Ford Expands Safety Recall for Faulty Takata Airbag Inflators
The Takata saga continues, this time targeting several 2009 and 2010 vehicles from the Blue Oval.
Ford Motor Company has added seven different models to the list of vehicles affected by faulty Takata airbag inflators in a release issued Thursday. The recall comes as the third planned expansion of vehicles included in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Takata Coordinated Remedy Order gets underway.
The recall affects approximately 2009 and 2010 models of the Ford Ranger, Ford Fusion, Ford Edge, Ford Mustang, Lincoln MKZ, Lincoln MKX, and Mercury Milan vehicles built in North America. Newer models affected also include the 2013 Ford Mustang built at the Flat Rock Assembly Plant in Michigan. The United States is home to 327,796 recalled Ford vehicles out of 364,523 total. All units affected fall under the 18S01 recall number.
Faulty Takata airbag inflators have claimed 19 lives worldwide, with the most recent tragedy taking place in July 2017, when an already-recalled (but not repaired) airbag unit detonated in a 2004 Honda Civic. Other manufacturers involved include Subaru, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Jaguar, Toyota, Honda, GM, and Land Rover.
According to Ford, owners will be notified by mail and dealers will replace the passenger frontal airbag inflator or module at no cost.
