Ford has issued a safety recall for select Flex, Taurus SHO Performance Pack, Taurus Police Interceptor Sedan and Lincoln MKT vehicles in North America over a possible suspension issue.
In the ‘Description of the Cause’, the NHTSA noted that “under high stress conditions that exist during full rear suspension articulation (jounce and rebound), toe link fractures can occur inboard of the turnbuckle, resulting from fatigue introduced by reverse bending”, which would increase the risk of a crash without any prior warning.
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The action includes nearly 230,000 vehicles, including 211,207 in the United States and federalized territories, 15,281 in Canada and 1,396 in Mexico, out of which only 1 percent are estimated to have the defect. The Flex and MKT SUVs included were built at Oakville between September 12, 2011, and June 1, 2017, and the Taurus SHO Performance Pack and Taurus Police Interceptor Sedan at Chicago from August 25, 2011, to June 1, 2017.
The fix will see authorized technicians replace the rear suspension toe links, on both sides, with new forged toe links, although it will be a while until they will provide the remedy, as parts are currently unavailable. Owners should wait until March 2 to receive word from Ford and they will be notified again once parts become available, estimated to be this summer. Until then, those looking for more clarification on the topic can reach out to the Ford at 1-866-436-7332 or Lincoln at 1-800-521-4140 using the 20S04 reference number, or the NHTSA at 1-888-327-4236.
