Ford misstated mileage on 2019 Ranger, other vehicles, lawsuit says

DETROIT — A lawsuit seeking class-action status accuses Ford Motor Co. of deceiving customers about the mileage of its 2019 Ranger pickup and other vehicles amid a newly disclosed criminal investigation of the automaker's emissions certification process.

Hagens Berman, the Seattle law firm that has led class-action cases over unintended acceleration in Toyotas and Volkswagen's cheating on diesel emissions, this week filed a complaint alleging that Ford "deliberately miscalculated and misrepresented factors used in vehicle certification testing" and that the process "includes a mileage cheat device."

A Ford spokeswoman said: "We haven't been served with this complaint yet. When we are, we'll review it and respond appropriately."

Ford, which first disclosed the certification issue in February, has said a Justice Department investigation that began in April does not involve so-called "defeat devices," popularized by VW's emissions scandal. Still, the complaint, filed in U.S. District Court in Detroit on behalf of people who own 2019 Ranger pickups and other potentially affected vehicles, says Ford lied to its customers.

"Ford deceptively advertised its Rangers to consumers as 'best-in-class' in fuel economy," Steve Berman, the firm's managing partner, said in a statement. "Ford knew that consumers pay a premium for fuel efficiency and that less fuel burned means less emissions, and therefore more profits."

When Ford disclosed the issue, it said "there's been no determination that this affects Ford's fuel economy labels or emissions certifications."

At issue is the analytical model Ford used to calculate road load, a vehicle-specific resistance level used in dynamometer testing to determine fuel economy ratings and emissions certifications.

The EPA issued new guidance for determining road load that took effect beginning with 2017 models. It involved changes to the flexibility allowed in determining road load, which is the sum of forces acting on a vehicle from aerodynamic drag, tire rolling resistance, driveline losses and other effects of friction.

The lawsuit says Ford marketed the Ranger's fuel efficiency as a primary selling point to customers when the pickup first went on sale in January.

"In contrast to Ford's promises, scientifically valid testing has revealed that the vehicles are not as fuel efficient as promised, not what a reasonable consumer would expect, and are not what Ford had advertised," the complaint says.

This is not Ford's first problem with mileage ratings in recent years. The automaker in 2013 reduced the claimed fuel economy for its C-Max hybrid after complaints that real-world mileage was considerably less. In 2014, it lowered fuel-economy ratings for six models. In each case, Ford compensated customers for the additional fuel costs.