Photo: Ford
The rear-right half shaft fitted to certain 2022 model year Ford Mustang Mach-E crossovers hasn’t been properly manufactured. The stems of the rear-right half shaft may break under load, resulting in loss of propulsion.
The Ford Motor Company, which isn’t exactly on top of quality control as of late, was informed of this problem on July 29th. Two days earlier, the Cuautitlan Assembly Plant in Mexico identified two vehicles with broken rear-right half shafts. One shaft was identified just before in preparation for shipping, and the other was identified during squeak and rattle validation.
Upon further investigation, the Ford Motor Company discovered that driveline supplier Neapco introduced this half shaft – namely part number MZ9P-4K138-EA – was first introduced to production on July 18th, 2022.
Come August 3rd, the Mexico-based supplier informed the second-largest automaker in America that Yecheng, the supplier for the green turning operation, “suspended its 100% inspection of the bottom wall thickness of the rear-right half shaft outer race production line due to labor shortages caused by the Chinese New Year.” In other words, the tier-2 supplier couldn’t give a monkey’s you-know-what about its contract with Neapco.
Documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Administration reveal that both failures were caused by “a thin wall on the outer race, allowing the half-shaft stem to break under load. Improper placement during the green turning in the lathe caused too much material to be removed, exceeding the specified minimum wall thickness of 9.1 millimeters (0.35 inches).”
Neapco told the Ford Motor Company that 4,608 parts were manufactured as part of the suspect lots, and shipping records reveal a total of 504 half shafts delivered to the Cuautitlan Stamping and Assembly Plant. All of the rear-right half shafts at Neapco’s Saltillo facility had been sorted on August 15th, with the supplier identifying a total of seven non-compliant parts.
Ford isn’t aware of any reports or warranty claims related to this concern.
Despite that, no fewer than 1,175 units of the Mustang Mach-E will be recalled. The suspect vehicles were manufactured between July 18th and July 29th for the 2022 model year. Owners will be notified by first-class mail on September 19th with instructions to bring their crossovers in for repair.
The remedy is – of course – a right-rear half shaft produced within specifications. The Ford Motor Company further highlights that all parts have been measured to ensure dimensional compliance to specifications since August 15th, when Ford resumed production of the electric vehicle.
Upon further investigation, the Ford Motor Company discovered that driveline supplier Neapco introduced this half shaft – namely part number MZ9P-4K138-EA – was first introduced to production on July 18th, 2022.
Come August 3rd, the Mexico-based supplier informed the second-largest automaker in America that Yecheng, the supplier for the green turning operation, “suspended its 100% inspection of the bottom wall thickness of the rear-right half shaft outer race production line due to labor shortages caused by the Chinese New Year.” In other words, the tier-2 supplier couldn’t give a monkey’s you-know-what about its contract with Neapco.
Documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Administration reveal that both failures were caused by “a thin wall on the outer race, allowing the half-shaft stem to break under load. Improper placement during the green turning in the lathe caused too much material to be removed, exceeding the specified minimum wall thickness of 9.1 millimeters (0.35 inches).”
Neapco told the Ford Motor Company that 4,608 parts were manufactured as part of the suspect lots, and shipping records reveal a total of 504 half shafts delivered to the Cuautitlan Stamping and Assembly Plant. All of the rear-right half shafts at Neapco’s Saltillo facility had been sorted on August 15th, with the supplier identifying a total of seven non-compliant parts.
Ford isn’t aware of any reports or warranty claims related to this concern.
Despite that, no fewer than 1,175 units of the Mustang Mach-E will be recalled. The suspect vehicles were manufactured between July 18th and July 29th for the 2022 model year. Owners will be notified by first-class mail on September 19th with instructions to bring their crossovers in for repair.
The remedy is – of course – a right-rear half shaft produced within specifications. The Ford Motor Company further highlights that all parts have been measured to ensure dimensional compliance to specifications since August 15th, when Ford resumed production of the electric vehicle.
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