The defect
ON CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH SPEED CONTROL AND 4.0L SOHC ENGINES, IF THE STRAND COVER ON THE SPEED CONTROL CABLE BECOMES FLARED AT THE END, THE SPEED CONTROL CABLE MAY BIND WHEN THE SPEED CONTROL IS ACTIVATED.
The risk
THE THROTTLE RETURN SPRING FORCE MAY NOT BE SUFFICIENT TO OVERCOME THE BINDING CONDITION WHEN THE SPEED CONTROL IS DISENGAGED. BRAKING FUNCTION WOULD BE MAINTAINED THOUGH STOPPING DISTANCES MAY BE INCREASED.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE SPEED CONTROL CABLE AND, IF NECESSARY, REPLACE IT. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN AUGUST 29, 2003. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT FORD AT 1-800-392-3673.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Ford Explorer | 1999, 2000, 2001 |
| Ford Explorer Sport | 2001 |
| Ford Explorer Sport Trac | 2001 |
| Mercury Mountaineer | 1999, 2000, 2001 |
Components: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL:CABLES
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Explorer | 1999 | 1,348 | 9 |
| Ford Explorer | 2000 | 952 | 9 |
| Ford Explorer | 2001 | 375 | 6 |
| Ford Explorer Sport | 2001 | 188 | 5 |
| Ford Explorer Sport Trac | 2001 | 167 | 4 |
| Mercury Mountaineer | 1999 | 151 | 7 |
| Mercury Mountaineer | 2000 | 123 | 6 |
| Mercury Mountaineer | 2001 | 22 | 3 |
Other vehicle speed control recalls in 2003
14 of the 527 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2003 concerned the vehicle speed control; FORD MOTOR COMPANY filed 963 campaigns in all.
| 03V512000 5 Dec 2003 | AMERICAN SUZUKI MOTOR CORP. |
| 03V427000 30 Oct 2003 | BUELL MOTORCYCLE CO. |
| 03V372000 6 Oct 2003 | NORTH AMERICAN BUS INDUSTRIES, INC. |
| 03V353000 23 Sept 2003 | ELDORADO NATIONAL COMPANY |
| 03V259000 22 Jul 2003 | VOLVO TRUCKS NORTH AMERICA INC |
| 03V254000 21 Jul 2003 | NEOPLAN USA CORP. |
| 03V246000 10 Jul 2003 | FREIGHTLINER CORPORATION |
| 03V245000 9 Jul 2003 | PACCAR INCORPORATED |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2003