Ford Recommends Some F-150 Owners Stop Driving Their Trucks Immediately
Alex Healey
· 3 min read
Several thousand
Ford
F-150 owners were rocked by the news of a recall recently, with the automaker asking them to park their trucks until the issue can be fixed. The problem centers on improperly routed seatbelts on 2021 models of the F-150 Super Cab pickup.This is not the first time the F-150 has suffered from mechanical defects, but it is a rare black mark against the 2021 Super Cab, which has received a 5-star safety rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (
NHTSA
).Read on to learn more about the safety issue affecting the F-150 Super Cab, and see how it compares to other recalls in recent times.
How serious is the Ford F-150 Super Cab defect?
The 16,430 models affected by this latest recall are F-150 Super Cabs, assembled between January 2 and May 2 this year. Technicians have found a problem with the front seat belt webbing, blaming improper installation in the factory.
Autotrader
explains that the problem does not involve any single cab or crew-cab trucks, which use a different type of seat belt assembly.If you have been notified that your F-150 is included in the recall, Ford is asking you to stop driving the truck until a qualified dealer can repair the issue.
While a faulty seat belt might sound like a relatively minor problem compared to an engine fire or some other mechanical defect, it could be fatal if you are involved in a collision.
In fact, seat belts are considered the single most important safety feature in modern cars, and are credited with saving around 15,000 lives per year.
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Relatively small recall
While it offers scant relief to the 16,000+ affected owners, this is a relatively small recall when compared to the number of F-150s on the road.
Ford has sold 414,345 F-150s so far this year, and despite stringent quality controls, no automaker catches every single defect before cars are sent to dealerships.
The latest recall is also relatively small when compared to some other high-profile ones.
Back in September 2018, Ford recalled two million F-150 pickups across North America to address fire concerns in seat belt pretensioners.
And earlier this year, Ford was forced to recall over 650,000 2016-2019 Ford Explorers due to loose roof rail covers.
All in all, 2021 F-150 Super Cab owners can be grateful that this issue appears to be simple to fix. Ford has owned the mistake and promises to fix affected vehicles quickly, at no cost to the owner.
