NHTSA Complaint #753714 — 1994 FORD RANGER

THE TRUCK WOULD STALL UNEXPECTEDLY DURING COLD WEATHER RUNNING. THE PROBLEM BEGAN APPROXIMATELY TWO YEARS AFTER MY PURCHASE. THE PROBLEM WAS DIAGNOSED AS AN IGNITION MODULE WHICH WAS REPLACED, BUT I WAS NOT CONVINCED THAT WAS THE ENTIRE PROBLEM. THREE MONTHS LATER IT OCCURRED AGIN ON A ROAD TRIP. PRIOR TO THE TRIP FROM SALT LAKE CITY TO CANADA, I WROTE A LETTER TO THE V.P OF CUSTOMER COMMUNICATIONS AND SATISFACTION EXPLAINING THE DANGER OF THE SAME COMPONENT FAILURE IF ONE WERE TRAVELING ON A REMOTE HIGHWAY IN A COLD ENVIRONMENT. I EXPLAINED THAT ONE COULD DIE OF HYPOTHERMIA AND SUGGESTED THEY FIND THE REAL CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM. THEY REFUSED. MY FORESIGHT WAS EXACTLY CORRECT. THE VEHICLE STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF A BLIZZARD IN MONTANA AND IF I AND MY TRAVELING COMPANION WERE NOT IN GOOD PHYSICAL SHAPE WE BOTH WOULD HAVE DIED. AFTER WAITING IN THE VEHICLE FOR AT LEAST 30 MINUTES, WITH NOT A SINGLE VEHICLE PASSING US, THE TEMPERATURE IN THE CAB DROPPED TO ABOUT 15 DEGREES. IT WAS NEAR 0 DEGREES OUTSIDE. SOMETHING HAD TO BE DONE. I RAN FOR TWO MILES ACROSS A FIELD UNTIL I LUCKILY REACHED A HOUSE WHERE THEY CALLED A TOW TRUCK. WE WERE ALSO LUCKY WE WERE GOING ON A SKI TRIP, SO WE HAD PLENTY OF WARM GEAR, BUT WE WERE STILL NEARLY FROSTBITTEN BY THE TIME THE TOW TRUCK ARRIVED. I AM SURE AN ELDERLY PERSON WOULD HAVE PERISHED IN THE COLD. ANOTHER IGNITION MODULE WAS INSTALLED IN MONTANA. APPROXIMATELY TWO YEARS LATER, THE PROBLEM OCCURRED AGAIN IN JULY OF 1998. THIS TIME THEY TOLD ME THE WIRING HARNESS WAS DEFECTIVE AND THEY COULDN'T TRACE THE PROBLEM. SO THEY MADE ME PAY $806 FOR THE REPAIR, ALL THE WHILE CLAIMING THIS WAS NOT DEFECTIVE FROM THE FACTORY. I DISAGREED. AFTER THE THIRD PROBLEM, I WROTE A LETTER TO CUSTOMER SERVICE AND ALSO SENT COPIES TO THE PRESIDENT AND ALSO V.P. OF CUSTOMER RELATIONS. ALL I RECEIVED WAS A CALL FROM A REPRESENTATIVE OF CUSTOMER SERVICE WHO HAD NO IDEA WHY SHE WAS CALLING ME; SHE WAS ONLY INSTRUCTED TO GIVE ME A CALL!*AK