NHTSA recall 97V019000
A recall listed here may apply to a vehicle of this year, make and model. Only the manufacturer can say whether it applies to one vehicle: check the VIN with the official lookups.
| Published by | NHTSA (United States) |
|---|---|
| Campaign number | 97V019000 |
| Manufacturer's number | 97S66 |
| Manufacturer | FORD MOTOR COMPANY |
| Reported | 1997-02-25 |
| Owners notified | 1997-03-31 |
| Component | ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:COOLING SYSTEM:FAN |
| Units potentially affected | 75200 |
What is wrong
THESE VEHICLES ARE ORIGINALLY SOLD OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN THE FOLLOWING STATES: ALASKA, IOWA, MINNESOTA, NEBRASKA, NORTH DAKOTA, AND SOUTH DAKOTA. THE VEHICLES INVOLVED ARE 1992-1994 TEMPO/TOPAZ VEHICLES WITH 3.0L ENGINES; 1994 TEMPO/TOPAZ WITH 2.3L ENGINES; 1992-1995 TAURUS/SABLE WITH 3.8L ENGINES; 1994-1995 TAURUS/SABLE WITH 3.0L ENGINES AND 1992-1994 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL VEHICLES WITH 3.8L ENGINES. DURING HIGH WINDS, HEAVY, BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW, AND LOW TEMPERATURES, THE ENGINE COOLING FAN CAN BECOME BLOCKED OR FROZEN WITH SNOW. THE FAN MOTOR MAY NOT ROTATE AND COULD OVERHEAT.
What can happen
THIS CONDITION CAN CAUSE SMOKE OR FLAMES FROM THE FAN AND/OR SHROUD, THE FAN ELECTRICAL WIRING, OR THE FAN MOTOR RESULTING IN A VEHICLE FIRE.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL INSTALL AN ELECTRICAL JUMPER HARNESS CONTAINING AN AUTOMATIC RESETTING CIRCUIT BREAKER TO PROTECT THE FAN MOTOR LOW SPEED CIRCUITRY FROM OVERHEATING.
Notes
OWNER NOTIFICATION:OWNER NOTIFICATION IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN APRIL 15, 1997.NOTES:OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT FORD AT 1-800-392-3673.ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S AUTO SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-800-424-9393.
| 1992 FORD TAURUS | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
|---|---|
| 1993 FORD TAURUS | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1994 FORD TAURUS | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1995 FORD TAURUS | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1992 FORD TEMPO | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1993 FORD TEMPO | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1994 FORD TEMPO | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1992 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1993 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1994 LINCOLN CONTINENTAL | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1992 MERCURY SABLE | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1993 MERCURY SABLE | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1994 MERCURY SABLE | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1995 MERCURY SABLE | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1992 MERCURY TOPAZ | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1993 MERCURY TOPAZ | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
| 1994 MERCURY TOPAZ | Built 1991-07-22 to 1994-11-18. |
A vehicle with no link is not in this site's catalog, which covers cars, multipurpose vehicles and trucks by model year. The campaign is from data as of 2026-10-19.
Investigated as PE96033 and EA96024
This recall followed 2 NHTSA investigations. An investigation is NHTSA looking into a possible defect. It is not a finding that a defect exists, and it does not say that any one vehicle is affected.
| PE96033 | Preliminary evaluation, opened 1996-05-02, closed 1996-09-30. ENGINE COOLING FAN FIRES. ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING. |
|---|---|
| EA96024 | Engineering analysis, opened 1996-09-30, closed 1997-04-15. ENGINE COOLING FAN FIRES. ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING. |
From NHTSA's investigation file, as of 2026-10-19. The JSON has NHTSA's summary of each.
Bulletins for the same vehicles and component
| 01M09 | 2002-04-18. Service bulletin. SAFETY RECALL PROGRAM 01S30 REGARDING ADDITIONAL COVERAGE FOR ENGINE COOLING FAN CIRCUIT BREAKER INSTALLATION. *TT |
|---|---|
| 9849 | 1998-07-16. Service bulletin. CONCERNS WITH COOLANT MAY LEAK FROM THE HEAD GASKETS AND / OR THE VEHICLE MAY OVERHEAT. *YC |
| 97S66 | 1997-06-27. Service bulletin. RECALL 97S66 - ADVANCE ANNOUNCEMENT - THE ENGINE COOLING FAN COULD STALL DUE TO ACCUMULATION OF ICE, SNOW AND SLUSH WHEN THE CAR IS OPERATED UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS OF HIGH WIND, HEAVY BLOWING SNOW AND LOW TEMPERATURES - IF THE FAN MOTOR IS BLOCKED OR FROZEN AND IS AUTOMATICALLY ACTUATED (TO LOWER THE ENGINE COOLANT TEMPERATURE) OR THE WINDSHIELD DEFROSTER IS MANUALLY ACTIVATED (WHICH ACTIVATES THE LOW SPEED OF THE COOLING FAN), THE ENGINE COOLING FAN MOTOR AND ITS WIRING MAY OVERHEAT - IN SOME CASES, SMOKE OR A FIRE COULD RESULT - TO CORRECT THIS CONDITION WHEN PARTS ARE AVAILABLE, DEALERS ARE TO INSTALL A JUMPER HARNESS ASSEMBLY WHICH INCORPORATES A 30 AMP IN-LINE CIRCUIT BREAKER IN THE COOLING FAN MOTOR CIRCUIT RECALL 97S66. *TW |
| 95153 | 1996-04-25. Service bulletin. TEMPERATURE GAUGE - FLUCTUATING AND /OR INACCURATE HIGH READINGS. *SD |
| 9524 | 1995-03-17. Service bulletin. NEW RADIATOR MANUFACTURING PROCESS/MODIFICATION. *TW |
A bulletin is the manufacturer's note to its dealers. It is not part of this recall.