Ford recalls F-series pickups, Edge, Lincoln MKX

DETROIT (Reuters) – Ford Motor Co is recalling about 20,000 new vehicles in North America, mainly its heavy duty pickup trucks, due to the chance than an electrical short could cause a fire, Ford and U.S. federal regulators said on Thursday.

Ford will inform owners of its F-series pickups, small sports utility vehicles Edge and Lincoln MKX of the potential problem by January 10, according to a filing with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

About 15,000 of the affected vehicles were sold in the United States, and most of the rest in Canada, said Wes Sherwood, Ford spokesman.

Sherwood said the automaker is not aware of any injuries, crashes or fires resulting from the issue.

In a six-day period, a supplier not identified by Ford made body control modules that may produce an electrical short, Ford told NHTSA in a filing.

Sherwood said the suspect vehicles were built between late October and mid-November.

"If an electrical short develops, an overheating condition may occur which can result in an unattended vehicle fire," the NHTSA filing said.

Of the nearly 20,000 vehicles affected, 13,200 are Super Duty F-Series trucks, which are the F-250, the F-350 and the F-450 models.

Some 476 F-150 pickup trucks were affected. That model is the biggest selling vehicle in North America.

About 6,200 Edge and MKX models are affected, Sherwood said.

Edge and MKX are also known as crossover vehicles, because they are built on a car platform rather than a truck platform as are larger SUVs.

Ford will pay for repairs performed at Ford dealerships. Sherwood said the repair time is relatively short, but he did not specify how long each repair will take or how much they will cost the automaker.

(Reporting by Bernie Woodall; Editing by Derek Caney, Dave Zimmerman)

Auto industry recalled 20 million vehicles in 2010 Led by Toyota, automakers recalled about 20 million vehicles in US in 2010

Auto industry recalled 20 million vehicles in 2010

Led by Toyota, automakers recalled about 20 million vehicles in US in 2010

Ken Thomas, Associated Press, On Wednesday December 29, 2010, 6:11 pm EST

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Automakers recalled about 20 million vehicles in 2010, led by high-profile recalls by Toyota that prompted new scrutiny of the auto industry's safety record.

The number of recalls this year was the largest in the United States since 2004, according to an analysis of federal data by The Associated Press. The auto industry set a record with 30.8 million recalled vehicles that year.

Toyota Motor Corp. recalled about 7.1 million vehicles in 2010 to fix faulty gas pedals, floor mats that could trap accelerators, defective braking and stalling engines. The safety woes by the world's No. 1 automaker brought more attention to auto safety from government regulators and the public, which filed more than 64,000 complaints with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly double the number in a typical year.

Safety recalls can cost car companies tens of millions of dollars or more and have become more common since 2000, when Congress passed legislation to spot safety defects more quickly in the aftermath of the massive Firestone tire recalls. In 2010, lawmakers held several hearings on the Toyota recalls but sweeping legislation to increase penalties against car companies, require automakers to meet new safety standards and empower the government to demand a recall stalled in Congress.

Toyota was fined $48.8 million by the government for its handling of three recalls dating back to 2004. Toyota has vowed to take a more proactive approach to safety, creating engineering teams that can quickly examine cars that are the subject of consumer complaints while giving its U.S. offices a more direct role in safety related decisions.

Toyota spokesman Brian Lyons said the company has "committed to be more responsive to our customers and federal agencies" and its recalled vehicles are getting fixed at a faster rate than the industry average of 72 percent recall completion after 18 months.

Among other automakers, General Motors Co. recalled about 4 million vehicles in 2010 while Japanese rivals Honda and Nissan both recalled more than 2 million cars and trucks. Chrysler recalled about 1.5 million vehicles and Ford called back more than 500,000 vehicles. The recall data was preliminary and the government was expected to release final numbers next year.

"More and more recalls are being voluntarily initiated by automakers and we think that's a good sign," Transportation Department spokeswoman Olivia Alair said Wednesday. "Safety is NHTSA's first priority and improved cooperation from automakers will help resolve safety issues more quickly and comprehensively."

Wade Newton, a spokesman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, which represents a dozen car companies, including GM, Toyota and Ford, said automakers "are doing a better job of identifying and pinpointing safety-related issues and taking faster action." He said safety advances in new vehicles helped traffic deaths decline last year to its lowest levels since 1950.