Ford Halts Ranger Sales, Citing Rear Axle

In another embarrassing quality glitch for Ford Motor Co., the auto maker said it ordered dealers Monday to stop selling many of its 2002 model Ranger pickup trucks because of a problem with the rear axle.

The order affected 804 Rangers on dealer lots with manual transmissions and the new FX4 design package, which gives the vehicles a rugged, off-road look.

An additional 374 of the pickups, which already are in customer hands, will be recalled by Ford, company officials said.

The problem stems from a bad differential casting, they said, adding that it could be fixed only by replacing the entire rear-axle assembly.