NHTSA Defect Investigation #DP05005

SPARK PLUG EJECTION FROM CYLINDER HEAD: Engine And Engine Cooling**

CLOSED

no recall issued

** This defect investigation is filed under 3 related vehicle components.
2003 FORD CROWN VICTORIA -- On September 6, 2005, ODI received a petition requesting that the Agency investigate allegations of engine spark plug ejection in certain model year 1997 through 2004 Ford vehicles with Triton V-8 and V-10 engines.ODI received a total of 474 non-duplicative complaints on the subject vehicles where the complainant, or the dealer repairing the vehicle, reported that a spark plug detached from the cylinder and/or ejected from the engine.as of December 8, 2005, ODI is not aware of any allegations where the alleged defect resulted in a loss of vehicle control, a crash, an injury, or a fatality in any of the 10,319,810 subject vehicles.in addition, ODI is aware of only two incidents where the vehicle stalled without restart.information contained in the ODI consumer complaints and obtained from 72 telephone interviews with complainants showed the following:(1) 99% of the complaints were on MY 1997 to 2002 subject vehicles.(2) most the complainants reported hearing a loud pop while driving or upon starting up the vehicle followed by a loud, repetitive clicking or popping sound.(3) many of the complainants reported that the popping sound was accompanied by some loss of vehicle power; however, in 99% of the incidents reported, the vehicle did not stall.in the very few incidents where the vehicle did stall, most vehicles could be restarted.(4) only a small percentage of the complainants cited that they smelled gas or a slight burning smell when the incident occurred.(5) in all but a very few incidents, vehicle damage was limited to the engine.in one incident, the complaint reported that the fuel rail was damaged and replaced after one of the spark plugs ejected from the engine; however, the complainant reported that the damage did not result in any type of fuel leak or fire.in another incident, the only incident where a fire was alleged, the complainant reported that no fluid leak was observed, but that a fire resulted after the spark plug had ejected from the engine and he had restarted the vehicle and driven to another location.none of the complainants reported any damage to the vehicle hood.(6) only two complainants reported that they observed what appeared to be some drops of fuel coming from the cylinder where the spark plug had failed or on the spark plug itself; however, each of these complainants reported that there was no smoke or flames as a result of his incident.as the petitioner noted, and ODI¿S analysis showed, it is possible for a spark plug to detach from the engine cylinder threads in the subject vehicles.however, ODI¿S analysis of 474 complaints describing such incidents found only a very few alleged any safety-related consequences.none of these showed any evidence of a serious safety consequence.given the large population and relatively long exposure time of the subject vehicles, the complaint analysis indicates that the risk to motor vehicle safety from the alleged defect is very low.in view of the foregoing, it is unlikely that NHTSA would issue an order for the notification and remedy of the alleged defect at the conclusion of the investigation requested in the petition.therefore, in view of the need to allocate and prioritize NHTSA¿S limited resources to best accomplish the Agency¿S safety mission, the petition is denied. Investigation was initiated on September 22 2005. Closed on January 04 2006. For detailed information & supporting documents, see the official NHTSA page concerning investigation #DP05005 »

NHTSA Defect Investigation #EA03001

CNG TANK EXPLOSION: Fuel System, Gasoline:Storage:Tank Assembly

RECALL »

Recall #03V472000

2003 FORD CROWN VICTORIA -- In September 2002, a fuel cylinder in a natural gas powered vehicle (ngv) exploded during a fire.Ford and VRTC test engineers jointly examined the incident vehicle and reviewed testing to determine whether the performance of the pressure relief valve (PRD) was proper.the purpose of a PRD is to protect a compressed natural gas tank from overpressure by allowing the CNG to vent when the temperature reaches a specific point.the PRD was removed from the failed tank and subjected to a yield temperature determination test. It was concluded that a direct flame (from the interior of the vehicle) onto the cylinder (located behind the rear seat in the trunk)compromised the hoop strength of the natural gas cylinder, thus allowing the cylinder to fail prior to the PRD releasing at itsdesigned temperature.as a result of this testing and review of the involved vehicle, Ford has developed an insulator to insulate the natural gas fuel tank from a locally directed flame projecting from the interior of the vehicle.insulators will be installed behind the back seat on subject vehicles to prevent future failures of this type. Ford's action addresses the concerns of ODI.therefore, this investigation is closed. Investigation was initiated on January 27 2003. Closed on November 19 2003. For detailed information & supporting documents, see the official NHTSA page concerning investigation #EA03001 »

NHTSA Defect Investigation #PE02071

CNG TANK EXPLODING IN A FIRE: Fuel System, Gasoline:Storage:Tank Assembly

CLOSED

no recall issued

2003 FORD CROWN VICTORIA -- An explosion of a compressed natural gas (CNG) tank should not be able to occur, as the tank is fitted with a pressure relief device (PRD). This PRD should release the CNG in the tank, prior to the pressure reaching the tank burst pressure.the PRD did not release in the subject Wisconsin police cruiser explosion.NHTSA has recovered the PRD valve from the tank that exploded and testing will be necessary to establish why this tank safety valve did not release in the very high temperature fire that occurred in the police cruiser.there is only the single known event, but due to the catastropic force of such an explosion and the potential for injury and loss of life, this investigation is being upgraded. Investigation was initiated on October 01 2002. Closed on January 27 2003. For detailed information & supporting documents, see the official NHTSA page concerning investigation #PE02071 »

