Ford is issuing a safety recall for roughly 1.3 million F-150 and Super Duties from 2015 to 2017 over concerns the door latch can become inoperable, which could lead to the door not opening, or worse, the door flying open while driving. Ford says two mechanical problems can lead to the condition. One, the latch could become frozen and two, the cable running from the inside handle to the latch can become kinked. In either scenario, serious safety problems arise.
Basically, it boils down to the door not latching or unlatching when it shouldn't. That’s bad, especially if somebody needed to enter or exit quickly, say in an emergency. What’s worse, Ford says the door could appear closed, yet the latch be unsecured. That could lead the door to fling open while taking a turn. Forget to put a seatbelt on, and somebody is leaving the truck in a bad way.
Thankfully, Ford says it has no reports of injuries stemming from this problem but is replacing door latches on a select number of aluminum-bodied F-Series trucks. These include the current-generation F-150 built from March 2014 up through the new 2017 Super Duty built in 2016. The full list of recalled trucks is below. The recall covers 1,101,107 F-Series trucks in the U.S., 222.408 in Canada, and 21,090 in Mexico for a total of 1,344,605.
Ford’s solution to the problem is installing a “water shield” over the door latches to prevent water from getting inside. Ford didn’t specify whether the latches freeze due to rust or if actual ice was accumulating in colder weather. Regardless, Ford dealership technicians will inspect the parts and repair them if necessary.
Continue reading for more information.
The F-Series Trucks Under Recall
- 2015-2017 F-150 built at Dearborn Assembly Plant from March 12, 2014 to December 31, 2016
- 2015-2017 F-150 built at Kansas City Assembly Plant from August 11, 2014 to December 30, 2016
- 2017 Super Duty vehicles built at Kentucky Assembly Plant from October 8, 2015 to September 1, 2016
Owners can also cross-reference their vehicles’ VIN with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website to find recall information specific to their vehicle.
References
Ford F-150
Read our full review on the 2015 Ford F-150.
Ford F-Series
Read our full review on the 2017 Ford Super Duty.