Photo: Ford
Just as in most parts of North America winter is beginning to rear its head, American carmaker Ford announced that a piece of hardware used to bring engines to optimum running temperature during the cold season is in need of some fixing.
On Friday, Ford said that in the coming weeks it will be recalling a total of 874,000 F-150 and Super Duty pickup trucks due to an issue with the block heater cable.
More to the point, the Blue Oval says that the heater cable’s splice connector can become contaminated with water and other elements, leading to corrosion and damage over time. Since the heaters work by being plugged into an electrical outlet, water in the cable could turn into a short and the rendering of the heater inoperable.
As per the official statement, any risk to safety occurs only when the cable is plugged in. Three fires originating from the engine block heater cable splice connector were reported to Ford as a result of this fault, which resulted in minor property damage in just one of the cases. No injuries or accidents have been reported as a result of this.
The cars affected by the recall include F-150 trucks manufactured at Dearborn Truck Plant between March 18, 2014 and Nov. 17, 2018 and at Kansas City Assembly Plant between Aug. 21, 2014 and Nov. 17, 2018.
The recalled Super Duty trucks were built at Ohio Assembly Plant between Feb. 5, 2016 and Nov. 17, 2018 and at Kentucky Truck Plant between Oct. 8, 2015 and Nov. 17, 2018
In all, 874,000 vehicles are affected, 410,289 in the United States and federal territories and 463,793 in Canada.
The fix for this issue will come of course free of charge and consists of replacing the heater cable if any damage or corrosion is detected. For the cables found to be in working order dielectric grease will be applied to the splice connector as a precaution.
More to the point, the Blue Oval says that the heater cable’s splice connector can become contaminated with water and other elements, leading to corrosion and damage over time. Since the heaters work by being plugged into an electrical outlet, water in the cable could turn into a short and the rendering of the heater inoperable.
As per the official statement, any risk to safety occurs only when the cable is plugged in. Three fires originating from the engine block heater cable splice connector were reported to Ford as a result of this fault, which resulted in minor property damage in just one of the cases. No injuries or accidents have been reported as a result of this.
The cars affected by the recall include F-150 trucks manufactured at Dearborn Truck Plant between March 18, 2014 and Nov. 17, 2018 and at Kansas City Assembly Plant between Aug. 21, 2014 and Nov. 17, 2018.
The recalled Super Duty trucks were built at Ohio Assembly Plant between Feb. 5, 2016 and Nov. 17, 2018 and at Kentucky Truck Plant between Oct. 8, 2015 and Nov. 17, 2018
In all, 874,000 vehicles are affected, 410,289 in the United States and federal territories and 463,793 in Canada.
The fix for this issue will come of course free of charge and consists of replacing the heater cable if any damage or corrosion is detected. For the cables found to be in working order dielectric grease will be applied to the splice connector as a precaution.
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