Despite such strong press for Ford Motor Company in recent months, the Ford Explorer has come back to possibly haunt Ford's reputation according to a new report. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will begin evaluating whether or not 2002-2005 Ford Explorer and Mercury Mountaineer transmissions slip out of park and into reverse on its own. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, out of 1.4 million vehicles produced 200 complaints were filed with the federal government. Eleven owners stated that the vehicle transferred gears from park to reverse on its own, and 61 owners stated that the gearshift mechanism failed while trying to transfer in and out of park.
There is no recall at this time, and Ford is fully cooperating with the government according to a recent public statement. The NHTSA is reluctant to classify the screening as a full investigation, however. A NHTSA spokesperson stated it is a "preliminary evaluation... to assess the scope, frequency and potential safety consequences of the alleged defect and any relationship of the alleged gearshift lever mechanism failures to the alleged vehicle rollaway incidents."
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