Ford Philippines is sending out an urgent recall notice for owners of the Everest midsize SUV, Ranger midsize pickup, and Mustang sports car. The issue concerns airbag inflators installed in these models, which could deploy with excessive force, bringing an increased risk of injury.
The recall includes certain units of the first generation Ford Everest SUV
According to a report from Autoindustriya, the announcement covers Everest units between the 2006 and 2014 model years, Ranger pickups from 2004 to 2011, and Mustang vehicles manufactured between 2005 and 2014. A total of 32,900 Ford vehicles are affected.
In a statement issued by the Blue Oval brand for the Philippine market, the recall centers on frontal driver and passenger airbag inflators which were sourced from Takata. These use either non-dessicated or dessicated ammonium nitrate as propellant.
Ford Ranger units for the 2004 to 2011 model years are also affected
If the material has already degraded to a critical point at the time an accident occurs, the airbag could deploy with too much explosive force, sending sharp metal fragments flying at high speed. These have the potential to seriously injure or even kill occupants.
All vehicles that have not had their airbags replaced are under the active recall. Ford Philippines has given the assurance that parts for the affected units are readily available. If a vehicle is brought in, Ford says the replacement will take less than half a day, depending on the model. Even as the vehicles involved are already out of the prescribed warranty period, repairs will be done free of charge.
Ford Philippines will replace the airbags at no cost to customers
If you want to know if your Ford vehicle is affected by the recall notice, the Ford Philippines website has a look-up tool where you can input the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN).
Customers can also get in touch with Ford Philippines directly through its Customer Relations Center (CRC) at telephone nos. (02) 8866-9408 or 1-800-10736-3673, from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on weekdays and from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekends.
Keep up with safety recalls regarding models in our market at Philkotse.com.