Campaign 16V-698

Hatchback of the affected vehicles may be unlatched with a single press of the interior latch release button

Defect summary

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2017 Ford Focus hatchback vehicles manufactured February 14, 2012, to August 26, 2016 and equipped with a manual transmission. The hatchback of the affected vehicles may be unlatched with a single press of the interior latch release button. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 206, "Door Locks and Door Retention Components."

Consequence

With only a single press needed, the driver may accidently unlatch the hatchback, increasing the risk of injury to any unsecured passengers in the back.

Remedy

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Body Control Module with updated software, free of charge. The recall began February 10, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16C13.

Notes

Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.

Source: NHTSA ODI recalls file, campaign 16V698000. Text as published by NHTSA.

Vehicles covered

One product line is covered

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA about latches and locks on these vehicles: 111, of which 3 involved a crash, fire, injury or death. Complaints are not verified by NHTSA.

Vehicles covered by campaign 16V-698
Make	Model	Model years	Complaints on this component
Ford	Focus	2013 to 2017	111

Source: NHTSA ODI recalls and complaints files. Equipment, tire and child-seat campaigns list products, not vehicles.

Investigation

No NHTSA investigation is linked to this recall

Most recalls are started by the manufacturer. This one lists "NHTSA compliance test" as its origin.

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