Mom and child’s fire ordeal in ‘fixed’ Kuga

Ford scrambles after recalled car goes up in flames

and realised with horror what was happening,” she said. James shot through as soon as the boom lifted, pulled over, got her son out of his seat and bolted. Then flames engulfed her car. She is receiving counselling from a psychologist.

She bought the SUV, a 2014 model affected by the recall, in October 2015.

“In December, when Ford urged owners of the affected models to take them to a dealership for a safety ‘check’, I did that, and when the safety ‘recall’ was announced in January, I took it back for that as well, that month,” she said.

“Ford led me to believe that the car was safe after that. So safe that I put my precious son into it. So I feel extremely let down and betrayed.”

She remains unable to talk about the incident without crying.

However, Ford is adamant there is no evidence the four fires are linked to the coolant leaks related to the recall.

George Goddu, Ford’s customer service division director for the Middle East and Africa, said: “Phase one of the recall has been very effective.” At last count, 87% of the 4 556 Kugas recalled in January — 1.6-litre models built between December 2012 and February 2014 — had had those “necessary repairs”, Goddu said.

By the time the “voluntary safety recall” was announced, almost 50 of them had caught fire across South Africa, mostly on freeways.

Goddu said Ford realised in December that the model had a “systemic failure” — over time the coolant bottle and hoses split due to the way the hoses were routed — and the first phase of the recall addressed that. “We know of no incidents, among the 4 053 Kugas which have undergone the phase one recall modification, where the replaced components have failed,” he told the Sunday Times this week.

Which prompts the question: why have four of them caught fire despite having had those hoses replaced?

In two cases, the fires were unrelated, he said — a water pump problem in the first and coolant leaking out of the turbo in the second. The third Kuga to catch fire was destroyed, meaning the cause couldn’t be determined, and Ford was in the process of recovering the fourth one — James’s car — Goddu said.

James and her attorney, Consumer Protection Act specialist Trudie Broekmann, are of the view that models affected by the recall remain unsafe. “Whatever it was that caused those four Kugas to catch alight, after they’d been through the recall process, they are clearly still unsafe and shouldn’t be on the market,” Broekmann said.

Ford believes otherwise, and is to invite owners of those “recall” Kugas to take them back to dealerships for the second phase next month, for the installation of a sensor to alert the driver when the coolant level drops.

Meanwhile, James and Broekmann are in talks with Ford South Africa about compensation, over and above James’s insurance payout.

Ford has agreed to ensure she is not out of pocket for her personal belongings lost in the blaze, as well as her related medical expenses. As for compensation for the Kuga itself, the Consumer Protection Act allows James to choose between a cash settlement or a replacement car.

Ford led me to believe that the car was safe. So safe that I put my precious son into it