The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is conducting a probe of about 642,000 units of Ford Edge and Ford Fusion because of multiple issues.
The investigation spearheaded by the NHTSA involves two sets of investigations. The first one is centered on the probe of about 380,000 units of the Ford Edge with the 2011 to 2013 model years; the second is examining up to 262,000 units of the 2010 Ford Fusion sedans.
Ford Edge: Door Ajar Light And Other Door Defects
According to reports, the NHTSA subjected the Ford Edge vehicles to a thorough investigation after receiving a total of 1,560 complaints claiming that the "door ajar light" found at the instrument cluster of the vehicles continued to light up although all of the doors had been properly closed.
Aside from the problem on the door ajar light, the probe on the 2011 to 2013 vehicles also looks into other safety issues, particularly the reported opening of the vehicle doors while in motion as well as the failure to lock these while driving. Fortunately, the agency has only received a single report of injuries caused by the problem but no crashes have occurred.
Ford Fusion: Power Steering System Failures
The second investigation, on the other hand, involves the 2010 Ford Fusion. The iconic sedan caught the agency's attention after it received a total of 547 complaints regarding a power steering problem, particularly the system failures that resulted in four injuries and 12 crashes.
The NHTSA had actually initiated a similar investigation before, involving the 2011 and 2012 versions of the Ford Fusion over the same issue, and it resulted in a recall. The federal regulators view the reports on the sudden failure of the Fusion's power steering system seriously, since this could make the maneuvering of the vehicle very difficult and might lead to a crash.
Although this is not the first time that Ford has encountered various vehicle safety problems this year, the U.S. carmaker continues to assure the public that the vehicles it is selling are safe and reliable.
Elizabeth Weigandt, safety communications manager at Ford Motor, says the auto company will cooperate with the NHTSA in the investigations.
"Ford is committed to delivering top quality in our vehicles," she says. "We continuously evaluate our processes for potential improvements and, when the data indicates a safety recall is needed, we move quickly on behalf of our customers."
As the probe continues, vehicle experts can expect that the NHTSA would most likely issue the appropriate recall order for the affected Ford Edge and Ford Fusion models to allow the carmaker to implement the necessary changes in the vehicle systems.
