Ford issues recall on 2,600 Mach-Es and Mavericks

Ford Motor Co. on Monday confirmed it is recalling a combined 2,626 all-electric Mustang Mach-E SUVs and Maverick pickup trucks in the U.S. over an issue that could result in rear seat belts not adequately restraining a passenger in a crash.

Company spokesperson Said Deep said the Dearborn automaker last week filed paperwork with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the federal agency that oversees vehicle recalls and regulates vehicle safety standards. Information about the recall was not immediately available on NHTSA's website.

Vehicles affected by the issue "have rear floor assemblies produced with tapping plates that may have oversized extruded bolt holes," which are used to attach the rear seat belt buckles, according to a statement from Ford. "Oversized extruded bolt holes may decrease the strength of the fastener joint causing inadequate attachment of the rear seat belts during loading, and if they detach, may not adequately restrain an occupant in a crash, increasing the risk of injury."

Ford said it is not aware of any accidents or injuries related to the issue, which it attributed to an error on the part of a supplier. Ford began notifying dealers Dec. 17. Customer notices are slated to go out the week of Jan. 17, according to Deep. Dealers will repair the rear seat belt buckle attachments. 

According to Ford, 741 of the affected Mach-Es already had been delivered to customers, while 145 affected Mavericks had been delivered.

Maverick, a compact pickup truck, had its first full month of sales in October. Through November, Ford had sold 7,228 Mavericks in the U.S. Maverick is assembled at Ford's Hermosillo Stamping and Assembly Plant in Mexico.

Earlier this month, Ford confirmed plans to increase production capacity for Mach-E, its first battery-electric vehicle. The automaker said it will utilize its entire Cuautitlan, Mexico, plant for production of Mach-E, with plans to increase production of Mach-E there starting in 2022 and reaching 200,000 units per year by 2023 for North America and Europe. 

The recall first was reported by the Detroit Free Press.

jgrzelewski@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @JGrzelewski