Ford Recalling 1.1 Million Trucks over Defective Fuel Tank Strap

This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by Founding Partner, Terry Crouppen who has more than 40 years of legal experience as a personal injury attorney. Our last modified date shows when this page was last reviewed.

This page has been written, edited, and reviewed by a team of legal writers following our comprehensive editorial guidelines. This page was approved by Founding Partner, Terry Crouppen who has more than 40 years of legal experience as a personal injury attorney. Our last modified date shows when this page was last reviewed.

BY
BROWN & CROUPPEN

On behalf of Brown & Crouppen, P.C. posted in Defective Products on Friday, August 5, 2011

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Ford Motor Co. recently announced a recall of more than 1 million Ford and Lincoln pickup trucks after a person was injured due to a problem with the straps that hold the trucks’ fuel tanks in place. So far, straps breaking and letting the fuel tank drop has led to three fires, a Ford spokesman said in a statement.

The defect in the straps causes them to corrode too quickly when exposed to de-icing substances used on roads in the wintertime. Eventually, the defective straps can break, putting those inside the vehicle at risk of injury.

The affected pickup trucks have model years between 1997 and 2004. Specifically, the 1.1 million trucks included in the announced recall are F-150s from model years 1997 through 2004; F-250s from 1997 through 1999; and Lincoln Blackwoods from 2002 and 2003. As the affected model years go back at least seven years, the defect in the fuel tank straps mostly affects vehicles with a lot of miles on them that have had years of exposure to road salt and other corrosive materials.

Ford said that truck owners will be able to get their fuel tank straps replaced at no charge, though dealerships may run out of the replacement straps. In that case, mechanics will put in a temporary cable support in place of the defective straps. Owners will begin receiving recall notices sometime in the middle of September, the automaker’s spokesman said.

This is the second large-scale recall of pickup trucks Ford has announced this year. It previously recalled more than 1 million F-150s from model years 2004 to 2006 over an air-bag defect. None of the F-150s included in that recall are affected by this latest announcement, the Ford spokesman said.

Source: Bloomberg, “Ford Recalls F-150 Trucks for Fire-Causing Strap Corrosion,” Angela Greiling Keane, Aug. 1, 2011

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