- Vehicles
- 898,739
- Built between
- May 1996 – Mar 1999
- Models
- 9
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 27 March 1999
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between May 1996 and March 1999. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1997-1999 Ford ExplorerBuilt May 1996 to March 1999
- 1999 Ford F-250Built March 1998 to March 1999
- 1999 Ford F-350Built March 1998 to March 1999
- 1999 Ford F-450 SDBuilt March 1998 to March 1999
- 1999 Ford F-550 SDBuilt March 1998 to March 1999
- 1999 Ford F53Built March 1998 to March 1999
- 1998-1999 Ford MustangBuilt March 1998 to March 1999
- 1998-1999 Ford RangerBuilt January 1998 to March 1999
- 1998-1999 Mercury MountaineerBuilt January 1998 to March 1999
What the defect is
Vehicle description: certain 1997-1999 rhd explorer equipped with 4.0L ohv/sohc engines and cruise control built from may 29, 1996 through march 4, 1999; 1998-1999 explorer/mountaineers equipped with 4.0L ohv/sohc or 5.0L engines or 1998-1999 rangers equipped with 2.5L, 3.0L ffv/efi or 4.0L engines and cruise control built from january 5, 1998 through march 4, 1999; 1998-1999 mustangs equipped with 3.8L, 4.6L 2-VALVE or 4-VALVE engines and cruise control built from march 2, 1998 through march 4, 1999; 1999 F250/F350/F450/F550 (over 8,500 lbs.) trucks equipped with 5.4L or 6.8L engines and cruise control built from march 2, 1998 through march 4, 1999; and 1999 F-53 stripped chassis equipped with 5.4L or 6.8L engines and cruise control built from march 2, 1998 through march 4, 1999. A cruise control cable can interfere with the speed control servo pulley and not allow the throttle to return to idle when disengaging the cruise control.
What could happen
If the cruise control is used and this condition is present, a stuck throttle could result, which could potentially result in a crash.
What gets fixed
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE CRUISE CONTROL CABLES. AT THE PRESENT TIME, THE REPLACEMENT CABLES ARE NOT AVAILABLE. CUSTOMERS ARE BEING ADVISED NOT TO USE THE CRUISE CONTROL SYSTEM UNTIL A REPLACEMENT CAN BE MADE.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtMay 1996 to March 1999
- Recall reported to NHTSA30 March 1999
- Owners notified27 March 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 30 March 1999.
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
- 99S09
- 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
A pre-release warning letter that identified an interim fix until the parts for the permanent fix became available was mailed to owners beginning march 27, 1999.A second owner notification, identifying the permanent fix was mailed to owners beginning may 24, 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.