Ford Recalls 6.80 Lakh Cars Over Front Seat Belt Issue In North America

American auto giant Ford Motor Company has announced a recall of 6,80,000 units in North America over seatbelt issues. The recall is primarily for mid-size sedans including the Ford Fusion manufactured between 2013 and 2016; Lincoln MKZ produced between 2013 and 2015 as well as the Ford Mondeo range produced between 2015 and 2016.

The recall concerns the failure of the front seat belts to secure passengers in the event of a crash, which is of course, a seat belt's primary objective. On sensing that car is stopping, the pre-tensioners tighten the seat belts as needed.

In a statement, Ford said that it believes the heat generated when the seat belt pre-tensioners are deployed can cause the seat belts to break. This results in the occupants not being held back by the belt. The company also confirmed that two injuries related to the issue have surfaced.

As a solution to the issue, dealers will inject insulation into pre-tensioners of the affected vehicles to protect the cables from the heat.

The recall primarily affects vehicles in the US, Canada and Mexico. Dealerships will soon started contacting customers of the affected vehicles, while the recall is scheduled to commence from 16th January next year. All repairs on the affected vehicle will be done free of cost, said the company.