NHTSA Complaint #10567290 — 2012 FORD F-450

THIS VEHICLE IS AN AMBULANCE AND WAS DISPATCHED ON AN EMERGENCY CALL. THE CREW ATTEMPTED TO CRANK THE VEHICLE, BUT THE STARTER WOULD NOT EVEN ENGAGE. ANOTHER AMBULANCE HAD TO BE DISPATCHED TO THE CALL. IT WAS LATER DETERMINED THAT ONE OF THE FOUR EGT EXHAUST GAS TEMPERATUR SENSORS HAD FAILED AND DISABLED THE VEHICLE. HAD THE VEHICLE BEEN TRAVELING ON THE HIGHWAY, A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION COULD HAVE OCCURRED. THERE WAS NOT AN OVER HEATED EXHAUST CONDITION NOR AN EXHAUST EMISSION PROBLEM AT THE TIME, WHICH IS WHAT THESE SENSORS ARE DESIGNED TO DETECT. THE POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE(PCM) SHOULD NOT BE PROGRAMED TO SHUT DOWN A VEHICLE BECAUSE OF ONE SENSOR. REDUCTION OF POWER MAY BE ACCEPTABLE. IF MORE THAN ONE SENSOR DETECTS A PROBLEM THEN THAT MAY BE ACCEPTABLE. OUR AGENCY HAS SEVERAL OF THESE VEHICLES AND HAS EXPERIENCED THE SAME ISSUE WITH MOST OF THEM.