Ford is telling owners of around 2,900 Ranger pickup trucks not to drive them after finding out that an exploding Takata airbag inflator killed a driver.
The death happened on July 1 in West Virginia last year, and Ford said it found out about it in December.
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Ford said in a statement on Thursday: ‘We take this matter very seriously and are advising owners of these specific 2006 Ford Rangers to stop driving their vehicles so dealers can make repairs immediately.’
Dealers will repair the trucks at owners’ homes or tow them to dealerships for the work, spokeswoman Elizabeth Weigandt said. The company also will offer loan vehicles if needed.
The West Virginia death is the second involving a Ranger and the 21st worldwide caused by Takata inflators.
The inflators, which use ammonium nitrate as a propellant, can explode with too much force, blowing apart a metal canister and spewing shrapnel. The problem touched off the largest string of auto recalls in US history and forced Takata into bankruptcy. More than 180 people have been injured.
Ford issued a new recall for the 2,900 Rangers in the US and Canada.
Weigandt said she didn’t know any details about the West Virginia death other than Ford was notified about it December 22 and the company inspected the vehicle on December 27.
The West Virginia Ranger was covered by a previous recall that came after the 2016 South Carolina death of a driver.
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