Over the past couple of years, Ford has faced its fair share of quality issues, but few that can compare to its various problems with rearview and 360-degree camera systems. In fact, the automaker has recalled hundreds of thousands of vehicles for those problems, in which the camera may not display a rearview image when the vehicle is placed in reverse. Ford previously revealed that it will cost the company $270 million to rectify its rearview camera woes, and making matters worse, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has been investigating the matter for some time now – which will apparently cost Ford even more money.
The NHTSA has now announced a consent order with Ford Motor Company for failing to comply with federal recall requirements over its rearview camera woes, which includes a civil penalty of $165 million – the second-largest ever issued by the agency, behind only Takata’s air bag consent order. This move comes after the NHTSA completed its investigation into The Blue Oval and found that it failed to recall vehicles equipped with faulty rearview cameras in a timely manner, and also, noted that the automaker didn’t provide accurate and complete recall information required by the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act.
Ford is required to pay $65 million of its fine up front, followed by a deferred payment of $55 million and $45 million for performance obligations. The purpose of these fines is to prompt Ford to better comply with the law moving forward, and as part of the consent order, an independent third party will over see the company’s performance obligations and compliance with the consent order moving forward, and make recommendations based on what it finds. Ford is required to develop and implement a safety data analytics infrastructure, as well as a document interface platform, and must build a multi-modal imaging test lab designated for low-voltage electronics. Ford will also be required to review all recalls it has issued over the last three years to ensure they have been properly scoped and, if necessary, file new recalls.
“Timely and accurate recalls are critical to keeping everyone safe on our roads,” NHTSA Deputy Administrator Sophie Shulman said. “NHTSA is committed to ensuring manufacturers comply with the laws designed to keep our roads safe. When manufacturers fail to prioritize the safety of the American public and meet their obligations under federal law, NHTSA will hold them accountable.”
Comments
I hope this signals a tougher NHTSA. Automakers need to stop producing vehicles that aren’t fully baked. I also hope that NHTSA will come out in favor of owners instead of Ford on the numerous Class Actions still pending, mine going on at least 5 years now.
I believe every automaker has need to perform recalls due to reverse camera malfunctions. As the reverse camera is FMVSS-regulated content, any and every malfunction is subject to a recall. Ford has been particularly hit because it adopted reverse cameras more aggressively (in higher volume and quicker) than other OEMs. So, this fall into the category of “ don’t let any good deed go unpunished.”
This should also count for sync4 rebooting during a reverse and losing the video feed.