- Vehicles
- 125,000
- Built between
- Aug 1991 – Sep 1993
- Models
- 2
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 27 October 1997
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between August 1991 and September 1993. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1992-1993 Ford ThunderbirdBuilt August 1991 to September 1993
- 1992-1993 Mercury CougarBuilt August 1991 to September 1993
What the defect is
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles originally sold or currently registered in the states of connecticut, district of columbia, delaware, iowa, illinois, indiana, kentucky, massachusetts, maryland, maine, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, wisconsin, and west virginia. Movement of the fuel lines causes the nylon fuel line jumper to chafe against the floor pan. This wear can cause a pin hole in the fuel line resulting in fuel leakage.
What could happen
This fuel leakage results in dampness and fuel odor, and if an ignition source was present, a fire could result.
What gets fixed
DEALERS WILL INSTALL A PLASTIC CONVOLUTE COVERING AROUND THE FUEL LINES. IF THE LINES SHOW A LEAK, THE LINES WILL BE REPLACED FIRST.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtAugust 1991 to September 1993
- Recall reported to NHTSA22 September 1997
- Owners notified27 October 1997
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 September 1997.
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
- Manufacturer's recall number
- 97S84
- 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
Owner notification is expected to begin october 27, 1997. 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 1-800-392-3673.ALSO contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-800-424-9393.
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.