Ford expands recall to nearly 100,000 Transit vans in North America

Getty Images

The first production Ford Transit commercial van waits on the assembly line to be unveiled at the Ford Kansas City Assembly Plant April 30, 2014, in Claycomo, Missouri.

Ford is expanding a safety recall for its Ford Transit vans. The recall now includes nearly 100,000 of the cargo vans, which are often used to transport up to 15 people at a time.

Potentially affected vehicles are equipped with a trailer-tow module, which is vulnerable to seeping water that can corrode the module’s wiring. This may result in a number of problems: The vehicle’s turn signals begin rapidly flashing; the instrument cluster display may stop working and heating and air conditioning and infotainment systems may malfunction.

If the leak persists, it could cause the ground wire to short, which could tighten the seat belts unnecessarily or increase the risk of fire.

Ford said it is aware of two fires related to the issue but no accidents or injuries.

The company said Wednesday it is adding 26,000 more vehicles to the recall across the United States in Canada, bringing the total number of vehicles affected in North America to 99,893. Ford began this recall in October 2017.

The vehicles affected are 2015-17 Ford Transit vehicles built at Ford’s Kansas City Assembly Plant, from Feb. 3, 2014, to Aug. 2, 2017.

The company also recalled 400,000 Transit vans from the same plant earlier in 2017 for a different issue.

Parts are available, and dealers will fix the issue for free, Ford said.