Ford Recalls 1.6 Million F-150 Pickups for Seatbelt Fires
Ford is recalling more than 1.6 million late-model F-150 pickups in the U.S. for fires that can start in the B-pillars, according to filings with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
2015–2018 Ford F-150 models in regular- and crew-cab configurations have seatbelt pre-tensioners that can generate “excessive sparks” and then ignite the gas exhausted from their deployment. At least 17 trucks have either smoked or caught fire after an accident, including three that were entirely destroyed, according to NHTSA. Ford said it did not know of any related accidents or injuries.
The agency opened an investigation in August after receiving reports from five owners alleging vehicle fires. Ford said it first discovered the problem in April 2017 but could not, after multiple rounds of testing, conclude the source of the fires until this past August. NHTSA had contacted Ford in June before opening the investigation. A total of 1,619,112 trucks are affected in the U.S. An additional 376,664 trucks are affected in Canada and Mexico.
Starting in late September, Ford dealers will “remove insulation material” from the inside of the B-pillar along with its wiring harness tape and use new heat-resistant tape for the surrounding carpet and insulation. Dealers will also “modify the back interior panel” of regular-cab models. Ford said that all F-150 models built after August 23 have new tape, insulation, and carpet “treated with a fire retardant.”
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