logo
Ford's Latest Recall Fans The Flames Of Unreliability For Almost 700k Owners

Ford's Latest Recall Fans The Flames Of Unreliability For Almost 700k Owners

Yahoo19 hours ago
Ford's Latest Recall Fans The Flames Of Unreliability For Almost 700k Owners originally appeared on Autoblog.
694,271 Fords Hit With New Recall
2025 has been a horrendous year for Ford's already shaky reliability reputation. The company has already exceeded the number of recalls it had throughout all of last year in the first six months of 2025, breaking an infamous GM recall record on the way. But the misery is far from over for Ford service technicians, after a new recall for some 694,271 vehicles was announced by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Reuters reports that a cracked fuel injector could leak fuel into the engine compartment, and in the worst-case scenario, this could lead to a fire.
Two Popular SUVs Impacted By New Recall
View the 2 images of this gallery on the original article
It should be noted that this recall is separate from the one announced last week, which concerned faulty fuel pumps in various trucks and SUVs, as well as the Mustang; the potentially cracked injectors that led to this week's recall were installed in 2021-2024 Bronco Sport and 2020-2022 Escape vehicles. While no injuries related to the defect have been reported so far, this recall is far from the beginning of buyers' woes with the issue.
According to the NHTSA report, an internal committee at Ford had first reviewed the issue on 1.5-liter engines in March last year, suggesting that an update to the engine control software and the installation of a drain tube would resolve the issue. The drain was intended to route leaking fuel away from danger areas, while the software update was to activate a warning light when a drop in fuel rail pressure was detected. At the time, only around 42,000 vehicles were covered by the recall, and replacing the potentially defective injectors was not recommended by the committee. But a month later, the NHTSA opened a recall query and determined that the remedy did not solve the issue. Reassessment of the issue has now led to the latest recall.
No Solution YetFortunately, only around 0.3% of the Bronco Sport and Escape SUVs are estimated to have the defect with injectors (supplied by Italy-based Dumarey Flowmotion Technologies), but unfortunately, Ford still doesn't yet have a permanent solution. The issue has caused under-hood fires in previously recalled vehicles, so the software update that reduced engine power and shut off fuel delivery was not effective. Owners of the affected vehicles will want to take note of warning lights and any strong fuel smells inside or outside the vehicle before smoke or flames manifest.
Ford's Latest Recall Fans The Flames Of Unreliability For Almost 700k Owners first appeared on Autoblog on Jul 16, 2025
This story was originally reported by Autoblog on Jul 16, 2025, where it first appeared.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Uber's latest robotaxi plan involves 20,000 Lucid EVs
Uber's latest robotaxi plan involves 20,000 Lucid EVs

Engadget

timea minute ago

  • Engadget

Uber's latest robotaxi plan involves 20,000 Lucid EVs

Uber is investing hundreds of millions of dollars in Nuro and Lucid, the latest step in the company's plan to build an extensive robotaxi program that can roll out globally. Uber's partnership with EV manufacturer Lucid will see it deploy at least 20,000 of the Newark-based company's vehicles over a period of six years. These will be equipped with the AI-powered Nuro Driver autonomous technology. The vehicles will be owned and operated by Uber or one of its third-party partners, and the service will be exclusive to Uber users. The robotaxi service is expected to launch in late 2026 in an unnamed "major US city," and Uber said that a prototype of an operational autonomous Lucid-Nuro vehicle is currently being tested on a closed circuit at a Nuro facility in Las Vegas. According to the new partners, the robotaxi will benefit from the Lucid Gravity SUV's "advanced technology platform, redundant electrical and controls architectures, and long range," with the latter estimated to be around 450 miles. Nuro will be responsible for overseeing the extensive safety checks. These range from simulations to on-road testing and are marked on "dozens" of categories. The approved Lucid Gravity robotaxi will operate at level 4 autonomy, which essentially makes it almost fully self-driving and able to perform the majority of its functions without any human intervention. Uber has spent much of this year expanding its robotaxi ambitions through various team-ups with the likes of Volkswagen and British AI company Wayve , with whom it plans to bring robotaxis to the UK for the first time next year. Back in March, Uber launched its robotaxi service with Waymo in Austin, building on the existing offering in Phoenix, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Waymo One covers 37 square miles of the city, and Uber users can ride in one by ordering an UberX, Uber Green, Uber Comfort or Uber Comfort Electric. Earlier this week, Uber also announced a new partnership with China-based Baidu, which will see the two companies bring Baidu's Apollo Go autonomous vehicles to mainland China and other non-US (no surprise there) markets around the world.

