Bum Steering Drives Ford SUV Recall

WASHINGTON--Ford Motor Co. is recalling close to a million Explorers and Mercury Mountaineers to replace faulty suspension system parts that may cause steering problems. Many of these SUVs are also under recall related to the Firestone tire problems.

The latest recall involves 1995 through 1997 Explorers and the 1997 Mountaineer, which have sway bar links that can break--especially in cold climates. The sway bar connects the left and right front wheel control arms and helps control vehicle pitch while turning.

Ford will provide free replacement links that are wider. The recall covers 846,591 Explorers and 29,822 Mountaineers.

Owners will be notified by mail.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a preliminary investigationinto the problem on Sept. 20 after an agency employee having handling problems discovered a broken link on his vehicle, according to the Associated Press. The employee’s dealer told him that he had sold numerous replacement links to other drivers with similar problems.

NHTSA investigators went to their parking garage at the Transportation Department and examined 28 Explorers. Seven of the SUVs, all either 1995 or 1996 models, had repaired or broken links, so the agency opened an investigation to assess the scope of the problem, the AP reported.

At that time, Ford denied that the situation could create a safety problem. Further testing showed it could affect handling and safety, a Ford spokesman told the AP.

NHTSA has had 13 complaints from owners who said that stability was reduced during a lane change or turn--especially at speeds above 40 mph. Ford received 262 owner and field reports of the problem, including two reports of minor crashes that may be related, the company said, noting that most of the reports came from New England and Canada.

NHTSA officials say the sway bar problem did not cause tread separations on Firestone tires that were used on the Explorer.

According to the AP, some observers are pointing out that the broken links had the potential to increase the severity of a wreck during a tire tread loss.

“Any situation where a driver is going to have to make an emergency maneuver after a tire failure, a broken sway bar is only going to make handling more difficult,” said Sean Kane, president of Strategic Safety, an Arlington, Va.-based firm involved in litigation against Ford and Bridgestone/Firestone Corp. over the tire-related issues.