The defect
New England Wheels (New England) is recalling certain 2008, 2013 and 2014 Ford E-250 vehicles modified to be equipped with Ricon Wheelchair lifts. The wheelchair lift positioning input cam may fail while the lift is in use, allowing the platform to travel higher than the vehicle's floor height. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 403, "Platform Lift Systems."
The risk
If the wheelchair lift platform stops above the vehicle floor, the wheelchair user can tip inwards towards the vehicle when exiting the lift, increasing their risk of injury.
The remedy
New England has notified owners, and Ricon dealers will replace the lift positioning input cam, free of charge. The recall began on March 18, 2019. Owners may contact Ricon customer service at 1-800-322-2884 or New England customer service at 1-978-663-9724.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Ford E-250 | 2008, 2013, 2014 |
Components: EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY
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 E-250 | 2008 | 6 | 20 |
| Ford E-250 | 2013 | 11 | 10 |
| Ford E-250 | 2014 | 7 | 11 |
Other equipment adaptive/mobility recalls in 2019
12 of the 880 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2019 concerned the equipment adaptive/mobility; New England Wheels filed 6 campaigns in all.
| 19V271000 3 Apr 2019 | Mobility Specialists, Inc. |
| 19V198000 13 Mar 2019 | Transportation Collaborative, Inc. |
| 19V183000 6 Mar 2019 | Fenton Mobility Products, Inc. |
| 19V170000 5 Mar 2019 | Daimler Trucks North America LLC |
| 19V158000 1 Mar 2019 | Ameritrans Bus, Inc. |
| 19V160000 1 Mar 2019 | Supreme Corporation |
| 19V140000 27 Feb 2019 | Midway Specialty Vehicles |
| 19V116000 21 Feb 2019 | Winnebago Industries, Inc |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2019