Ford Motor Company: Suspension › Front › Springs › Coil Springs
Ford Motor Company reported this defect to federal regulators on Aug 8, 2001 and put the number of vehicles at risk at 108,000. The repair is free for as long as the recall stands.
The defect
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES BUILT AT THE KANSAS CITY ASSEMBLY PLANT AND ORIGINALLY SOLD IN OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN THE STATES OF CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, IOWA, MAINE, MARYLAND, MASSACHUSETTS, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, MISSOURI, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW JERSEY, NEW YORK, OHIO, PENNSYLVANIA, RHODE ISLAND, VERMONT, WEST VIRGINIA, AND WISCONSIN, AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA. THE FRONT COIL SPRINGS MAY FRACTURE AS A RESULT OF CORROSION IN HIGH CORROSION ENVIRONMENTS. DEPENDING ON THE LOCATION OF THE FRACTURE, A BROKEN SPRING COULD MOVE PAST THE SPRING SEAT AND CONTACT A FRONT TIRE.
The risk
SOME TIRES HAVE DEFLATED DUE TO CONTACT WITH A BROKEN SPRING.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL INSTALL SPRING CATCHER BRACKETS. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN OCTOBER 23, 2001. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT FORD AT 1-866-436-7332.
2 model years covered
Newest first| Vehicle | Complaints | Recalls | Fires | Crashes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 Ford Contour | 846 | 12 | 20 | 50 |
| 1998 Mercury Mystique | 231 | 11 | 7 | 9 |
What this page is, and what to do next
A recall is not an opinion. It is a Part 573 report a manufacturer is required by federal law to file once it decides a defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety, and it commits them to repairing the vehicle at no cost to the owner. The three passages above are the manufacturer’s own wording as published by NHTSA.
This page describes the campaign. It cannot tell you whether one particular car has already been through the shop — that is tracked by VIN, and only the manufacturer knows it. Check yours at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with a franchised dealer, quoting campaign number 01V255000.
Full record for the 1998 Ford Contour → · Recalls carrying a do-not-drive advisory → · Where this data comes from →