Ford says acceleration in vans not bug but feature

Mar 18, 2010, 5:08 GMT

Hanoi - Ford Vietnam representatives said Thursday that automatic acceleration in a van that prompted complaints from drivers was an intentional feature, not a mistake, and that a recall was out of the question.

Several passenger transit companies have complained of automatic acceleration on the 2007 Ford Transit van, of which about 800 were sold in Vietnam. Complaints and press attention prompted Ford to hold a meeting with owners and reporters Wednesday in Hanoi.

Ford Vietnam general director Michael Pease said Thursday that the complaints stemmed from the 'steady state drive' feature included in that model of the van.

The feature sets the engine's idle speed in different gears so it maintains a steady 'creep' speed, intended to allow drivers of commercial vehicles to drive in heavy traffic using only the clutch and brake pedals.

Pease said the feature was safe and operates as designed but that some drivers might not like it.

'There are no technical problems,' Pease said. 'It's more about the driver comfort.'

According to Ford, when a driver of the van shifts from neutral into first gear, the automatic acceleration increases engine speed from 800 to 1,200 revolutions per minute (rpm) before settling back to 1,000 rpm. The vehicle accelerates from zero to 10 kilometres per hour before settling back to eight with no application of the accelerator pedal.

No accidents have been reported as a result of the feature. Drivers at some transit companies have complained about automatic acceleration in 2007 Ford Transits since 2008, but the complaints attracted widespread attention only recently as a result of the controversy surrounding Toyota's recalls of some of its sedans for unintended acceleration.

Dong Xuan Ngoc, who drives one of the vans for the Thien Truong transport company, said the feature made the van difficult to control in slippery conditions or on hills.

'If they can disable this feature, they should,' Ngoc said. 'It is not suitable for Vietnamese conditions.'

Ford says 2007 Transits with this feature were sold only in Vietnam and Turkey and that the feature was not included on subsequent models.