Ford Fuel Economy Lawsuit Challenges Company’s MPG Numbers

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Update: 

• Several class action lawsuits filed against Ford were dismissed by a Michigan federal judge.
• The multidistrict litigation was over claims Ford exaggerated the fuel economy of its F-150 and Ranger pickup trucks. Consumers claimed Ford misled them about the vehicles’ fuel economy on their new vehicle window sticker.
• Judge ruled claims were preempted by federal law, namely the Environmental Policy and Conservation Act.
• Claims had been filed against Ford by dozens of vehicle owners in more than two dozen states.
• Vehicle owners claimed Ford had deliberately miscalculated road condition factors to come up with an inflated fuel economy number.
• Ford had argued that the vehicle owners were attempting to pursue a private enforcement action using state consumer protection laws.

July, 29, 2019

Two individuals and a construction company have filed a class action lawsuit over Ford fuel mileage claims regarding the 2017-19  F150 pickup trucks. Alabama plaintiffs Ronald D. and Jeffery F., along with Florida-based Accurate Construction Corporation, claim that defendant Ford Motor Company exaggerated fuel economy figures on the models in question.

According to the Ford fuel economy lawsuit, the defendant marketed and sold these vehicles “with false fuel economy ratings.” They say that Ford fuel mileage claims were based on “inadequate and inaccurate EPA fuel economy testing, resulting in …overstated miles per gallon EPA fuel economy ratings.” They further state that Ford Motors was aware of these inaccuracies, and deliberately concealed this information from consumers.

Case Background

The two individual Alabama plaintiffs purchased new Ford F150 SuperCrew XLT pickups from local authorized dealerships in their respective communities in February 2018 and March 2019 respectively. Their decisions to buy that particular model were based on the defendant’s marketing and advertising, information provided on the window sticker and conversations with sales staff as well as a company warranty.

According to Ford fuel mileage claims from these sources, fuel economy ratings were 23-24 MPG highway, 17-19 MPG city and 19-21 MPG combined. Ronald and Jeffery both say that had they known the actual mileage was substantially lower than manufacturer’s claims, they would either have chosen differently, or paid less than they had.

Plaintiff Accurate Construction Corporation purchased a new Ford F150 SuperCrew for the business in December 2017 from a Ford dealership in Clearwater, Florida. Like the Alabama plaintiffs, the decision to purchase that specific model was based on representations from sales literature, the window sticker and salespeople in addition to Ford’s New Vehicle Limited Warranty. The window sticker claimed fuel economy of 25 MPG highway, 18 MPG city, and 21 MPG combined. This plaintiff also believes they paid too much for the vehicle, and would have purchased a different one had they known of the “true fuel economy ratings.”

Were Ford Fuel Mileage Claims Misrepresentations or Oversight?

Automakers are responsible for their own testing when it comes to determining fuel economy and emissions ratings; however, those results are subject to EPA review. Another Ford fuel economy lawsuit alleges that Ford Motors programmed the vehicles’ onboard computers with a “mileage cheat device” in order to represent fuel economy as better than it actually was.

In response to such allegations, Ford recently notified the EPA that it had retained an outside company to investigate its testing methods. One of the issues being investigated is that of “road load” specifications that have been used in vehicle testing. These include wind resistance and tire characteristics; if these are underestimated, they could provide false fuel economy ratings.

So far, Ford has not released any findings to the public.

Not the First Time

The defendant appears to have a history of overstated Ford fuel mileage claims. In 2014, the company was forced to revise its fuel economy downward for six models, affecting approximately 200,000 vehicles. Plaintiffs claim that Ford knew, or should have known of the problems with their testing, and are seeking compensatory and punitive damages in addition to legal costs.

Ford was also under investigation by the DOJ for emissions issues on the Ford Ranger.

The current Ford Fuel Economy lawsuit is Case 2:19-cv-12035-SJM-RSW, filed in US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

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