Ford recalls 654,000 F-150, Super Duty trucks again for fire concerns
This covers a subset of the 874,000 trucks included in the first recall.
Back in December, Ford recalled approximately 874,000 trucks for engine block heater cable defects that could result in vehicle fires. Now, some of those vehicles are being recalled yet again.
Ford has issued a recall for approximately 654,000 examples of the 2015-2019 F-150 and 2017-2019 Super Duty pickup trucks, of which roughly 327,000 are located in the US, with the remainder in Canada and US federalized territories. Build dates for the recalled vehicles span from March 18, 2014 to Nov. 17, 2018.
The engine block heater cable is once again at the center of the fray. Previously, the vehicles were recalled for cables that were susceptible to splice-connector corrosion, which could cause shorts, trip household circuit breakers or start fires. This time around, Ford said that the inspection process from the initial recall may have damaged some splice connectors, which might cause shorts, trip household circuit breakers or -- you guessed it -- start fires.
Thus far, Ford is aware of two vehicle fires that may have come from engine block heater use following the first recall -- one from Canada, and one from the US. That said, the automaker is not aware of any accidents or injuries stemming from the problem.
The new remedy process might not sit well with everyone, but those owners should be lucky that spring is on the way. For now, Ford's technicians will disable the block heater cable by cutting off the plug end and sealing the end cap. The automaker will then notify affected owners when replacement parts are available, although it did not offer up an estimate as to when that might happen.
