Ford Announces Recalls

Ford announced a voluntary safety recall Friday of 1.4 million cars and trucks equipped with potentially faulty seat belt buckles.

According to Ford, the recall covers the 2001 Ford Crown Victoria, Windstar, Ranger, F-Series, Excursion and Expedition; the Mercury Grand Marquis, Lincoln Town Car and Navigator; and the Mazda B-Series truck built before May 26, 2001.

Less than 5 percent of the buckles will likely need to be replaced, Ann O'Neill of Ford's customer service division said in a statement.

"Our testing indicates that even among defective buckles, customers can help assure a proper latching of their seat belt if they push the tongue quickly and forcefully into the buckle, and then pull on it to help ensure the seat belt is securely latched," she said.

Ford spokesman Mike Vaughn. said that a small percentage of buckles on driver's seats and front right-hand seats may not fully latch, front center seats and rear seats are not affected, because they have a different designs.