Ford Under Gov's Investigation Due to Faulty Tire Valves

More than 1 million Ford vehicles were equipped with faulty tire valves made by a Chinese company, msnbc reported today. The government is already investigating the case after 37 complaints were sent to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, all of them concerning Ford tire valves. Affected models include F-150, Mustang, Edge, Expedition, Focus, Espace and Fusion, the same source added, with a few units sold in 2007.

Moreover, it may seem like the same valves are being used by most new Ford models excepting the F-Series Super Duty Trucks and Econoline vans, msnbc added. More importantly, none of the complaints reported crashes or injuries but some of them said that the faulty valves damaged the tire and required replacement.

"We've seen reports of cracking and leaking. We have not identified a risk to motor vehicle safety," Ford spokesman Wes Sherwood explained. However, Ford did not mentioned if the American company plans to recall the affected models but we're still waiting for the NHTSA preliminary evaluation.

All valve stems were manufactured by Topseal Automotive, a subsidiary of Shanghai Baolong Automotive Corporation, one of the main Ford suppliers for the past models.

“The first incident occurred while parked during shopping hours. The left back tire let out a hissing sound that was coming from the tire areal. The valve stem was leaking air, the tire was going flat. The second incident occurred on 07/31/08, the right front wheel (passenger side) was also losing air. Once again, it was the valve steam – mileage 14,933. The vehicle was purchased on 02/16/07,” a complaint posted on the NHTSA website and concerning a 2007 Ford Focus reads.