Ford Electrical System: Cables

Ford is recalling about 4,000 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system. If the cable wears, a complete electrical system failure can occur and potential sparking and/or ignition of flammable material.

Campaign
98V056000
Manufacturer
FORD MOTOR COMPANY
Reported
12 March 1998
Vehicles
4,000
Built between
Oct 1997 – Feb 1998
Models
2
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
16 March 1998
Repaired
Not reported
Unrepaired
Not reported

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between October 1997 and February 1998. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 1999 Ford F-350Built October 1997 to February 1998
  • 1999 Ford SupercabBuilt October 1997 to February 1998

What the defect is

Vehicle description: supercab pickup trucks. The positive battery cable is taped to the negative cable which contains a clip to secure the assembly to the side frame rail. If incorrectly positioned, the positive battery cable can contact the air conditioning compressor pulley.

What could happen

If the cable wears, a complete electrical system failure can occur and potential sparking and/or ignition of flammable material.

What gets fixed

DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND/OR MODIFY THE BATTERY CABLE CLIPS TO ENSURE THAT THEY ARE PROPERLY LOCATED.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtOctober 1997 to February 1998
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA12 March 1998
  3. Owners notified16 March 1998

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 12 March 1998.

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

Owner/dealer notification began march 16,1998.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 free of charge should contact ford at 1-800-248-0186. Also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).

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.

Same component

Same brand