Ford F 350 Engine Fire

In our last blog update, January 7, we talked about the recall issued by Hyundai regarding faulty antilock brake and hydraulic electronic control units.  In that blog, we also discussed the recall of thousands of Tucson SUVs that contained a defective ABS/HECU control circuit board.  The circuit board has a tendency to corrode, short circuit and cause an engine fire.  A recent investigation into an engine fire in a 2017 Ford F350 showed that a similar ABS/HECU was installed in that vehicle at the factory.  The vehicle was purchased new by the insured/owner and as a result, the ABS/HECU had never been replaced.  A photograph of the ABS/HECU is shown below.  When compared to the photograph of the ABS/HECU in the previous blog entry, the units are identical.  Although it is unknown if the unit in the Ford truck is the same as the recalled unit in the Hyundai Tucson, corrosion could still be the reason why the engine fire occurred in the Ford vehicle.  Engine fires attributed to the faulty ABS/HECU units can occur without warning.  That is, there are no instrument panel warning lights that illuminate prior to a fire.  In this particular case, the warning that the owner got was that the engine lost power (since it was a diesel engine).        

ABS/HECU found in Ford F 350