Consumer Complaint Detail

FORD / CROWN VICTORIA / 1994

Recalls
0 Injured
Investigations
0 Death
Complaints
Yes Fire
Components - Details
NHTSA Complaint Number: 005034854 Incident Date: Aug, 13 2005
Consumer's City: HYATTSVILLE Consumer's State: MD
Vehicle Transmission Type: AUTO Manufacturers Name: Ford Motor Company
Model Name: CROWN VICTORIA Model Year: 1994
Vehicle Involved in a Crash: No Component's Description: Vehicle speed control
Vehicle Involved in a Fire: Yes Persons Injured: 0
Vehicle's VIN#: 2FALP74W8RX Date added to File: May, 23 2021
Date Complaint Received: Aug, 18 2005 Complaint Type: IVOQ
Incident Reported To Police: No Purchase Date: Nov, 26 1995
Was Original Owner: Yes Anti-lock Brakes: Yes
Number of Cylinders: 8 Date of Manufacturer: -
Was Vehicle Towed: - Description of the Complaints: On the evening of august 14, 2005, a neighbor informed my family that our parked 1994 ford crown victoria, vin number [xxx], had smoke coming from the hood. it may be on fire. i checked the vehicle and observed that there was smoke coming from under the brake fluid reservoir/cylinder area of the engine compartment/driver's side. no visible fire was detected at this time, but there must have been some sort of combustion that had occurred due to the volume of smoke. (note - all coolant hoses were checked and no defects were observed which would create the appearance of smoke through steam) i checked the fuse box and noticed that the fuse allowing power to the brake activation/deactivation switches was blown. i replaced the fuse and the vehicle started to smoke in a thick white cloud from the same area as described above. the next day i brought the vehicle to the dealer. the dealer's examination revealed that the problem was the speed deactivation switch, which the dealer labels as a "kit - brake switch". rick collins, the service representative told me he was unaware of any problems with ford vehicles, mine in particular that may be catching on fire as a result of this switch. i conducted further research on the internet which led me to believe that there is or may be a problem that could cause death or serious injury to someone. my vehicle was unattended and turned off when the smoke began and this could have easily been a more serious situation. further it appears that ford does not properly inform their employees of potential problems with vehicles and then attempts to cover it up by mislabeling the repair by not correctly identifying the repair parts. updated 07/19/2012 *js information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)