Late last year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation into model year 2004 Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey minivans, and 2003 Chevrolet Express full-size vans. Over 80,000 vehicles could be potentially by the investigation.
Now the federal agency is upgradings its investigation of the Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey to “engineering analysis,” the next step toward a full recall. The original issue involved complaints from owners involving severe corrosion and rusting over the minivans’ third row seating, specifically around the rear wheel wells. The NHTSA reports complaints ranging from difficulty in latching the rear seat to the anchor plate actually detaching from the floor.
The NHTSA states it is comparing not only the 2004 Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey minivans to their virtually identical 2007 counterparts, but Nissan’s MY2003-2004 minivans as well for comparison purposes. Ford states it is fully cooperating with the agency.
No accidents, injuries, or fatalities have been reported at the time of this post.
Source: Detroit News
