- Vehicles
- 1,610,000
- Built between
- Oct 1985 – Sep 1988
- Models
- 3
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 22 July 1993
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between October 1985 and September 1988. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1986-1988 Ford TaurusBuilt October 1985 to September 1988
- 1988 Lincoln ContinentalBuilt October 1985 to September 1988
- 1986-1988 Mercury SableBuilt October 1985 to September 1988
What the defect is
Vehicle description: taurus and sables built from 10-14-85 through 8-19-88, and lincoln continentals built from 11-4-87 through 9-30-88 (except 1989 - 1991 2.5L taurus and 1989 - 1992 sho). The affected cars were originally sold or currently registered in the following states: connecticut, illinois, indiana, maine, massachusetts, michigan, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, and wisconsin. The body mounts at the rear corners of the subframe, which supports the engine and transmission, may become detached due to corrosion of the subframe mount retaining plate. This would allow the rear corners of the subframe to drop.
What could happen
If one of the rear corners drops, only minor indications of a malfunction such as a clunking noise or slight change in steering wheel alignment are noticeable. However, if both rear corners of the subframe drop, steering becomes very difficult, which could adversely affect vehicle control and possibly result in an accident.
What gets fixed
INSTALL A CORROSION-RESISTANT REINFORCING PLATE AND A NEW BOLT ON BOTH REAR SUBFRAME MOUNTS. THIS RECALL CAMPAIGN HAS BEEN SUPERSEDED BY RECALL 98V-323.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtOctober 1985 to September 1988
- Recall reported to NHTSA23 June 1993
- Owners notified22 July 1993
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 23 June 1993.
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
- ODI
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
This recall campaign has been superseded by recall 98V-323.
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.