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Ford being investigated for another fire threat

Ford being investigated for another fire threat

Alex Kaufmann May 20th, 2008 Alex Kaufmann By Alex Kaufmann Author May 20th, 2008
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December 31st, 1969 Federal safety officials in the U.S. are investigating a potential fire risk in Ford’s Windstar minivan model produced between 1995 and 2003 after authorities received more than 130 consumer complaints about vehicle fires. The investigation is still in its early stages but it could lead to another recall, which could potentially involve as many as 1.7 million vehicles. Ford was forced to recall more than 10 million cars and trucks between 1999 and early this year because of a particular cruise control switch that was linked to a number of vehicle fire cases. Those switches were part of a live electrical circuit, so even when engines were turned off the switches were capable of contributing to a fire. Speaking with AutoWeek, Ford spokeswoman Jennifer Moore said the switches in the Windstar are not powered at all times. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is currently running the investigation and reports that 36 of the 130 complaints were made this year alone and involved vehicles that were both driving and parked.
Ford being investigated for another fire threat

Ford being investigated for another fire threat

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Federal safety officials in the U.S. are investigating a potential fire risk in Ford’s Windstar minivan model produced between 1995 and 2003 after authorities received more than 130 consumer complaints about vehicle fires. The investigation is still in its early stages but it could lead to another recall, which could potentially involve as many as 1.7 million vehicles.

Ford was forced to recall more than 10 million cars and trucks between 1999 and early this year because of a particular cruise control switch that was linked to a number of vehicle fire cases. Those switches were part of a live electrical circuit, so even when engines were turned off the switches were capable of contributing to a fire. Speaking with AutoWeek, Ford spokeswoman Jennifer Moore said the switches in the Windstar are not powered at all times.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is currently running the investigation and reports that 36 of the 130 complaints were made this year alone and involved vehicles that were both driving and parked.

Tags: Safety

Posted in: Ford, News


Comments (5 total)

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  1. By chris #1, Posted: 5/20/2008

    I know its car fires and all,.. but 130 out of 1.7 million isnt that bad if you think about it. but yeah... 130 instances of fire should warrant an investigation into the causes of those fires.

    I wonder if they already know the causes, and those 130 incidents are actually all from the same cause.

  2. By Jezza #2, Posted: 5/20/2008

    Could be like in Fight Club :) I still remember this awesome quote:

    Take the number of vehicles in the field, A, and multiply it by the probable rate of failure, B, then multiply the result by the average out-of-court settlement, C. A times B times C equals X. If X is less than the cost of a recall, we don't do one.

  3. By chris #3, Posted: 5/20/2008

    1.7x10^6 x 30x10^3 = 51x10^9..... thats a lot of billions.. if my assumption of an average value of 30k is right. compounded over the 13 years that these vehicles have been coming out... your closer towards 65 billion..

    ...........buuuuuuuuuuuuut thats money thats already spent.

  4. By Gus #4, Posted: 5/20/2008

    I'll bet that more Lambos and Ferraris catch fire (per number of cars produced) than this...

  5. By chris #5, Posted: 5/20/2008

    oh, clearly. thats what I love about people trashing any of the big car companies. lambos and ferraris will have to be in the shop for 3 months of the year, cost you $20,000 per year in repairs, probably just as much in gas (if it actually worked), and costs bazillions of dollars.

    but if ford (or gm, or toyo, or anyone) makes 130 exploding examples of a 1.7 million unit production.. they're labeled as death traps.

    I mean, a 0.0076% chance of my 13 year old minivan randomly catching fire........ hell.. thats pretty good. maybe it will finally give me an excuse to buy that sweet new crossover that XXX company just came out with.

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