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1992 FORD EXPLORER — SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP

crash · 287509 · 2001-04-11

Vehicle

Make
FORD
Model
EXPLORER
Year
1992
Manufacturer
Ford Motor Company
Component
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:ANTILOCK/TRACTION CONTROL/ELECTRONIC LIMITED SLIP
Speed
50 mph

Severity

Deaths
0
Injured
0
Fire
No
Crash
Yes
Police report
No
Medical attention
No
Vehicle towed
No

Narrative

I BELIEVE THAT A VERY SERIOUS DESIGN FLAW EXIST IN THE BRAKE SYSTEM ON THE FORD EXPLORER. THE LIGHT ON MY ABS BRAKES WOULD COME ON ONCE IN A WHILE THEN GO OUT. I THINK THAT MOST PEOPLE WOULD NOT EVEN NOTICE. IT HAPPENED TO ME TWICE THAT I AM AWARE OF, THE FIRST TIME I WAS BRAKING MODERATELY HARD FOR A RED LIGHT MY VEHICLE IMMEDIATELY SPUN HARD TO THE LEFT I WAS ABLE TO CORRECT IT AND REGAIN CONTROL I WAS DRIVING AT 40 MPH. THE SECOND TIME IT OCCURRED I WAS DRIVING AT 50 MPH UNDER THE EXACT SAME CONDITIONS BUT THIS TIME I SPUN OUT AND HIT A CURB DAMAGING MY LEFT REAR RIM AND BREAKING THE SUPPORT CABLE FOR MY SPARE TIRE. THIS TIME I TRACED THE PROBLEM TO THE SWITCH ON THE BRAKE FLUID RESERVOIR. ON A VEHICLE THAT SPINS OUT SO EASY I DONT THINK THAT IT IS A GOOD IDEA TO DISABLE THE ABS BRAKES WITH A LOW FLUID SENSOR. I HAD PLENTY OF FLUID IN MY RESERVOIR THE SWITCH JUST FAILED, IF THE FAULTY SWITCH HAD BEEN SET UP TO JUST INDICATE LOW FLUID THE DANGEROUS CONDITIONS THAT HAPPENED WOULD NOT OCCURRE. THIS IS A COPY OF THE LETTER I SENT TO FORD. I THINK THAT A LOT OF THE ROLL OVER ACCIDENTS ARE CAUSED BY THIS PROBLEM.*AK

Source

Authoritative
NHTSA ODI Flat-File Downloads
ODI Number
743858
Machine
JSON-LD · Markdown