Ford to Recall 6,000 Escape Hybrid SUVs

Ford Motor Co. will recall 6,164 Escape hybrid sport utility vehicles from model year 2006 for inspections because a drivetrain shaft may fracture, a U.S. agency said.

Ford will replace the shafts if necessary, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said. The intermediate shaft may not have been properly heat-treated, and a fracture may result in the SUV rolling after the gearshift is placed in park, the agency said.

Ford received a handful of reports about the problem and then began examining it, said Kristen Kinley, a spokeswoman for Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford. “There have been no reports of injuries or accidents,” she said.

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Ford Motor Co. said it would begin offering buyout packages next week to all its U.S. hourly workers under its previously announced plan to cut 30,000 blue-collar jobs by the end of 2008.