Judge Orders Ford to Recall Millions of Cars

O A K L A N D, Calif., Oct. 11 -- In an unprecedented move, a state judge ordered the recall of as many as 1.7 million Ford cars and trucks today, accusing the automaker of “concealment of a dangerouscondition.”

It was the first time a judge in the United States had ordered acar recall.

The Alameda County judge said Ford knew the vehicles were proneto stalling, especially when the engine was hot, but failed toalert consumers.

Superior Court Judge Michael E. Ballachey had issued a tentativeruling in August hinting he would order the recall and accusingFord of knowing for nearly two decades that the ignition moduleswere “flawed from the outset.”

Ballachey gave Ford attorneys a chance to change his mind, buthis ruling today showed they had failed to sway him.

“This case was about concealment of a dangerous condition,”Ballachey read from the bench.

Judge Says Ford Deceived Regulators

The ruling was based on a class-action suit filed on behalf of3.5 million current and former Ford owners in California. Theplaintiffs claim the vehicles stall because wrongly placed ignitiondevices were exposed to excessive heat and stress.

Ballachey said Ford repeatedly deceived federal regulators byclaiming there were no problems with its ignition devices invehicles in the 1983-95 model years.

Ballachey wrote that Ford sold as many as 23 million vehiclesprone to stalling nationwide, but this recall applies only tovehicles sold in California. Similar class-action suits are pendingin Alabama, Maryland, Illinois, Tennessee and Washington.

“Ford has been aware, since at least 1982, that installing itsTFI ignition modules on the distributors … made them inordinatelyprone to failure due to exposure to excessive heat and thermalstress,” Ballachey’s ruling said.

Ford Denies Systems Were Flawed

The suit challenges Ford’s placement of the thick film ignition,known as a TFI module, which regulates electric current to thespark plugs. In 300 models sold between 1983 and 1995, the modulewas mounted on the distributor near the engine block, where it wasexposed to high temperatures.