- Vehicles
- 2,697,000
- Built between
- Oct 1985 – Jun 1995
- Models
- 3
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 18 January 1999
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between October 1985 and June 1995. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1986-1995 Ford TaurusBuilt October 1985 to June 1995
- 1988-1994 Lincoln ContinentalBuilt November 1987 to November 1994
- 1986-1995 Mercury SableBuilt October 1985 to June 1995
What the defect is
Vehicle description: passenger vehicles originally sold or currently registered in connecticut, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, iowa, kansas, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, nebraska, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virgnia, and wisconsin. The rear lower subframe mount plate nut can experience stress corrosion cracking if subjected to long term exposure to road salts. This can result in fracture and loss of the structural integrity of the subframe mount attachment. Detachment of the body mounts at the rear corners of the subframe, which supports the engine and transmission, allows the rear corners of the subframe to drop.
What could happen
If both rear corners drop, steering would become suddenly very difficult, affecting vehicle control and increasing the risk of a crash.
What gets fixed
DEALERS WILL INSTALL SUBFRAME REAR MOUNT BOLTS, REINFORCEMENT PLATES, AND PLATE NUTS.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtOctober 1985 to June 1995
- Recall reported to NHTSA16 December 1998
- Owners notified18 January 1999
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 16 December 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
- Manufacturer's recall number
- 98S36
- 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
Note:this recall campaign supercedes recall campaign 93V-106.OWNER notification is expected to begin january 18, 1999.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 1-888-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.