NHTSA safety recall

Recall 78V108000

Seat Belts › Front › Retractor — Ford, Mercury · reported 15 May 1978 · 110,000 vehicles potentially affected

What's wrong

THE INVOLVED VEHICLES ARE EQUIPPED WITH SHOULDER HARNESS RETRACTORS THAT MAY NOT LOCK. SHOULD THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCE A SUDDEN DECELERATION OR IMPACT, THE FRONT SEAT OCCUPANT MAY NOT BE RESTRAINED BY THE SHOULDER HARNESS PORTION OF THE THREE-POINT SEAT BELT SYSTEM. FURTHERMORE, THE SHOULDER HARNESS RETRACTORS MAY NOT ALLOW EXTRACTION OF THE SHOULDER BELT WEBBING DUE TO A PRE-LOCKED CONDITION. THIS IS A NON-COMPLIANCE TO THE EMERGENCY LOCKING RETRACTOR PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 209, "SEAT BELT ASSEMBLIES".

The fix

THE DEALER WILL REPLACE THE SEAT BELT ASSEMBLIES IF NECESSARY, WITHOUT CHARGE TO OWNER.

VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES.SYSTEM: INTERIOR; SEAT BELT RETRACTORS, SHOULDER.CONSEQUENCES OF DEFECT: A PASSENGER NOT PROPERLY RESTRAINED COULD BE SUBJECT TOPERSONAL INJURY IN THE EVENT OF A SUDDEN STOP OR ACCIDENT.

NHTSA campaign
78V108000
Filed by
Ford Motor Company
Report received
15 May 1978
Owners notified
9 Sep 1978
Potentially affected
110,000

Vehicles covered by this recall

Whether a particular car is affected and still unrepaired depends on its VIN — a model year being listed does not mean every car of that year is included. Check any VIN free on CarLogs, or at nhtsa.gov/recalls.

1978 Ford Custom 1978 Ford Custom 500 1978 Ford Ltd Ii 1978 Ford Thunderbird 1978 Mercury Cougar

Is this car's recall fixed?

Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer, for the life of the vehicle. A CarLogs report shows the recall status for a specific VIN as reported by the manufacturer — whether it's open or repaired, and whether the fix is available yet.

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation recall database. Look up another campaign →