Ford Throttle Body Defect Puts Drivers in Danger, Say Plaintiffs

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Ford owners from three different states say they were never properly warned about a Ford throttle body defect in the cars they purchased.

Plaintiffs Fernando Aviles, Barry Kiery, Michael Kelder and James Cowen claim there’s a defect in the electronic throttle body used in several models and model years of Ford cars. They claim this sixth-generation Delphi throttle body is prone to failure, which causes the vehicle to stall or to suddenly decelerate to near-idle speed.

According to this Ford throttle body class action lawsuit, the Ford vehicles that contain the Delphi throttle body at issue include the following models, all from model years 2011 to 2015:

• Mustang with 3.7L TiVCT engines
• Edge with 3.5L TiVCT and 3.7L TiVCT engines
• Lincoln MKX with 3.7L TiVCT engines
• F-150 with 3.5L TiCVT and 3.7L TiVCT engines

The plaintiffs say defendant Ford Motor Company has known about the Ford throttle body defect for years yet has failed to address it adequately. They accuse Ford of purposely ignoring the defect in hopes that the warranties on affected vehicles would expire before the vehicles’ owners found out about the defect.

In fuel-injected engines, the throttle body is the component that controls how much air enters the engine. Older throttle bodies were mechanically linked directly to the accelerator pedal, allowing more air in when the driver depresses the pedal.

The Delphi throttle body is operated by electric motors linked electronically to the accelerator pedal. Plaintiffs say the defect in the Ford throttle body causes a loss of connectivity between the throttle body and the powertrain control module, which responds by limiting the vehicle’s speed to just above idle.

As plaintiffs describe it, the alleged Ford throttle body defect creates a significant threat to safety. Drivers have reported that their vehicles decelerated without warning while driving at highway speeds. When the alleged defect occurs in heavy traffic, navigating the disabled vehicle to the road’s shoulder can be extremely dangerous, the plaintiffs say.

Plaintiffs say scores of Ford owners have lodged complaints about the Ford throttle body defect in online forums and with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The class action lawsuit alleges that Ford has known about this problem since at least 2009, yet the company never disclosed the problem to purchasers. Ford claimed to have found and resolved a problem in a previous version of the Delphi throttle body, then continued to install defective throttle bodies in newer vehicles, the plaintiffs say.

The plaintiffs propose to represent a nationwide plaintiff Class that would include all current and former owners and lessees of one of the above “Class Vehicles” that was purchased or leased within the U.S. They also propose three subclasses to represent Class Members from the plaintiffs’ home states of California, Florida and Alabama.

They are asking for a court order that would require Ford to repair, recall or replace vehicles equipped with the Delphi throttle body at issue. They also seek awards of damages, restitution and disgorgement of related revenues, plus reimbursement of cout costs and attorneys’ fees.

The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys David S. Stellings, Jason L. Lichtman, Fabrice Vincent and Andrew R. Kaufman of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP; by W. Daniel “Dee” Miles III, H. Clay Barnett III, Archie I. Grubb II and Andrew E. Brashier of Besley Allen Crow Methvier Portis & Miles PC; and by Anthony J. Garcia of AG Law.

The Ford Throttle Body Defect Class Action Lawsuit is Fernando Aviles, et al. v. Ford Motor Co., Case No. 8:17-cv-00281, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.