Regulators Launch Probe of Ford Vehicles Over Valve Stems

23/10/2008 00:40. Ford says its look into the stems, used in a majority of its North American vehicles, has found a low rate of problems and no safety risks. But safety advocates say any threat of sudden loss of air to tires should be deemed serious enough for a recall.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has already launched a separate investigation in May into 23 million replacement valve stems manufactured by Shanghai Baolong Automotive Corp. in 2006. The agency has found 4,767 complaints related to those valve stems, including one fatal crash of a 1998 Ford Explorer following a tire failure.

NHTSA’s preliminary probe into Ford vehicles covers 1,050,000 vehicles from a dozen 2007 models; company spokesman Wes Sherwood said the stems may have been used in other models not named by... // Tire Review