Recent recalls issued by the Ford Motor Company revealed significant safety issues posed by defects relating to 2021 F-150 and Super Duty Dually models. In both instances for the two models, the underlying safety concerns were substantial:
2021 Ford F-150s
For the 2021 model year, Ford has issued two recent recalls for the F-150 pickup line. In the first recall, Ford recalled more than 4,430 F-150s for a driveshaft issue. According to Ford, the driveshaft may be incorrectly assembled, which can lead to the driveshaft coming apart. As a result, Ford warns that the driver may experience a sudden loss of power, or if parked, the truck may roll downhill unless the parking brake is engaged. Ford warns that driveshaft failure increases the likelihood of a crash.
In the second recall, Ford has identified 220 models (as of now) for a steering issue. This defect, Ford has reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA”) stems from internal damage to a component (steering gear ball nut retainers) of the steering gear. The result is a vehicle with this internal damage is difficult steering, or a total inability to rotate the steering wheel while driving, which may occur while the vehicle is in motion. Again, Ford has provided that the occurrence of total steering loss increases the likelihood of a crash.
In both cases, Ford has advised owners of the subject F-150s to not drive the problematic vehicles until the vehicles are brought into a Ford dealership for repair.
2021 Ford Super Duty Dually Trucks
On June 10, 2021, Ford filed a notice with the NHTSA detailing an issue with 2021 Super Duty Dually Trucks—front-wheel detachment risks. As Ford puts it, “[a]dditonal vehicles have been identified where the front wheel extension nuts may not be tightened to specification.” Ford has identified 17,616 units of the Super Duty that meet the scope of the recall, which include F-350, F-550, and F-600 models. Affected vehicles were manufactured at Ford’s Kentucky and Ohio plants from February 7, 2021, to June 3, 2021.
Ford has recommended that owners of the applicable Super Duty model not drive their vehicle until the wheel hub extension torque can be verified.
If you or someone you know has been injured or killed as a result of vehicular defects or as a result of any other product defect, please contact an attorney at Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner by calling 713-742-6009 or toll-free at 1-888-261-8831.