000
 Horn and cruise control work intermittently, air bag light reads code 13 + 34. short in air bag module, causes light to blink. dealer stated wire harness needeed to be replaced. *ak
05/10/2000102/01/1992
 Throttle linkage became detached from accelerator pedal when plastic anchor for the cable failed. this resulted in a very dangerous condition as throttle control was completely lost. fortunately, the vehicle was brought to a halt without an incident. this was a sudden failure with no warning of a problem. on inspection of the pedal it was obvious that a plastic anchor that connects the throttle cable to the accelerator had broken.it is my opinion that this was a defective part and the expense for reparing it should be the manufacturer's.
01/01/1996710/01/1995
 On several occasions vehicle experience sudden acceleration when shifting from reverse to drive with foot on brake. *yc
07/09/19991
 The check engine light comes on when the speed control is in use. however, consumer received recall notice (99v124000), due to failure to the speed control deactivation switch, which is why the check engine light continue to come on when the speed control was in use. *yc
06/30/1999
 All of a sudden vehicle accelerated to a very high speed. driver was not able to stop the vehicle with heavy application of the brakes. vehicle went over the same curb twice and hit a bank building before stopping. problem was mentioned to the service department of the dealership. the vehicle was totalled. please provide any furhter details. *ak
08/09/1999
 While driving 25mph the engine suddenly raced/ accelerated. *ak
06/29/1999
 Received recall notice #99v06200. contacted dealer. mechanic disconnected cruise control on 5/20/99. was informed parts would be available in middle to late june. called back & was informed still no parts. possible middle to late july. still waiting for parts. *ak
 Speed control deactivation switch can develop a resistive short in the eletrical circuit that could potentially result in an underhood fire. vehicle not included in recall number 99v124000. please give any further details. *ak
 Vehicle was repaired under manufacturer's recall 99s15 concerning speed control assembly. after repairs were done, vehicle caught on fire. dealer and manufacturer have been notified. *ak referenced in ea02-025
 Recall # 99v124000 ford/speed control switch: dealer does not have parts to correct recall. owner is upset because he has been waiting for 3 weeks to get recall work performed. *ak
06/17/1999
 Consumer contacted dealer on may 23 to schedule an appointment to have the recall repairs done on cruise control. upon arrival at the dealer, consumer was informed that the parts were not available. *ak
07/11/1998102/01/1995
 Vehicle had been parked. started vehicle up & engine was racing. shifted into reverse & vehicle took off backwards. had foot on brakes at time. had to turned ignition switch off to stop vehicle. will be taking vehicle to dealer to check. *ak
5
 I have nicknamed my car christine because it has a mind of its own. all of a sudden it accelerates by itself. i can go for miles without even touching the gas. when i stop at a traffic light the back wheels are still spinning. i have brought it to two different mechanics. one mechanic actually drove the car and it happened to him (i was a passenger in the car when it happened.) he felt that the cruise control was stuck and told me to bring it to the dealer. i brought it to the dealer two times. they said that they couldn't find anything wrong with the cruis control and replaced the wire harness and did a tuneup. it is still happening when it is damp or wet out. living in vermont there is a lot of damp and wet weather. i'm actually afraid to operate the car if it is raining out. i don't want to get the dealer in trouble because in the past they have been excellent in repairing my car. i just don't feel that they know what the problem is. i saw a documentary on dateline last night that said other mercury owners had this same problem with accident resulting. should i continue to drive my car? shouldn't the manufacturer share some to the responsibility in the defect. would having the cruise control disarmed prevent the automatic acceleration? please help me in this matter. i need my car to commute to work etc.
08/01/1996110/01/1991
 While backing out of driveway the vehicle took off with sudden acceleration without any notice; also replaced leaking master cylinder and transmission. *ak
05/23/1996103/01/1995
 Sudden acceleration, causing accident.
05/08/19968
 Sudden acceleration, causing accident. *sd
02/14/19964
 Vehicle accelerated suddenly from a standstill in reverse, causing loss of control/accident. *dsh
09/01/1995
 Cruise control was engaged hit the brake to release, failed and would not release. tt
07/04/1995
 Engine raced, car was in reverse and took off and crashed. tt
04/06/1995
 Put car in reverse and car accelerate to stop the car had to turn key off. tt
12/01/19931
 Cruise control failure.
10/30/19941
 Sudden acceleration, causing loss of control/accident. *skd
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL - ACCELERATOR PEDAL
12/01/199320
 After driving on snow covered roads, vehicle fails to decelerate upon removal of foot from accelerator. *ak
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL - CRUISE CONTROL
06/17/2005105/14/1992
 Dt: caller is concerned about vehicles burning up. has not had a problem yet but does not want to wait until something happens. saw report on cnn.com. dealer said it was only happening with some vehicles, and it may not be caller's car. caller saw vehicle on the nhtsa website. manufacturer gave caller a reference id 1481671685. they checked his vin,and his vehicle was not involved in recall. caller was confused from all the information he was getting from nhtsa , the story on cnn, and what ford was telling him.*ak
02/17/20051640001
 Consumer drove home, parked the vehicle under the carport, went into the house,then heard an explosion. consumer looked out of the door and discovered a fire coming from the left wheel well. the fire department responded, extinguished the fire, and the vehicle was totaled. this vehicle not included in the cruise nhtsa recall 99v124000. *ak consumer never received recall regarding cruise control. cruise control failed just as stated in recall. *tt
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL - LINKAGES
05/08/1999
 Drove vehicle for approximately 20 minutes, parked vehicle, and then within 3 minutes a fire started on the left hand side of engine , completely melted both wheels and top of motor. the vehicle is a considered a total loss. *ak referenced in ea02-025
03/02/1999
 When starting up about one-two blocks engine will accelerate on its own. problem continuously occurs at low speeds under 40mph. dealer contacted and cannot remedy the problem and is aware of defect. problem still exists. *ak