The United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) stated Friday it was opening a preliminary investigation into 841,000 Ford Motor automobiles over issues the wheel may get separated while the cars are in motion.
The auto safety firm stated it was investigating 2014-2016 model Ford Fusion cars following three reports of steering wheel bolts becoming loose, including one entirely removing as a driver tried to develop into a gas station.
Ford stated in an emailed statement Friday it was complying “with the agenda on its investigation, as we always do.”
Steering wheel recalls are rare however not unmatched.
In 2011, General Motors in 2011 recalled 2,100 Cruze vehicles since the steering wheel could separate. The automaker also issued a separate recall for about 150 Buick Encore SUVs in 2013 to resolve steering wheels that might come off.
Last week, Ford stated it was recalling 1.34 million 2015-17 Ford F-150 and 2017 Ford Super Duty trucks in North America to add water shields to side door latches at an expense of $267 million. The recall followed authorities in Canada asked Ford for responses in March after four reports of doors opening while people were driving.
Ford has now recalled over 5 million vehicles for varying door latch-related problems since last year, but the company said the problem in last week’s door-latch recall was different from previous ones.
The company has formerly disclosed plans to spend $935 million on other recalls revealed since August 2016.
