US ends probe into Ford SUV exhaust issues without a recall
DETROIT (AP) — The U.S. government's road safety agency has closed a more than six-year investigation into Ford Explorer exhaust odors, determining that the SUVs don't emit high levels of carbon monoxide and don't need to be recalled.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it reviewed more than 6,500 consumer complaints, tested SUVs in the field and called in automotive, medical, environmental health and occupational safety experts before making the determination.
The probe covered nearly 1.5 million Explorers from the 2011 to 2017 model years and involved complaints of sickness and crashes that involved three deaths and alleged there were 657 injuries. Many complaints came from police departments that used Explorer Police Interceptors as patrol vehicles.
But the agency said in documents released Monday that it used rigorous test methods to send exhaust gas into vehicles. No Explorers with bodies that were sealed under a 2017 Ford service campaign had carbon monoxide levels that were higher than Environmental Protection Agency limits.