Upcoming recall for the affected Ford Kuga PHEVs due to fire risk

And, although the new electrified era of the automotive industry may seem to be on safe ground, the news of spontaneous fires in 100 percent electric vehicles, such as the Hyundai Kona EV, or in hybrids, such as the Ford Kuga PHEV that we reported on, which forced production of new units to be halted and led owners of cars already delivered to refrain from charging the batteries of their cars with electric propulsion, seem to remind us that, as in other aspects of life, we must not let our guard down or become complacent about what we take for granted.

The mass production of batteries for the automotive sector is a trend embraced by various brands and specialists in the manufacture of electric accumulators; for example, South Korea’s Samsung supplies, at least for the assembly line of the Ford Kuga plug-in hybrid, energy capacitors.

According to Automotive News Europe, here is the problem: Ford Motor Company has directly pointed to Samsung as responsible for the defect that led to the electrical system of the PHEV SUVs being exposed to a risk of fire that could cause the battery to deflagrate and, consequently, the Ford Kuga plug-in hybrid to catch fire.

Thus, from Samsung’s Hungarian facilities, batteries were supplied and installed in some 26,000 crossovers that carried an accumulator that would present a defect generated during battery assembly, originating from a sealing defect.

The problem was described as “An internal or charging fault could cause the high-voltage (HV) battery to vent hot gas. As these gases are not diverted away from other components, they will cause temperatures to exceed the expected operating levels. Overheating of components such as the fuel tank and fuel lines will increase the risk of vehicle fire.”

A solution to the fire risk of the Ford Kuga PHEV will take time

As we indicated in the August article, owners of units that may have this defect were asked by Ford not to recharge the battery, pending the study of the preliminary causes of the problem. Now that the definitive causes appear to have been found, the oval brand will launch a campaign that will seek to eliminate and resolve the problem that may lead to a fire risk in the Ford Kuga plug-in hybrids.

Although the campaign has not yet started, as we noted in the article cited, it is possible to check whether our vehicle has a pending recall or has been called in for a recall even before receiving the letter from the official service, which is the usual method by which manufacturers inform owners whose vehicle registration shows defects of such a procedure.

It seems that the procedure, which will involve a complete replacement of the battery of the Ford Kuga PHEVs manufactured between 1 July 2019 and 15 July 2020, will begin in December and could extend until March of next year, 2021.

Technical specifications of this car

CrossoverFord Kuga19 versions · from 37,624 €