Three days before their scheduled trial, the parties in a Ford exhaust defect class action lawsuit notified the court that they reached a settlement.
Counsel for both sides of the litigation jointly submitted a notice to the court on August 5, saying that they have reached agreement in principle on the terms of a proposed settlement.
Terms of the settlement were not included in the short notice.
The parties say they will need time to work out the details of the settlement, get their clients’ consent, and submit the proposed settlement to the court for approval.
The parties asked the court to adjourn the trial, scheduled to start on August 8.
Lead plaintiff Angela Sanchez-Knutson filed this Ford class action lawsuit back in June 2014.
She alleged that in Ford Explorers from model years 2011 to 2013, engine exhaust leaks into the passenger compartment when the air conditioning is turned on.
Sanchez-Knutson claimed the fumes gave her and her daughter chronic headaches.
When she took her Ford to the dealer and complained about a sulfur-like smell, Sanchez-Knutson alleges the dealer never told her that smell was a sign of exposure to exhaust fumes. However, her husband tested the air inside the vehicle for carbon monoxide and found levels high enough to be considered hazardous to human health, she claims.
The plaintiff cited an internal Ford technical bulletin that addressed the problem but was only distributed to dealers, not to consumers.
She said the bulletin tells dealers how to fix the smell, but it does not mention leaking of carbon monoxide into the passenger cabin.
The Ford exhaust defect class action lawsuit raised claims for violations of the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act as well as the Transportation Recall Enhancement Accountability and Documentation Act.
U.S. District Judge William P. Dimitrouleas denied class certification in July 2014, only because the plaintiff’s motion for certification was procedurally premature. He eventually granted certification in October 2015.
In the fight over certification, the parties clashed over what method of calculating damages could show predominancy among all Class Members.
While Judge Dimitrouleas agreed that the plaintiffs could not use an arithmetic damages model, he accepted their proposed alternative “conjoint analysis” model for purposes of class certification.
The Eleventh Circuit declined to hear Ford’s appeal of that certification in November 2015.
The plaintiff Class as certified by Judge Dimitrouleas consists of all persons who purchased or leased a Ford Explorer model years 2011 to 2015 from authorized Florida-based Ford dealers.
The parties now plan to jointly ask the court for conditional certification of a plaintiff Class solely for purposes of administering the proposed settlement.
The plaintiffs are represented by Michael A. Hersh and John J. Uustal of Kelley/Uustal PLC, and by Jordan M. Lewis of Jordan Lewis PA.
The Ford Exhaust Defect Class Action Lawsuit is Angela Sanchez-Knutson, et al. v. Ford Motor Co., Case No. 0:14-cv-61344, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
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10 thoughts onFord Exhaust Class Action Lawsuit Settles on Eve of Trial
I purchased a 2013 Ford explorer only to have problems after problems. I found this website and come to find out the smell I’m experiencing is toxic fuses that comes in while in the vehicle. Is there a way to file a lawsuit against the car dealer that sold the vehicle?
Will the 2017 Ford Explorer be included in the class action
I just purchased a used 2014 Ford Focus and have noticed aromatic hydrocarbon fumes around the vehicle after driving. Then yesterday there was a terrible odor of exhaust fumes inside the passenger cabin. I could not duplicate the problem today but fear it may recur in the near future. I also noticed today that between the muffler-tailpipe system and the body of the car there appears to be some sort of “bubble-wrap.” I’ve never seen anything like this on a car. As this “wrap” stretches toward the rear of the car it actually goes below the tailpipe and covers the outside of the gas tank. So we have this blanket of “wrap” above the muffler-tailpipe and below the gas tank. The salespeople at Westfield Ford (Countryside, Ill.) are unfamiliar with either the “bubble-wrap” or the leakage problem. Their mechanics are still on strike so they can’t look at it. I have only had the car since 8-28-17, that’s 9 days. I was told to take it to other Ford dealers who are not on strike as the vehicle is still under warranty until January 2018. I have read about the police vehicle lawsuit concerning leaking fumes on their Explorers and am wondering if the same problem exists in my Ford Focus. This seems to be possibly a lethal situation though I don’t seem able to duplicate it with any regularity. But then I’ve only had the car such a short time. Can you offer any comments or suggestions? Thank you.
“noticed aromatic hydrocarbon fumes”? This is quite peculiar language, suggesting that you are imagining a problem that isn’t present.
There is no known problem with Focus, but you can certainly hire someone to test for CO levels in the cabin or get a CO detector and do this yourself.
As far as the bubble wrap, take a few good pictures of it and post links to them in a Ford Focus oriented web forum, asking if this is a typical construction, or a repair attempt, or just some stray bubble wrap that was garbage on the road that has melted from hot exhaust.
Would occasionally gagging after driving be a sign of a carbon monoxide issue.
Alone, no, occasionally gagging by itself is not a primary symptom of CO poisoning. You’d notice more the effects of oxygen deprivation including headache and dizziness.
No reason to speculate! If you need to test it to put your mind at ease, do so, or don’t, your call. You might have some other medical issue and ought to see a doctor if you feel your health has declined, regardless of the cause.
I have a 2015 Ford explorer that has exhaust leak and has been tested by the fire department to verify this. We would like to find out more information on the class action lawsuit .
The case is still moving through the courts and has not yet reached a settlement. Claim forms are usually not made available to consumers until after a court approved settlement is reached. We recommend you sign up for a free account at TopClassActions.com and follow the case. We will update the article with any major case developments or settlement news! Setting up a free account with Top Class Actions will allow you to receive instant updates on ANY article that you ‘Follow’ on our website. A link to creating an account may be found here: https://topclassactions.com/signup/. You can then ‘Follow’ the article above, and get notified immediately when we post updates!
I want to know what to do about our explorer releasing the toxic air into our Cabin.. My girlfriend aways complains about it
Get a less complaintful girlfriend? Haha, get a CO detector and measure for it when you suspect the problem arises.