Agency Steps Up Probe of Ford Air Bags

U.S. auto safety regulators upgraded an investigation into air-bag failures of Ford Motor Co.’s 2000 and 2001 model Taurus and Sable sedans in a move that might lead to a recall.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration inquiry, which began in January, covers at least 895,936 cars for which the air bags might not deploy.

The investigation followed a fatal accident in which a driver hit a bridge railing at 43 mph. The agency has 260 complaints that the car’s air bags failed to inflate after a front-end crash.