Ford Fiesta, Fusion and Lincoln MKZ Dangerous Lemon Doorlatches

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has ratcheted up its investigation of doors popping open or failing to stay latched on certain Ford Fiesta models following hundreds of reports of car doors opening inadvertently, often while the car was in motion.
The agency upgraded its preliminary investigation, launched in September of last year, of doors problems in 2011 to 2013 Ford Fiesta models to an engineering analysis on Feb. 27. The NHTSA said its Office of Defects Investigation has received 207 unique reports of door latch problems in the car models, 65 of which claim a door opened while the car was moving. The agency goes through an engineering analysis to determine if it needs to ask an automaker to issue a recall.
The ODI said that the rate of door latch failures in the Ford models is “comparable” to other door latch failure investigations. It also questioned the efficacy of warning signals, given the number of claims that a door opened while the car was moving.
“Therefore, ODI is upgrading this investigation to further assess the scope, frequency and consequence of this failure,” the agency said.
In response to the agency’s information request, Ford Motor Co. said it had received 451 unique reports about door latches in Ford Fiestas. One of the reports described an incident where a door opened while the car was driving at a low speed and hit another vehicle, according to the NHTSA. Ford has also submitted 1,079 warranty claims related to door latch failures, the agency said.
Complaints posted on the NHTSA describe doors popping open mid-route and paying dealerships up to $500 to fix the problem.
Ford also told the agency that its 2013 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles have the same door latch as the Fiestas. According to NHTSA, the ODI has received 11 reports on those vehicles, with 4 claims that a door latch failed.