Uber to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in Lucid and Nuro in massive robotaxi deal
Uber to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in Lucid and Nuro in massive robotaxi deal

The Verge

timean hour ago

  • The Verge

Uber to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in Lucid and Nuro in massive robotaxi deal

Uber plans to make 'multi-hundred-million dollar investments' in both Nuro and Lucid as part of a massive new robotaxi deal that was just announced. The three companies are linking up to deploy '20,000 or more' robotaxis in the US over the next six years. The vehicles will be Lucid's new Gravity SUV, equipped with autonomous technology developed by Nuro, and available exclusively on Uber's app. The fleet will be owned by Uber or a third-party fleet management partner and the first vehicles will launch in as-yet-to-be-determined US city in 2026. 'This is a very, very big deal,' Dave Ferguson, co-founder and president of Nuro, said in an interview. 'In terms of the scale and the hard commitments and the meat behind it, it is by far the biggest partnership deal that Uber has announced or done.' 'This is a very, very big deal.' Uber is investing $300 million in Lucid, a spokesperson for the automaker, Nick Twork, confirmed. The investment in Nuro will be 'significantly more than that,' Ferguson said, though he declined to share an exact figure. As part of the deal, Uber will take a seat on Nuro's board of directors. Uber's decision to pour hundreds of millions of dollars in both companies underscores its desire to become a clearinghouse for both electric and autonomous vehicles of all stripes. The ridehail company has said it wants to use its size and scale to aid in the proliferation of autonomous vehicles across the world. It has struck over a dozen deals over the past year with a variety of robotaxi and delivery robot companies, including Waymo. In choosing the sumptuously designed Gravity as its robotaxi platform, Uber will likely price this particular service in the upper tier like Uber Black. Lucid makes two luxury EVs, the Lucid Air sedan which starts at $69,900, and the Gravity SUV which starts at $79,900. In the current shaky EV market, Lucid is a niche player, delivering just 3,309 vehicles in the second quarter of 2025. The company is majority-owned by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, and it operates an assembly plant in the oil-rich nation. This is Nuro's first major licensing deal after pivoting away from designing and building its own self-driving delivery vehicles. The California-based company said last year that licensing its autonomous tech would be its main focus moving forward. Nuro's current fleet of vehicles, which operates in California and Texas, has traveled over 1 million miles autonomously without any major safety incidents. Uber's investment comes at a crucial time for Nuro and Lucid, both of which have struggled with layoffs and other financial difficulties in recent years. Donald Trump's tariffs, as well as his administration's move to eliminate Biden-era EV incentives, have put enormous pressure on the auto industry. And self-driving cars have taken longer and proven more costly to develop than initially promised. But even as most AV investments have dried up, Nuro continues to find financial support. The company is currently valued at $6 billion after raising $106 million in its latest funding round last April. Lucid, which is publicly traded, has a market cap of approximately $7 billion. Uber's investment comes at a crucial time for Nuro and Lucid. Nuro will design the Level 4 autonomous technology to power the robotaxis. Lucid's workers will install the various sensors and hardware on the Gravity assembly line, after which it'll be updated with Nuro's software and commissioned by Uber. Nuro will also develop a safety case 'across dozens of categories' using simulation, closed-course testing, and supervised on-road testing. A prototype autonomous Gravity is currently being tested at Nuro's Las Vegas proving grounds, which Ferguson said took seven weeks to develop. 'That is a real testament to the quality of the engineering on the Lucid side,' he said. 'They designed these platforms to be L3 capable because they were intending on having that as a future product for their customers. And so, they were really nice to integrate all of our sensing compute onto and to turn into self-driving vehicles.' (L3, or Level 3 automation means the vehicle can drive itself in most situations, but still requires human supervision. Level 4 vehicles can driver fully autonomously in certain environments without human supervision. Lucid just introduced a hands-free driving system for highways.) In many ways, the size of this deal — 'a minimum' of 20,000 vehicles, but expected to be 'much, much more,' Ferguson said — recalls some of the early promises from autonomous vehicle developers about tens of thousands of vehicles on the road in just a few short years. Those early assumptions turned out to be way off, and most companies are still struggling to deliver even just a few self-driving cars. Today, Waymo is operating less than 2,000 vehicles in a handful of markets as part of a commercial robotaxi service. Tesla has a few dozen robotaxis in a small part of Austin, Texas. The rest are still in beta and still not open to the public — including the self-driving trucks, which have had their own problems. Ferguson said that's all about to change. Nuro has been operating driverless vehicles for several years now, albeit at low speeds and while avoiding highways. But he says the time is right to move on to the next level, and with Uber and Lucid in its corner, he's confident they'll reach these milestones. 'It's really just a function of, at what level is the autonomy at and how many markets can it sustain,' Ferguson said. 'Within those markets, these are big, big numbers and opportunities. And the vehicles will follow.

