Recently, after 238 reports of unintended air-bag deployments, around 144,000 Ford F-I50 pickup trucks, manufactured from 2005-2006, were  recalled. Many of these trucks have experienced problems with air-bags deploying on the driver's side when the vehicle has not been in a crash. This unintended deployment has led to 77 injuries thus far, including abrasions, cuts, broken teeth, and, for two individuals, loss of consciousness. 

According to National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration documentation, Ford was aware of this problem in 2006 and has fought the recall, arguing that these deployments affected a low percentage of their vehicles, and were therefore not a great safety hazard. Ford also said that owners would see the air-bag warning light, which should prompt them to have their vehicle checked, and the problem fixed, at a dealership. Even if the problem was not fixed, Ford argued that any injuries resulting from the deployments would be "minor in nature."

Although, under federal regulations, a corporation has 5 days once it has been made aware of a problem to announce a recall, Ford avoided the recall until the NHTSA demanded recently that the corporation remedy the problem.

The number of vehicles finally recalled by Ford represented a small percentage of the 1.3 million F-150 pickups under scrutiny by the NHTSA.

According to Wesley Sherwood, a Ford spokesman, the unintended deployments could be caused by a possible chafing of the air-bag wire in the truck's steering wheel. This would leave the copper wire exposed, "and create the potential for a short circuit." If this exposure is left unfixed, Sherwood said, the wire could, under "unique circumstances," cause deployment of the driver's side air-bag.

According to the spokesman, most of the vehicles suffering from these deployment issues were manufactured at Ford's Norfolk, Virginia plant from 2004-2006. Mr. Sherwood hesitated when asked about the entire scope of this recall.

The recall, announced last Wednesday, includes 135,000 pickups in the U.S. and 9,000 in Canada. Ford will supposedly notify affected owners before or by the time the recall goes into effect on Monday, February 28, 2011. For more information regarding this recall, owners can either contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332 or the NHTSA's Vehicle Safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236.