NHTSA Complaint #713350 — 1989 MERCURY TRACER

THE REAR WHEEL BEARINGS HAVE FAILED ON THREE SEPARATE OCCASIONS. THE CAR WAS PURCHASED USED WITH 14,700 MILES. THE FIRST FAILURE OCCURED ON APRIL 5, 1998, TRAVELING 65 MPH ON THE INTERSTATE. THE LEFT REAR WHEEL BEARINGS SEIZED AND THE WHEEL FELL INWARD PULLING THE CAR SEVERELY TO THE RIGHT. THIS NEARLY CAUSED A COLLISION WITH A SEMI IN THE NEXT LANE. BOTH LEFT AND RIGHT REAR BEARING ASSEMBLIES FAILED ON MAY 5, 1999; AGAIN THE LEFT REAR TIRE TIPPED IN. THE RIGHT REAR FAILED AS WELL. BOTH REAR WHEEL BEARINGS FAILED AGAIN ON 10-6-99. ON ALL OCCASIONS NEW BEARINGS AND SEALS HAVE BEEN REPLACED. MY SISTER OWNS A 1989 MERCURY TRACER AS WELL AND HER BEARINGS HAVE FAILED THREE TO FOUR TIMES. I HAVE HAD TWO DIFFERENT MECHANICS REPAIR MY BEARINGS. MY SISTER HAS HAD AT LEAST THREE SEPARATE MECHANICS REPAIR. I HAVE CONTACTED FORD MOTOR COMPANY AND THEY ARE NOT INTERESTED IN PROVIDING A SAFE PRODUCT. THIS IS NOT AN ISSUE OF AN EXPRESS WARRANTY BUT DESIGNING PRODUCTS THAT ARE FIT FOR THEIR INTENDED USES AND WILL NOT INJURY PEOPLE. I HAVE LOCATED THREE NHTSA TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETINS THAT MIGHT RELATE: BC3130890301 (ITEM SB005908) AND 90-12-5 (ITEM SB014830) AND 90-19-9 (ITEM SB017139). THIS IS A DANGEROUS DEFECTIVE PRODUCT DESIGN BY FORD MOTOR COMPANY.