Ford recalls Ford GT

[AlienDB7]

Ford recalls its $140,000 GT supercar for safety defect

By Eric Mayne / The Detroit News

Ford Motor Co. is recalling its $140,000 Ford GT supercar to repair a defect that could cause loss of control, the automaker confirmed today.

Nearly 450 vehicles - all Ford GTs built to date - are affected by a suspension component problem that originated with a supplier, said spokeswoman Kristen Kinley. The component is subject to cracking because of a casting process error.

"If it cracks, it could cause the wheel to become unstable," said Kinley, who would not identify the supplier. "And if the wheel becomes unstable at high speed, that's a safety issue.

The defect was discovered during a pre-delivery inspection of a single car. Of 448 vehicles affected by the reall, 111 are in the hands of private owners. Ford has contacted these owners and warned them not to drive their cars until the automaker determines how to fix the problem, Kinley said.

Ford will pick up those vehicles that are in private hands, she added.

The remaining cars are at dealerships or the assembly site in Wixom.

Ford has also told dealers not to allow test drives until their vehicles have been repaired, Blue Oval News reported Sunday.

The Ford GT was rushed into production to mark the automaker's centennial in 2003. It went from the drawing board to the street in less than 18 months - about half the time of a normal vehicle development program.

Three cars were hand-built for Ford's 100-year anniversary. Engineers then went back to work on the production car.

The 550-hp two-seater, which has a certified top speed of 205 mph, went into full production earlier this year as a 2005 model.

http://www.detnews.com/2004/autosins...utos-37905.htm

[black_magician]

Originally Posted by AlienDB7 The Ford GT was rushed into production to mark the automaker's centennial in 2003. It went from the drawing board to the street in less than 18 months - about half the time of a normal vehicle development program.

LOL!!

somehow I'm not suprised this has happened. :arrow: (haste makes waste) :roll:

[Vansquish]

That sucks...but it explains why I saw soooo many cars on that tour hehehe.

[antonioledesma]

Originally Posted by AlienDB7 The component is subject to cracking because of a casting process error.

I would like to know which kind of error could it be... bad choice of alloy, mold, casting process... or simply they didn't had the time to test correctly all those cars.
lets remember, for example, the first time JC drove the gt, was a pre-production mule (a car that has 80-90% of parts of the production car)

until a really hard, long term test was done, the car begun to show the errors and defects in its making

[dutchmasterflex]

it's still a ford, what do you expect

[ae86_16v]

Originally Posted by black_magician Originally Posted by AlienDB7 The Ford GT was rushed into production to mark the automaker's centennial in 2003. It went from the drawing board to the street in less than 18 months - about half the time of a normal vehicle development program. LOL!! somehow I'm not suprised this has happened. :arrow: (haste makes waste) :roll:

Could not be any more true for this instance.

[ZfrkS62]

I would like to know which kind of error could it be... bad choice of alloy, mold, casting process

more than likely it's the heat treatment after the part has been cast. If not allowed to cool correctly, it can cause some serious problems in the final tensile strength.
I think this is the same reason that ford kept having issues with their I-beam suspensions in the beginning.

The problem with the GT is, they are going for lightweight materials that will hold their strength better than their heavier counterparts. and 18 months from pen to street is not enough R&D time for the components. when you're forced to field research the components, things like this will come up. :roll:

although i wouldn't place the blame squarely on ford. i would shift most of it to the majority shareholders who wanted the car released for the anniversary and not a moment later. (when your share holders decide they want something, you had better deliver or they WILL replace you in order to get what they want). so there are many fingers to point here.

But i'm glad they are issuing the recall on their own instead of waiting for something to actually happen *cough*Dodge*cough*

[komotar]

Remember when Audi recalled all TT's....whan they had to put the extra little wing on the car's ass to prevent it sliding out of control when braking in high speed corners.... or something similar, if I'm not mistaken...

[ZfrkS62]

whan they had to put the extra little wing on the car's ass to prevent it sliding out of control when braking in high speed corners

that can't be right...rear wings don't fight understeer

[FoxFour]

It's a shame that they are recalling the car because of a serious production defect, but I remember when the the '97 Vette when it came out it had their share of first year problems too.
Toe Links (97V044000). Rear toe links (or tie rods) can fracture and cause loss of vehicle control. This applied only to the first 1,414 cars sold, and owners were all contacted personally by phone to have their cars flat-bedded to the dealer for replacement of the toe links.
Fuel Tank (97V105000). A gasket can rip and cause fuel to leak. Replace fuel tank assembly. (first 3,792 cars)
Seat Belt (97V104000). Failure in the "energy management system". Replace seat belt assembly. (first 4,369 cars)

[komotar]

Originally Posted by ZfrkS62 whan they had to put the extra little wing on the car's ass to prevent it sliding out of control when braking in high speed corners that can't be right...rear wings don't fight understeer

I don't know exactly what was going on....

If I remember corectly, it wasn't the breaking in high speed corners, but lifting off in them.......I think...

[antonioledesma]

Originally Posted by komotar Remember when Audi recalled all TT's....whan they had to put the extra little wing on the car's ass to prevent it sliding out of control when braking in high speed corners.... or something similar, if I'm not mistaken...

mm, as I remember... TT's rear form makes the tail to go "light" and starts to float. It was the same when you drive very fast on a highway and your car starts to feel light from the front.
so, the little wing was just to avoid that high speed floating

and... ZfrkS62,yes, those famous heat treatments are responsible for almost all failures. But we wont know what is the specific problem, maybe could be the 18 months, which aren't enough to develop a car

[komotar]

hey, antonioledesma, you have 666 posts.....hold still, let me get my camera....jk

I remember reading about the audi related problems (sorry for stealing the thread ) and if I remember corectly, a guy crashed and died on the autobahn in Germany because of this....maybe more people were killed, I'll investigate...

[RC45]

Hehehe... this is too funny...

Cheap begets sheap...

Ford are probably to blame for the defect.

Why? Because just as GM does - Ford would have squeezed the supplier to lower their price for the part/parts to rock bottom.

This will alos not be the last recall.. you will see ones for engine components and body panels etc etc.

Just as the New C6 is getting - you don't keep a car's price lower by INCREASING quality..

This - however does not explain why Mercedes is going through the same woes unless MB is just using the same crap parts as everyone else and artificially keeping their prices high..

[ikon2003]

"Built Ford Tough" "Pacecar for an entire company" - glad it could live up to the adages.

Only semi-serious though - it's not like other companies are immune to recalls. Lets just hope the GT doesn't have any more problems...