Five Worst Recalls in Car Industry

1. 2001 Ford Explorer

During the nineties Ford was a successful car powerhouse, with excellent financial performance. Based on the Ranger compact truck, Explorer was affordable and can be produced in large numbers. It’s simply the most popular SUV in US ever. Unfortunately, Explorer is somewhat top heavy and less stable compared to most station-wagons. In some cases, an Explorer can roll over during an emergency and the tires also had tread separation issues, which worsen handling during emergencies.

After causing 200 deaths due to stability and tire problem, Explorer were recalled and when released again in 2002, it never again regained its dominance.

1. 1971-1976 Ford Pinto

During the sixties, Detroit car makers were troubled by car imports from Japanese and German. Chrysler responded with the mediocre Dodge Colt, and the lousy Plymoth Cricket, while GM introduced the fateful Chevrolet Vega. Ford offered Pinto. Engineers in Ford were hard pressed to design a $2000 car. It has bad interiors and the fuel tank was placed behind the rear axle which was vulnerable to bursting during a rear-end collision. They calculated that $11 is needed in each car to create better fuel solution but paying settlements would be much cheaper in the long run. In 1978, Pinto was recalled to fix the fuel tank issue, not to mention million of dollars paid for Pinto fire settlements.

1. 1980 Chevrolet Citation

In the 80’s GM was widely renowned for its Oldsmobile Omega, Pontiac Phoenix and Buick Skylark. But, one of its cars, Chevrolet Citation, has been recalled 9 times! It had problems on suspensions, steering gears and fuel lines. Some buyers claimed that the car spent more time on garage than on the road.

1. 1982 Audi 5000

Audi 5000 was recalled in 1982, when the floor mats was improperly placed, that can cause unintentional acceleration. The 60 Minutes show showed a video about an Audi 5000 that run wildly out of control. Even this seemingly minor design problem causes the sales to plummet, from 72,000 cars in 1985 to just under 12,500 in 1991. The car was recalled again in 1987, when an interlock caused to car to not being able to get out from Park, except when the brake is depressed completely.

1. 1976 Dodge Aspen and Plymouth Volare

The twin, Dodge Aspen and Plymouth Volare might seem like two ordinary cars in 1976. They were compact cars and powered by Chrysler V8 engines, a typical suspension and a unibody chassis. However, they are recalled twice in 1976 and eight times in 1977. Both cars are plagued by fuel systems, emission controls and seatbelt retractors problem. Not just that, rust is also a huge problem. It is still a mystery, how Chrysler could behave like a pure amateur, which also almost caused a bankruptcy in 1979.