In a surprising move, Ford decided to discontinue the production of the Ford Fusion sedan in the United States in July 2020. However, there are still a significant number of Fusions on the road, and Ford has recently announced a new recall for the model.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA) has released details about campaign number 23V440000, which affects 14,452 Ford Fusion vehicles. Specifically, the recall includes the Fusion Energy models from the 2019 and 2020 model years. These vehicles were manufactured between December 6, 2017, and July 27, 2020, and are equipped with 30 Ah high-voltage batteries. The Fusion Energi is the plug-in hybrid version of the sedan that was introduced in the 2012 North American Auto Show in Detroit.
The NHTSA explains that the affected vehicles have a battery energy control module that may be damaged due to excessive voltage and current flow. This damage could lead to a loss of power or even a fire, increasing the risk of a crash or injury. The exact cause of the current interrupt device (CID) activation is currently unknown and is being investigated by Ford.
Currently, there is no fix available for this issue. Ford is working on a remedy and is advising owners of the affected vehicles not to charge their cars. Letters informing owners of the safety risk will be sent on July 10, and additional letters with details about the fix will be sent at a later date.
This is not the first recall for the Ford Fusion this year. In March, Ford announced a recall for 1,167,825 units of the sedan from the 2013 through 2018 model years. The recall was related to the front brake jounce hoses, and the solution involved replacing both front jounce hoses and inspecting the brakes. Only non-hybrid vehicles were affected by this particular recall.