Class Action Lawsuit Filled Against Ford Concerning MyFordTouch System

William Maley

Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com

July 18, 2013

A proposed class-action lawsuit was filed against Ford on Monday that alleges MyFord Touch and MyLincoln Touch infotainment systems are defective. The suit was filed by the Center for Defensive Driving, a nonprofit educator in Torrance, California. The Center for Defensive Driving in their suit say that Ford knew about the defects, but didn't disclose the problems to potential customers. The Center for Defensive Driving leased a 2013 F-150 pickup with MyFord Touch and found that it suffered from numerous issues including a lockup and total system failure, periodic non-responsiveness to devices such as MP3 players, and periodic non-responsiveness to voice commands. Over the course of five months, the F-150′s MyFord Touch unit had failed or locked up no fewer than 27 times.

Ford has been on the offensive with MyFord and MyLincoln Touch since its introduction. In 2011, Ford CEO Alan Mulally acknowledged problems with the system and said consumers would be happy with an update that would be coming out that year that would improve many functions. Since then, Ford has introduced a number of updates, several technical service bulletins, and extended the warranty for the system. The company has also seen its ratings in Consumer Reports and J.D. Power go down thanks to MyFord and MyLincoln Touch.

"Ford needs to scrap it, not update it," said Center for Defensive Driving President Chris Knox.

A Ford spokesperson declined to comment.

Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.