- Vehicles
- 610,000
- Built between
- Jul 1980 – Mar 1983
- Models
- 4
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 18 July 1983
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between July 1980 and March 1983. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1981-1983 Ford EscortBuilt July 1980 to March 1983
- 1982-1983 Ford EXPBuilt July 1980 to March 1983
- 1982-1983 Mercury LN7Built July 1980 to March 1983
- 1981-1983 Mercury LynxBuilt July 1980 to March 1983
What the defect is
Door lock pillars could develop fatigue cracks from normal usage of door, at the point where door latch striker reinforcements are attached.
What gets fixed
ANY DAMAGED LOCK PILLARS WILL BE REPAIRED AND REINFORCEMENTS WILL BE INSTALLED BETWEEN THE DOOR LATCH STRIKER AND LOCK PILLARS.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJuly 1980 to March 1983
- Recall reported to NHTSA22 June 1983
- Owners notified18 July 1983
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 22 June 1983.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- FORD MOTOR COMPANY
- Recall initiated by
- MFR
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles; two door.system: structure; door lock pillars.consequences of defect: door may not latch properly. In driving over roughroads the door could open, allowing passenger to fall from vehicle and becomeinjured.
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.