Ford recalls 850,000 vehicles for airbag problem
Ford Motor Co. has issued a recall for 850,000 cars with airbags that might not deploy in the event of a crash.
The car maker said that some of its 2013 and 2014 Ford C-Max, Fusion and Escape cars, plus some of its Lincoln MKZ luxury cars, have an electrical short circuit that could, in the event of a crash, disable the forward restraint systems and side impact airbags.
If the short has occurred, the company said, a warning light will be visible. But depending on the location of the short, there could also be warning lights for other features, like stability control.
The company said it is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to the safety recall issue, and that dealers will replace the affected parts at no cost to the vehicle owners.
Most of the vehicles affected, 745,000 of them, are in the U.S. The remainder are in Canada and Mexico.
This is the second major recall this week. Chrysler earlier announced the recall of 350,000 vehicles with possible ignition switch issues, which could also affect airbag performance.
Ford’s announcement brings the year’s total recall number to well over 46 million vehicles -- a new record, and far above the earlier high of 30.8 million vehicles recalled in 2004.
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