Ford Motor Company will recall nearly 2 million vehicles over concerns that a vehicle part could fly off in traffic and cause a crash, authorities said Tuesday.
Ford notified the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of the safety recall, which potentially will affect 1,889,110 2011-2019 Explorer vehicles, the NHTSA acknowledged in a letter.
“The A-pillar trim retention clips may not be properly engaged, allowing the trim to detach,” the letter read. “A detached trim piece can fall off the vehicle, becoming a road hazard and increasing the risk of a crash.”
Dealers would inspect and replace the affected part without charge, the NHTSA added, according to the letter. Ford reportedly would issue alert owners of the safety risk via interim letters to be mailed March 13, 2024, and would mail follow-up letters once the remedy was available. (RELATED: Carmaker Recalls More Than 2.5 Million Vehicles Over Risk Of Stalling While Driving)
Ford is recalling almost 1.9 million Ford Explorers from model years 2011 to 2019 because pieces of the external trim can fly off during traffic. https://t.co/UkJw2Lqq4Q
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) January 24, 2024
The NHTSA first notified Ford of the issue with the A-pillar trim retention clips in 2018, according to a separate NHTSA document on the chronology of the investigations. The concern was later judged as not an unreasonable safety risk, the document showed.
However, the issue was revisited in 2021 and then closed following a decrease in reports flagging it. It was revisited in Feb. 2023. Transport Canada, Canada’s Department of Transport, flagged the issue in Aug. 2023, and by Oct. 2023 the NHTSA determined there was a potential safety hazard regarding the trim retention clips, according to the document.
There have been no known reports of accidents or injuries related to the issue, the document stated.
Ford issued a recall of nearly 113,000 2021-2023 F-150 trucks Dec. 22, 2023, due to the risk of the rear axle hub bolt wearing away and breaking, leading to damage to the axle hub splines that in turn could lead to a crash, according to the NHTSA.