This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
Vehicle fire involving the speed control disconnect switch ((cruise control defect)) on this 1997 Ford F150. Limitted burn in engine compartment. Vehicle is in very good condition, and this fire pattern/evidence is a prime example of the failure of this vehicle component. Salvage is presently preserved for inspection.
The rear end is making a whining noise. The tires on the vehicle are starting to separate. The tires are brand new put on March 21, 2003. The tires are ameritrac general, P255/70R16. The consumer can not locate the number for the tire company. Therefore, he cannot contact them. The dealership states that he will have to pay for the diagnostic to find out what is wrong with the rear end. The consumer's mechanic states that the bearings on the rear end are bad due to bad casing; it will not align itself up with the transmission. Also, cruise control stopped working at the same time that the whining started. The mechanic states it will not ground in order to make it activate the switch. Consumer has contacted Ford, and was advised to take the vehicle in. When he called to take the vehicle in he was told he will have to pay for a service that should have been done before he purchased the vehicle. Consumer states that the vehicle has been sitting in driveway for six months, because it is unsafe to drive. When stepping on the brakes there is a mushy feeling, and the front end shakes and shimmies.
On July 11,2005 jason went to work and parked his 1997 Ford F-150 pickup in the parking lot of his job rolled up all the windows and locked the doors and took the key.at apromently 9.00am he went out for his break to find the fire department at his truck its a total loss.the only thing left is the cab of the truck.
The cruise control switch burned the wiring harness and the wire was burned in two. The connector that comes into switch was burnt and the brake fluid was leaking out of the switch. The vehicle had been sitting for about a day before it burned. Owner never smelled any smoke or saw any flames. The switch just melted. There were no other major concerns with vehicle, it is regularly serviced. After the switch was burned owner replaced the switch and connector with another one bought at a local auto store. The owner has not yet reported to Ford.
The cruise control switch was burning. The consumer could smell smoke while walking past the vehicle. The consumer was able to stop the smoke before the switch actually caught on fire by disconnected the wire leading to the switch.
- Tampa, FL, USA
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Consumer states when she went to get into the vehicle there was smoke coming from under the hood. When shelifted the hood, it was discovered the smoke was coming from the cruise control sensor and unhooked it. At that point the vehicle stopped smoking. The vehicle had been in the driveway for approximately 45 minutes. The dealership told them it wasn't under recall although there have been reports of the same problem. The vehicle hadn't caught on fire.
Truck was parked and engine was not running, consumer drove about a half hour before he discovered vehicle was on fire. Flames were coming from driver's side under hood near cab of truck. Flames were extinguished by 4 witnesses with a fire distinguisher. Fire department was not called. Mechanic on site opened hood and suspected the fire began near the master cylinder. No repairs were made since this occurred.
Cruise control caught 0N fire. Had reported to Ford before this came out bought another cruise control, but then had disconnectedit. Vehicle overheated and burnt the brake fluid, but was in time to put out the fire.
Cruise control has been disconnected because it quit working, and because of its potential to start fire. Cruise was working fine when I consumer bought the truck.
My 1997 Ford F-150 truck was parked in the drive way in front of my house.the keys were not in the vehicle, and no lights were on. I steped out the front door of my house, and smelled something burning. I looked over at my truck, and saw flames in the left front wheel well, and smoke coming out of the hood side and back edges. I got the fire extenguisher from the house, shot up in the wheel well, then opened the hood and put out the rest of the fire. The fire seemed to start in the brake master cylinder area, and I believe as a result of a defect in the cruise control deactivation switch. The master cylinder is destroyed, an evaporative emmission control valve and solenoid are destroyed, and some wiring harnesses have been burnt.the rear anti lock brake control valve is damaged. The left cowl cover and hood seal melted, as did the left inner wheel well.I have not repaired the truck at this time.
Consumer parked truck Wednesday night, when he got back into truck the next morning it would start once but not move out of gear. It would not come out of park. The engine was barely running and missing. There was a smell of smoke. Turned engine off due to the odd smell. Inspected under hood. There had been a fire that evidently burned out itself. Cruise control quit earlier. The truck could not be driven due to this problem. Afraid to move or attempt to repair anything for fear it may catch on fire again. Consumer called Ford, no recall on that particular model, but they were having a problem with those vehicles, but will not do anything until there was a recall. The most fire damage was seen on the master cylinder, suspected that the brake fluid may have had a hand in the fire along with the sensor. Was missing brake fluid upon inspection.
ABS light came on as we were pulling up to our back garage door. We opened the hood of the truck to check the brake fluid level. That area of the engine was on fire! we were able to quickly put out the fire. We had the vehicle towed to the repair shop. They replaced all the parts that were burnt (unfortunately we did not think to keep the old parts). As a side note, the technician working on the vehicle mentioned that Ford has a recall out for 2000 and newer vehicles for the cruise control switch - which they have determined is the cause of fires in these models. He said the cause of the fire in our vehicle was the cruise control switch, the very same part that Ford has the recall for. The cruise control switch the repair shop used to replace the burnt up one was obtained from Ford and is the very same part they are using in their recall. Unfortunately, our vehicle is a 1997 Ford F150 and therefore does not falling within the recall.
The consumer owns a 97 Ford F150 and the cruise control switch caught fire and burned the master cylinder and wiring harness at the switch. Also it blew a fuse in the circuit that kept it from burning further. When the consumer went to start the vehicle, it would not shift out of park because the ABS circuit was disabled. The consumer bought materials to repair the damage. After which Ford had recalled later model pick ups. The consumer feels this is a wide spread problem and other years were affected also.
Pick up truck caught on fire. The consumer believed it was due to electrical problems. The fire started in engine near the steering column. The consumer then stated it may have been due to due a cruise to control switch.
I purchased a 1997 F150 on Friday April 22, 2005. Truck was seemingly in excellent condition. I drove the F150 truck to work around 40 miles on Tuesday April 26, 2005, parked and went inside. About 2 hourrs later I saw smoke from the engine compartment. We opened the hood, and found that a fire had erupted on/near the brake system/brake booster. We put out the fire within about 1 minute from seeing the smoke. The damage was contained to the driver"S side engine compartment, including; brake fluid reservoir/booster, power distribution box/fuse box, wiring along firewall, hood and paint, windshield, wiper motor/wiper, vent between hood and windshield, dash, inner driver"S side fender. Insurance company was notified, outcome pending.
The vehicle was parked for about a hour when it caught on fire. The consumer extinguished the fire with water hose. The fire started at the master cylinder which was replaced. A couple of weeks later the cruise control stop working.
Vehicle was parked in the owner's driveway along with 2 other vehicles which were burned along with the F-150 which was engulfed by fire. Vehicle was parked for over 5 hours before the sheriff department was notified of the fire.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Mechanicsburg, PA, USA