NHTSA Complaint #10663814 — 2002 FORD EXPLORER

DROVE CAR TO TIRE DEALER FOR WHEEL ALIGNMENT. PARKED AND LEFT FOR THEM TO WORK ON. THE NEXT DAY,DEC 10,2014, THE SERVICE TECH DROVE THE CAR FOR A TEST RIDE TO CHECK THE ALIGNMENT BEFORE HE ADJUSTED. HE THEN DROVE INTO THE BAY AND APPLIED FOOT PRESSURE TO THE GAS PEDDLE TO GET ONTO THE ALIGNMENT RAMP. THE PEDDLE STUCK AT HIGH RPMS , 4000+, . AS SUCH THE CAR RAN OFF OF THE RAMP , HE APPLIED BRAKES, TO NO AVAIL, SHUT CAR OFF AT SAME TIME. WHICH STOPPED THE CAR, BUT NOT BEFORE IT CRASHED INTO THE ALIGNMENT MACHINE AND TIRES. CAR WAS HUNG UP ON PART OF THE RAMP HAD TO BE JACKED OFF OF RAMP. FRONT BUMPER DAMAGED, CROSS MEMBER UNDER TRANS PAN BENT, LEFT RARE LOWER CONTROL ARM BENT..TIRE DEALER HAS SENT THE CAR TO FORD DEALER, ON DEC 11,2014 I SPOKE WITH FORD DEALER AND THE HAVE NEVER HAD A PROBLEM LIKE THIS BEFORE. TOLD HIM OF YOUR REPORT PE 05037 AND YOUR LETTER TO FORD. . SINCE YOUR LETTER TO FORD THE INTERNET HAS AT LEAST 25 REPORTS OF THIS SAME PROBLEM MOST WITH ACCIDENTS. THERE MAY ONLY BE 240,000 OF THIS CARS ,AS YOUR REPORT NOTES, BUT THIS PROBLEM CAN CAUSE A DEATH .THIS CAR WAS MADE WITH IN THE TIME PERIOD STATED IN YOU REPORT. THE FIX IS TO REPLACE THE CABLE. I TOLD FORD THAT I WOULD NOT ACCEPT THE CAR UNLESS THE CABLE WAS REPLACED. ON THE OTHER HAND I WOULD EXPECT YOU TO FOLLOW UP ON THIS DEADLY PROBLEM. *TR