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Ford Recalls 170,500 Vehicles for Various Defects

DETROIT July 7, 2004; Poornima Gupta writing for Reuters reported that Ford Motor Co. on Wednesday said it has recalled 170,500 vehicles in North America over a variety of defects that could lead to rattling seats, squeaky wheels and trouble starting engines.

The recall affects 145,500 F-Series Super Duty pickup trucks, Excursion sport utility vehicles, Crown Victoria police vehicles, and Lincoln Town cars, Ford spokesman Glenn Ray said.

The 2003 model-year pickup trucks and Excursion SUVs equipped with diesel engines have problems with battery connectors, which could affect the performance of the engine, cause it not to start and potentially melt other vehicle parts due to the high voltage, Ford said.

Both the vehicles were built from December 1, 2002, through March 31, 2003, in Ford's Kentucky truck plant.

The Crown Victoria and Lincoln Town cars have defective axles that could cause wheels to squeak or the vehicles to come to a stop, the Ford said.

Ford also recalled 25,000 2004 model-year Taurus, Mercury Sable and Thunderbird cars due to problems with the front seats, which could rattle or come loose.

Dealers have been asked to stop selling and demonstrating the Taurus and Sable models with driver side power seats built from Nov. 17, 2003, through Jan. 15, 2004. The Thunderbirds with driver-side power seats built from Dec. 15, 2003, through Jan. 20, 2004, are involved in the recall.

No injuries or deaths have been linked to the recall, Ford said.