Consumer Complaint Detail

MERCURY / VILLAGER / 1998

Recalls
2 Injured
Investigations
0 Death
Complaints
No Fire
Components - Details
NHTSA Complaint Number: 001066291 Incident Date: Feb, 19 2001
Consumer's City: MONTVALE Consumer's State: NJ
Vehicle Transmission Type: Manufacturers Name: Ford Motor Company
Model Name: VILLAGER Model Year: 1998
Vehicle Involved in a Crash: Yes Component's Description: Air bags:frontal
Vehicle Involved in a Fire: No Persons Injured: 2
Vehicle's VIN#: 4M2ZV1110WD Date added to File: May, 25 2021
Date Complaint Received: Feb, 27 2001 Complaint Type: IVOQ
Incident Reported To Police: Yes Purchase Date: Nov, 30 1998
Was Original Owner: Yes Anti-lock Brakes: Yes
Number of Cylinders: 0 Date of Manufacturer: -
Was Vehicle Towed: - Description of the Complaints: While stopped at a red light, dual front airbags deployed, causing my car to lurch forward into vehicle in front of mine. very little structural exterior/interior damage was done to my car which indicated that the airbags may have either caused the accident, or gone off unnecessarily at too low a speed. on the very same day, a safety recall notice from ford motor co. arrived in the mail indicating that there is also a defect in the filler pipe vent hose of my vehicle which could cause a fire. did this somehow cause a malfunction of the airbag sensors? or is there a fuel line irregularity that could have caused the sudden lurching forward of my car? i had noticed in the weeks prior to this incident, somewhat jerky acceleration of my car, but thought it was just due to the cold weather. also, there is evidence of gasoline or oil having leaked from car on the floor of my garage. my husband and i only noticed this when we returned home after the accident, and our car was not parked in its usual spot. i hope you can investigate this matter. i believe that if airbags were to go off spontaneously at a higher speed, they would most certainly cause a complete loss of control of the car, and possible fatalities. additionally, if one's foot is accidentally released from the brake pedal, but not placed on the accelerator, should the car lurch or surge forward? i feel that the trauma and sudden deployment of the airbag may have caused me to recoil and release the brake, thereby causing a loss of control of my vehicle. fortunately, we were stopped at a light, and my children and i only sustained minor physical injuries.*ak