— Ford says about 263 model year 2017 Ford Explorer, Taurus, Police Interceptor Utility and Interceptor sedans need to come back to dealers to fix steering gear heat shield fasteners.
Ford says the steering gear heat shield fasteners may not be protected enough from corrosion. This can cause the shields to corrode and detach from the steering gears and expose the parts to high temperatures.
Power steering can be lost if the electrical connectors for the steering gears melt, causing a message to appear that says, “Service Power Steering Now.”
The loss of power steering can occur with warning and cause the vehicle to return to manual steering, something that can cause problems if the vehicle is traveling slow or around a curve. However, the automaker doesn't know of any crashes or injuries associated with the defects.
The recall includes about 253 vehicles in the U.S., nine in Canada and one in Mexico.
Ford dealerships will need to replace any affected steering gear heat shield fasteners when the recall begins in September 2017.
Owners with questions should call Ford at 866-436-7332 and ask for details about recall number 17S23.
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