Photo: Lincoln
Incorrect headlight lenses in October 2016, an airbag issue in February 2017, and doors that may open while driving in February 2019. That’s right, ladies and gents; the Lincoln Continental is facing the third recall in three years since it was introduced at the 2016 Detroit Auto Show!
Introduced for the 2017 model year, the Continental gained suicide doors in December 2018. The 80th Anniversary Edition sold out extremely fast, all 80 examples of the breed. The Continental with regular doors, however, needs replacement latch assemblies on all four corners, free of charge.
The recall covers 27,609 units of the full-size luxury sedan which shares the vehicle architecture with the Ford Fusion, and that’s a lot of cars. Looking at the sales figures for the previous three years, sales in the United States total 26,031 examples of the breed.
According to a document Lincoln sent to dealers, affected vehicles were manufactured from November 30th, 2015 to November 14th, 2018. Why didn’t the Detroit-based automaker announce the recall sooner? Guess we won’t find out given the corporate nature of the Blue Oval.
“In some of the affected vehicles, the electronic door latch pawl motor may become inoperative and result in a door not being able to close,” explains Lincoln. “A latch pawl that is not fully engaged increases the potential for the door to open while driving, and the risk of injury.”
Lincoln also reports that letters mailed in the week of April 1st are “advising owners that parts are not currently available to repair the vehicles.” On the other hand, parts will be “available in larger quantities by late second quarter.” Given that affected vehicles were built through November 14th, couldn’t Lincoln procure those parts in a timely fashion? Of course it could’ve done exactly so, and this speaks volumes about the endless complaints in regard to Lincoln’s after-sales services.
In the meantime, customers can call Lincoln at 1-866-436-7332 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at 1-888-327-4236 for additional information about the recall.
The recall covers 27,609 units of the full-size luxury sedan which shares the vehicle architecture with the Ford Fusion, and that’s a lot of cars. Looking at the sales figures for the previous three years, sales in the United States total 26,031 examples of the breed.
According to a document Lincoln sent to dealers, affected vehicles were manufactured from November 30th, 2015 to November 14th, 2018. Why didn’t the Detroit-based automaker announce the recall sooner? Guess we won’t find out given the corporate nature of the Blue Oval.
“In some of the affected vehicles, the electronic door latch pawl motor may become inoperative and result in a door not being able to close,” explains Lincoln. “A latch pawl that is not fully engaged increases the potential for the door to open while driving, and the risk of injury.”
Lincoln also reports that letters mailed in the week of April 1st are “advising owners that parts are not currently available to repair the vehicles.” On the other hand, parts will be “available in larger quantities by late second quarter.” Given that affected vehicles were built through November 14th, couldn’t Lincoln procure those parts in a timely fashion? Of course it could’ve done exactly so, and this speaks volumes about the endless complaints in regard to Lincoln’s after-sales services.
In the meantime, customers can call Lincoln at 1-866-436-7332 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at 1-888-327-4236 for additional information about the recall.
Google News