Ford recalling nearly 9,000 F-150 pickups over faulty brake lamps
2009 Ford F-150 - Click above for a high-res image gallery
A total of 8,735 2009 Ford F-150 pickups are being recalled for stop lamps that may not illuminate during very mild brake pedal applications. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the culprit is a "brake stop lamp switch" that is improperly adjusted. Although the recall campaign does not mention any injuries as a result of the vehicle defect, the delayed brake lamps may increase the risk of an accident so owners are asked to bring their trucks in for repair.
As expected, Ford dealers will inspect and reinstall the brake stop lamp switch on affected F-150 models free of charge to consumers in a national campaign beginning on or before May 13, 2009. Owners with questions are encouraged to contact the Ford Motor Company Company Consumer Relationship Department at 1-866-436-7332 or online at www.ownerconnection.com. Recall campaign press release after the jump.
[Source: NHTSA]
Vehicle Make / Model: FORD / F-150
Model Year(s): 2009
Manufacturer: FORD MOTOR COMPANY
Mfr's Report Date: APR 29, 2009
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number: 09V150000 N/A
NHTSA Action Number: N/A
Component: EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS:SWITCH
Potential Number of Units Affected: 8735
Summary:
FORD IS RECALLING 8,735 MY 2009 F-150 TRUCKS FOR FAILING TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, "LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT." THE BRAKE STOP LAMP SWITCH MAY BE IMPROPERLY ADJUSTED. THIS MAY RESULT IN A DELAY IN BRAKE STOP LAMP ILLUMINATION WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL IS DEPRESSED. IN SITUATIONS OF VERY MILD BRAKE APPLICATION, THE BRAKE STOP LAMPS MAY NOT ILLUMINATE.
Consequence:
DELAY OR LOSS OF BRAKE STOP LAMP FUNCTION MAY INCREASE THE RISK OF AN ACCIDENT.
Remedy:
DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND HAVE THE BRAKE STOP LAMP SWITCH REMOVED AND REINSTALLED WHICH WILL PROVIDE PROPER ADJUSTMENT. THE REMEDY WILL BE PERFORMED FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN ON OR BEFORE MAY 13, 2009. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD MOTOR COMPANY CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP CENTER AT 1-866-436-7332. OR THROUGH THE INTERNET AT WWW.OWNERCONNECTION.COM.
Notes:
FORD RECALL NO. 09C07. OWNERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV .
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
izorro 9:11AM (5/12/2009)
Well, can't win them all. But at least it was notice early :)
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Randy 10:47AM (5/12/2009)
Thankfully it's just a lamp! Not a rusting frame like on the Toyota... :)
(I just posted a Fanboy Post) heh heh..
d4rez 2:14PM (5/12/2009)
No offence to you, but I would think that failing to see the brake lights of the car in front could be quite a big deal, especially if it happened to happen during an emergency stop.
Randy 2:24PM (5/12/2009)
Oh I agree! But it's about the same thing has having a bulb out. No biggie!
Now rusting frames on the other hand can make entire vehicle components fall off, fly across the road and kill little children playing in a park! See how evil Toyota is with their rusting frames?
LOL TOTAL JOKE FOLKS..... TOTAL JOKE ;)
Just playing the fanboy card for once..... It's amusing................. to me anyway ;)
Yaroukh 9:15AM (5/12/2009)
ouch
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Luis 9:18AM (5/12/2009)
Where are the import haters now? I hate to rub it in but they seem to not be able to withhold themselves when it's Mazda or Toyota.
I love it: "at least they caught it early".
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David 9:24AM (5/12/2009)
The import haters only exist in response to the domestic haters. Maybe you could all just stop and we won't have to wonder where you are...
As for this recall... 9000 is nothing, thankfully. What's that, one day's production? LOL...
Luis 9:48AM (5/12/2009)
I'm not a hater of Ford - I think they are doing fairly well. I'm just stating a long-worn trail of immaturity.
In fact, a friend was surprised yesterday when I said that another friend, if they can, should wait to see the new Taurus as they want a new car. That and the Avalon are two solid full-size cars. Of course, I hope the quality is there on the Taurus, and I'd still want to wait a year to see how it does, but that's better than how I think their former products were.
StickShift 9:19AM (5/12/2009)
At least there were only
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StickShift 9:20AM (5/12/2009)
Blast, the rest of the comment got cut off.
I meant to say "At least there were only 9000 this time...and they aren't catching on fire."
John 9:22AM (5/12/2009)
I'm sure Ford is happy it doesn't involve tires. :-)
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mdmadph 9:36AM (5/12/2009)
9000 is an awfully small recall. I thought Fight Club taught us that automakers don't bother with recalls that small. :P
Is ford... "doing the right thing?"
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James 9:37AM (5/12/2009)
A recall is a recall, however: "IN SITUATIONS OF VERY MILD BRAKE APPLICATION, THE BRAKE STOP LAMPS MAY NOT ILLUMINATE." this is not going to cause an accident.
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Harley Cook 9:48AM (5/12/2009)
This is the biggest fault of the domestic automakers being that the beancounters beat up the suppliers so bad and that is why you have bad parts on cars, which down the road break...and then loose customers. And I am one of them!
Joe 9:53AM (5/12/2009)
What's a loose customer?
aj121489 10:20AM (5/12/2009)
Thank you Joe I can't stand it when people do that
That One Person 4:42PM (5/12/2009)
I constantly see cars without any bulbs that work...brake or parking lights.
There is a lady down my street who owns an older Accord (95 maybe) who had absolutely no lights in the back. I kept telling her that she needed to get them replaced. This went on for about two and a half weeks. I had a day off of work and stopped when she was out and told her to go buy the bulbs and I would put them in for her. Not once did she ever get rear ended.
While drivers are dumb, I think most have the sense to stop or slow down if they see a car in front of them getting closer.
Gloria 10:04AM (5/12/2009)
The part isn't defective, it is "potentially" incorrectly adjusted.
But you are probably right, the imports all tell the suppliers................ the same suppliers that the Domestics use............... to just charge them whatever they would like, as they like to throw money away.
Good grief.
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Wobbly_ears 10:08AM (5/12/2009)
Looks like Hyundai & Ford share same supplier for the brake lights. Wasn't it only a week ago that Hyundai recalled their vehicles for the exact same issue??
I would be interested in knowing who the supplier is. I can bet other manufacturers also use the same supplier & their recalls also might be coming.
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ettore38 10:12AM (5/12/2009)
I think it's a great show of responsibility and appreciation for the customer. Toyota definitely did the right thing here...oh wait it's Ford! American cars suck a$$! This is proof that they can't keep up with Japanese engineering! My 1970 Ford Pinto rusted out 2 years after I bought it and I never touched an American car since because they make poor quality cars that no one wants to buy! Honda and Toyota FTW!
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