2009 FORD FLEX

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 Ford Flex, 2008 and 2010-2012 Ford Taurus, 2008-2009 Ford Taurus X, 2008 Mercury Sable, 2009 and 2011 Lincoln MKS vehicles. The driver frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."

Risk: An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury in the event of a crash.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Rear subframe rusted at bolt mount. Vehicle could have experienced catastrophic failure wihle driving. Independent service center diagnosed and documented rusted area and potential for failure. Noise would happen during acceleration/deceleration but not in wet weather conditions. Until diagnosed as unsafe to drive, vehicle drove with rear passenger side sitting on rear spring, potentially causing spring to rust prematurely.