Ford recalls 4.5 million vehicles for faulty switch

October 14, 3:04 PMFord ExaminerMike Karagozian

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Ford World Headquarters

OOPS!  Looks like Toyota isn't the only manufacturer with recall problems in the news these days.  Ford Motor Company will recall 4.5 million vehicles for a faulty cruise-control switch.  The faulty switch is linked to at least 550 fires, 1,500 complaints and several suspicious deaths, according to an article published in The Detroit News.

The action follows an 18-month federal investigation. The automaker has now recalled 14.1 million vehicles in eight separate recalls over 10 years. The cruise-control deactivation switches, made by Texas Instruments, were installed in 16 million Ford vehicles over a decade before the automaker stopped using them in early 2003.

The automaker will notify customers of the recall beginning Oct. 26.

Owners of the recalled vehicles will be instructed to take their vehicles to a Ford or Lincoln/Mercury dealer for installation of a fused wiring harness to eliminate the potential fire risk. Ford, if necessary, will make a separate, additional fix to some Windstars that were leaking fluid.

Photo:  Ford Motor Company Public Affairs

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