Ford recalls its award-winning Puma SUV after discovering a fault with the driver’s airbag that can see it come detached from the steering wheel if it goes off in a crash
- Ford has confirmed deliveries of the £20,500 crossover have been suspended
- Examples already sold – mostly £22,295 First Edition cars – are to be recalled
- The car maker found issues with the driver’s airbag retention springs
- This can cause the safety device to become detached if it goes off in a crash
Ford has put a hold on deliveries of its new award-winning Puma SUV after identifying a serious problem with its airbags.
Deliveries of the new car began at the start of the year, with buyers of high-specification First Edition trim levels – costing from £22,295 – already receiving their vehicles.
However, motoring publication Autocar has received confirmation from Ford that further deliveries have been suspended and recalls for sold cars is in process due to an issue with the airbags that can see them detach from the steering wheel when they go off.
Airbag recall: Ford has confirmed it is recalling all sold examples of the Puma crossover and suspending deliveries of the model having found a serious issue with the safety device
Autocar was alerted to the issue after a reader contacted the title claiming his order had been postponed because of a fault with the safety device.
The publication contacted Ford In a statement given to the publication, Ford said: ‘A number of Puma vehicles have been built with driver’s airbag retention springs that may be outside of Ford Motor Company manufacturing specification.
‘Under certain conditions, it is possible that the airbag is not retained in the steering wheel after it has been deployed.
‘The performance of the airbag in case of an accident with airbag deployment will still meet regulatory requirements and provides sufficient protection for the driver.
‘Ford has issued a sales hold of all affected vehicles in dealer stock and will immediately exchange the airbag retention spring.’
The company added that a safety recall for vehicles that had already been delivered to customers ‘will follow immediately’.
The car maker has said a number of Puma vehicles have been built with faulty driver’s airbag retention springs
It said that ‘under certain conditions’ it is possible that the airbag is not retained in the steering wheel after it has been deployed
Ford said it has ‘issued a sales hold of all affected vehicles in dealer stock and will immediately exchange the airbag retention spring’
Right hand drive examples of the SUV only recently landed in showrooms, though dealers were told last week to not sell cars until the issue had been fixed.
It is not clear how many Pumas have been delivered to buyers in the UK thus far, but Ford has confirmed that the issue affects cars produced between November 2019 and January 2020.
Of the affected vehicles, around a third are understood to have been delivered to buyers who are being notified of the recall requirement.
The Puma, which is priced from £20,545, was named What Car?’s New Car of the Year for 2020 last month.
It was chosen as the standout model from a shortlist of 30 new cars that will arrive in showrooms this year, with judges recommending it for ‘being fun to drive, cleverly packaged and well priced’.
The Puma, which is priced from £20,545, was named What Car?’s New Car of the Year for 2020
The Ford Puma scored a five-star Euro NCAP crash test rating in 2019, achieving one of the highest scores for occupant protection
The Romanian-built Puma crossover headed off the likes of the Skoda Scala, Range Rover Evoque and Tesla Model 3, all of which were winners in each of their respective sectors in the awards.
The Puma was also named the pick of the small SUVs, taking the category win ahead of models including the Audi Q2 and Skoda Kamiq.
Ford’s jacked up SUV was awarded a five-star Euro NCAP crash test rating when it was assessed last year.
It scored a 94 per cent adult occupant protection rating, which was one of the highest recorded last year.
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