Consumer Complaint Detail
FORD / CROWN VICTORIA / 1993
0 Injured
0 Death
No Fire
| Components - Details | |
|---|---|
| NHTSA Complaint Number: 004283216 | Incident Date: Jun, 05 2004 |
| Consumer's City: OLATHE | Consumer's State: KS |
| Vehicle Transmission Type: AUTO | Manufacturers Name: Ford Motor Company |
| Model Name: CROWN VICTORIA | Model Year: 1993 |
| Vehicle Involved in a Crash: No | Component's Description: Suspension:front:control arm:lower ball joint |
| Vehicle Involved in a Fire: No | Persons Injured: 0 |
| Vehicle's VIN#: 2FACP73W6PX | Date added to File: May, 25 2021 |
| Date Complaint Received: Jun, 07 2004 | Complaint Type: IVOQ |
| Incident Reported To Police: No | Purchase Date: Aug, 11 2001 |
| Was Original Owner: No | Anti-lock Brakes: No |
| Number of Cylinders: 8 | Date of Manufacturer: - |
| Was Vehicle Towed: - | Description of the Complaints: On june 6, 2004 while driving at approximately 35 mph the passenger side front end dropped down and scraped the pavement, the steering wheel jumped around and the right front tire blew. looking under the car revealed that the lower control arm ball joint had separated and pulled free from the control arm. the lower control arm had been forced into the sidewall of the tire and gouged a huge hole in it. had this happened at highway speeds it could have been catastrophic with loss of control of the vehicle. the exposed ball joint end was dry (no lubricant) and i could see galling on the upper top half of the "ball". these are sealed ball joints that have no grease fitting and thus no provision for lubrication. the car had to be towed. it is sitting in my driveway at this time available for inspection by anyone. i looked up recalls on the internet and found nhtsa recall history listing "1992-99: bearing within lower ball joint can weaken slowly during use and eventually crack; could result in separation, allowing control arm to drop to the ground" and elsewhere recall no. 1998251 refers to crown victoria " bearing loads can lead to thinning and eventual cracking of the lower control arm ball joint" . i also found nhtsa records of ball joint failures under the odi id numbers of: 835503, 713546, 505865, 700771, 714657, 710815. i also found at alldata.com under automotive recalls a tsb no. 98s37 of dec. '98 "recall - front lower control arm ball joint replacement". i called ford on june 8, 2004 and talked to a rep named norman (i.d. no. 2357) and case reference no. [xxx] and he told me that my car [xxx] had no recall notices and therefore it's not a problem. i told him that this defective vehicle situation could cause a fatal vehicle accident and asked to talk to his supervisor. he told me that there wasn't a superior i could take the matter up with. *ak updated 07/25/2012 *js information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6) |