This 'Race-Worn' Pagani Utopia Is the Pre-Ripped Jeans of Hypercars
This 'Race-Worn' Pagani Utopia Is the Pre-Ripped Jeans of Hypercars

The Drive

timean hour ago

  • The Drive

This 'Race-Worn' Pagani Utopia Is the Pre-Ripped Jeans of Hypercars

The latest car news, reviews, and features. People who can afford to drop seven figures on a bespoke hypercar often come up with wild color combinations, so you're not confusing anyone else's ride for theirs. This particular Pagani Utopia commissioned by one client, however, might be the most unique of any we've seen lately. Like the pre-ripped denim craze of the aughts, this Utopia trades on stolen valor to look like it's been through the ringer of endurance racing, and the effect isn't very persuasive. Pagani says it's called 'The Coyote' (whether the buyer dubbed it that or the automaker is unclear) and describes it as 'a fleeting glimpse of a livery shaped by endurance: untamed, imperfect, alive.' Its red and blue accents are reminiscent of a Martini-liveried Porsche, but what makes this Utopia special are the fake tears stretching from the wheel wells, the floors, and the bottom of the front bumper, revealing 'exposed' carbon fiber. In my view, there are two issues with this. First, it's ugly. From a distance, it looks like the abrasions were drawn on with marker. Second, if you've ever actually seen a car at the end of a full day of competition, they don't tend to look anything like this Pagani. Fortunately, the World Endurance Championship YouTube account posted a video after last year's 24 Hours of Le Mans that highlights the difference. Look at the field of finishers. We see plenty of caked-on dirt and tar, dust collected on the wheels themselves and the surrounding bodywork, and charred panels near exhaust pipes. What we don't see are strips of wraps and vinyls torn back like Wolverine has clawed through them. And the whole effect feels even flimsier because you just know that the owner will never abuse this car like those battle-scarred gladiators of the Mulsanne. Only one Pagani has ever actually taken on Le Mans, as it happens, and it was a Zonda way back in 2003. Credit where it's due, I dig the color combo of the interior. paganiautomobili via Instagram Of course, this guy can do whatever he wants with his money. It's his third Pagani, according to the company, and this 'collector…doesn't just configure a car but shapes a fragment of himself into every line and stitch, with patience, care, and almost meditative devotion.' No arguing with that—he's commissioned a Utopia that is distinctly his own. I'm just wondering if it's a bellwether for other trends. Some people will tell you cargo shorts are making a comeback; will the same soon be true of distressed denim? Got a tip? Email us at tips@

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store