The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched an investigation into Ford Motor Company‘s handling of a 2022 recall that affected nearly 49,000 Mustang Mach-E vehicles.
Ford initiated the recall due to an issue with the Mach-E’s high-voltage battery main contactors. There were reports of the components overheating as a consequence of both DC fast charging and frequent rapid acceleration. In some instances, overheating led to an abrupt loss of power in propulsion and increased the chances of a collision.
Ford temporarily stopped shipments of the Mach-E to dealerships and introduced two software updates to address the concerns. These updates were implemented to monitor the contactors’ temperature and decrease battery power to mitigate potential harm. The automaker then released a technical service bulletin outlining the replacement procedure for the affected models.
However, a trio of Mach-E owners filed a federal lawsuit against Ford in 2022, claiming the automaker was aware of the design flaw. Even though these owners were alerted to the recall, the complaint argued that it was unclear whether Ford had a “real solution” for the problem. According to the lawsuit, Ford should have informed customers about the flaws at the time of purchase.
The complaints don’t stop there. The NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) launched an investigative probe into the recall after receiving 12 customer complaints alleging that their Mach-E vehicles are still experiencing problems despite receiving the fix.
As reported by Reuters, one Mach-E owner told the NHTSA that two days after receiving the software update, the vehicle suffered a second catastrophic failure of its high-voltage battery junction box.
