Nearly 300,000 Ford F-150 Pickups Recalled for Faulty Door Spring

2010 Ford F-150.

Ford is recalling about 291,000 of its F-150 pickups in the United States because the door might open in a side-impact crash, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The affected model years are 2009-10.

In a recent filing, Ford told the agency that the interior door-handle spring could break “during normal customer usage, resulting in insufficient spring force to return the handle to the fully stowed position.” The affected models have chrome door handles.

Wesley Sherwood, a Ford spokesman, wrote in an e-mail that the doors would not open under normal driving, but the automaker was concerned that a door could open in a side-impact crash.

In other action this week:

• N.H.T.S.A. said it was opening an investigation into corrosion-related failures of the front suspension on about 400,000 Nissan Pathfinders and its sibling, the Infiniti QX4. It covers the 1996–2004 Pathfinder and 1997–2003 QX4.

• The safety agency intensified an investigation into possible fire problems on 490,000 Volkswagen Passats from the 2001-7 model years. The focus of the investigation involves ignition coils, which fire the spark plugs.

• Harley-Davidson is recalling about 6,900 of its 2011 Softail family motorcycles because an electronic module made by Delphi Automotive Systems is not watertight and a leak could cause the engine to stall. The recall also covers about 800 security system kits that contain the faulty component.

• Fairplay Electric Cars is recalling about 1,600 of its 2010-11 low-speed electric vehicles because a supplier in China did not install a fuse in the accessory circuit, raising the possibility of a fire.

• Think North America is recalling 16 of its 2011 Think City electric vehicles because the driver and passenger seat belts may have been swapped during assembly. The passenger-side belt has a special child-restraint feature. The brand is also recalling 23 models for a windshield-defroster defect. The vehicles are assembled in Elkhart, Ind.

For more information or to report a safety problem, click here.