Toronto, Ontario — Ford Motor Co. sent out a recall notice this week concerning nearly 90,000 pickup trucks across Canada.
On Monday, Jan. 27, Ford revealed that 89,472 F-150s may contain a defect in the latching mechanism of their tailgates. If water enters the electrical wiring of the system, it could cause a short circuit, resulting in the release of the tailgate latch. This defect could cause the tailgates to open involuntarily, which could lead to the loss of cargo while in motion—obviously posing as a potential high risk to cause an accident.
The affected F-150s were built both at Dearborn Truck Plant in Michigan from July 28, 2014, to Oct. 22, 2018, and Kansas City Assembly Plant from Feb. 19, 2015, to Nov. 4, 2018.
Ford dealers say they will fix the recalled trucks at no charge to the owners. Repairs include the modification of the tailgate-frame wiring harness and the installation of a new tailgate handle release switch.
No crashes or injuries have been reported related to this defect.
The last vehicle recall affecting Ford’s F-series occurred back in December and included almost 30,000 vehicles in Canada. It too was concerning a defect in the trucks’ tailgate.