NHTSA Defect Investigation #PE04010

REAR AXLE FRACTURE: Power Train:Axle Assembly:Axle Shaft

RECALL »

Recall #04V328000

2003 FORD CROWN VICTORIA -- This PE was opened after ODI became aware of two allegations concerning rear axle fracture and partial wheel separation involving MY 2003 Ford Crown Victoria police interceptors (cvpi).initially, the PE's scope involved all MY 2003 Grand Marquis, Crown Victoria, and Lincoln town cars (I.e., "panther platform") produced through January 2003.while gathering information about this issue, it became evident that the failures were confined to long-wheelbase Lincoln town cars and the cvpi's due to their unique weight distribution and usage profiles.Ford's recall addresses these vehicles.both the company and ODI are continuing to monitor the field performance of the axles and will take appropriate action as required. Investigation was initiated on January 22 2004. Closed on July 08 2004. For detailed information & supporting documents, see the official NHTSA page concerning investigation #PE04010 »

NHTSA Defect Investigation #RQ04007

FRACTURE OF THE STEEL WHEEL RIM: Wheels**

CLOSED

no recall issued

** This defect investigation is filed under 4 related vehicle components.
2003 FORD CROWN VICTORIA -- During a September 23, 2004 meeting and in subsequent discussions in November, Ford advised the Office Of Defects Investigation (ODI) of their plans to introduce an improved steel wheel for manufacturing and service component use on the subject vehicles, indicating this would occur in December 2004.the new wheel design incorporates an additional manufacturing process (shot peening) which lowers tensile stress in the surface layer of the rim material adjacent to the circumferential weld. Theoretically this should improve rim durability by reducing fatigue crack initiation sites.indications from Ford¿S accelerated testing methods show an improvement in the performance of the new wheel.in addition to prior safety recall 03V279 and service action (sa) 03M03, Ford will announce a new extended warranty sa for vehicles built prior to December 2004 that suffer rim fractures in service.the new wheel design will be used as a remedy.Ford advises that a sa is sufficient for addressing future wheel failures (including recall 03V279 remedy wheel failures) because: 1) failure rates are low based on Ford¿S analysis, and 2) driver warnings (repetitive slow air loss, and or steering wheel vibration) allow early and safe detection of cracked wheels.ODI has received 25 vehicle owner questionnaire (voq) reports (involving 22 vehicles) which allege a rim fracture of one or more steel wheels.about half the reports involve vehicles built with the remedy wheel used for recall 03V279, and most of the remaining vehicles were subject to the recall.the process of identifying pertinent Ford complaints is made difficult by Ford¿S prior recall and warranty program activities.the manufacturer complaint and warranty counts, which primarily involve failures of recall 03V279 remedy wheels, are based on analysis conducted to date and are considered to be conservative.further investigation is required, thus ODI is upgrading this investigation to an engineering analysis (ea).during the ea, pertinent failure reports and consequences will be identified and reviewed.ODI and Ford will discuss details for conducting an audit analysis of failed wheels replaced under the new sa.additionally, ODI is awaiting Ford¿S lab analysis of two wheels which were the subject of voq reports, one of which was involved in the noted crash event.a determination will be made as to whether Ford¿S service action is sufficient for addressing ongoing rim fractures. Investigation was initiated on August 02 2004. Closed on December 20 2004. For detailed information & supporting documents, see the official NHTSA page concerning investigation #RQ04007 »

NHTSA Defect Investigation #PE03009

FRACTURE OF THE STEEL WHEEL RIM: Wheels

RECALL »

Recall #03V279000

2003 FORD CROWN VICTORIA -- The subject wheel (new for MY 2003) is used on Crown Victoria (cv) and Grand Marquis.complaint data indicates that wheel failure affects primarily the commercial specification cv model (police and taxi) which has unique design characteristics and is generally subjected to higher usage demands.during Ford's analysis, it was determined that cyclic bending moment fatigue could cause rim cracks to occur in the heat affected zone adjacent to the circumferential weld.Ford implemented changes in wheel manufacture in September 2002 and introduced a new wheel design with a thicker rim in April 2003.ODI found evidence that indicated rapid crack propogation might have occurred in seven wheel failure incidents, two of which lead to tire debeading.Ford has announced that 29,946 commercial spec cv vehicles, manufactured prior to the September change, will be recalled to have the April 2003 design wheel installed.ODI will continue to monitor for wheel failures in the subject vehicles not covered by the recall. Investigation was initiated on February 25 2003. Closed on August 08 2003. For detailed information & supporting documents, see the official NHTSA page concerning investigation #PE03009 »