Ford, Toyota recall trucks, SUVs
By Poornima Gupta. Reuters

09/07/2005 - Ford Motor Co. on Wednesday recalled nearly 4 million pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles in the United States because of the risk of engine fires.

The same day, Japanese rival Toyota Motor Corp. issued a recall for 978,000 pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles sold in the same market citing a faulty steering mechanism.

Toyota said its recalled vehicles include power-steering equipped 4Runner sport utility vehicles and compact pickups and T-100 pickups from the 1989-1996 model years.

Ford's recall of an estimated 3.8 million vehicles, comes as the second-largest U.S. automaker is trying to stem steep losses in its North American automotive operations.

Ford's fourth largest recall involves the 1994-2002 model years and includes the Ford F-150 pickup as well as the Ford Expedition, Lincoln Navigator and Ford Bronco SUVs.

Brake fluid in the recalled vehicles may leak through the speed control deactivation switch into the speed control system electrical components, potentially corroding them.

In some cases, the corrosion in the electrical components may lead to a fire at the switch, according to Ford.

The automaker said it will install a fused wiring harness between the switch and the speed control mechanism eliminating the electrical current to the switch.

The recall came the same day consumer activist and former presidential candidate Ralph Nader wrote a letter to Ford Chairman and Chief Executive Bill Ford Jr. urging him to recall the affected vehicles.

"How much longer will you allow this $20 part to imperil the public?" he asked in his letter to Bill Ford.

In a statement after the recall, Nader said Ford failed to include to million of other vehicles with the similar parts.

Ford recalled about 792,000 pickup trucks and SUVs for a similar problem involving the speed control switch in January.

That recall involved some of Ford's biggest money-makers from 2000 model-year F-150 pickup trucks, Expedition and Navigator SUVs and 2001 model-year F-Series Supercrew pickup trucks equipped with cruise control.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has been investigating the recalled Ford vehicles since early this year after the safety agency received about 68 complaints of fires from customers.

Numerous lawsuits have been filed across the country against the automaker saying that its vehicles were responsible for fires that in some cases destroyed homes.

But Ford spokeswoman Kristen Kinley said so far, Ford has found no evidence linking such fires to its recalled vehicles.

Ford shares closed up 17 cents, or 1.71 percent, at $10.13 on the New York Stock Exchange.