American car safety officials are checking into reports that more than 540,000 Ford pickup trucks might suddenly shift to a lower gear, making crashes more likely. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says it started looking into this matter after getting 86 complaints from people who own these trucks.
The NHTSA opened the investigation this week because of these complaints. They are concerned about trucks from the 2014 model year. They want to find out if these trucks should have been part of past recalls for the same issue. People who reported the problem said their trucks downshifted unexpectedly.
In many cases, the back wheels of the trucks locked up, causing accidents. One person said their truck suddenly shifted gears, leading to a crash with a concrete barrier and another vehicle. Both drivers got hurt.
Ford’s F-Series pickups are very popular in the US. Some trucks from the 2011 and 2012 models were recalled in 2016 for the same problem. Ford later included 2013 models in the recall too.