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Ford South Africa recalls 4,556 Kugas

Xinhua, January 17, 2017 Adjust font size:

Ford South Africa said Monday that they are recalling their Kuga 1.6-litre EcoBoost engine vehicles for safety checks.

In December 2015, a Kuga vehicle caught fire, trapped and killed a South African. About 48 Ford Kugas have caught fire in the country and 11 of them in this month.

The CEO of Ford Motor Company Southern Africa Jeff Nemeth said they are not aware of any injuries caused by the Kuga's malfunctioning but are concerned about them catching fires. Engineers are working hard to establish the cause of the fires.

Kugas are made in Spain and had their engines to be taken to the U.S. for investigations for the fires, he said, "We're now announcing a voluntary safety recall for the affected Ford 1.6. Our investigation has enabled us to narrow the number from the originally stated 6,300 to a total of 4,556 affected vehicles. We understand customers concerns and will reassure these concerns and will work with dealers to ensure each case is treated fair."

Over 4,556 vehicles made between 2012 and 2014 are expected to be recalled for safety checks. Nemeth said Kuga users would be offered courtesy cars and R1,500 fee for tolls.

South Africa's National Consumer Commission (NCC) said they are concerned about the number incidents involving the Kuga. NCC Commissioner Ebrahim Mohamed said they met Ford official since December over the issue.

He said, "A product poses any risk to our consumers does not have a place in our marketplace. ...It is for this reason that the NCC requested an urgent meeting last week to inform Ford of our decision to authorize a safety recall of the vehicle on terms that will be dictated by the NCC."

"No brand is bigger than the law," Mohamed said. Endit