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A team of Baltimore-based Baker Donelson attorneys helped win a major victory for Ford Motor Company in a proposed class action lawsuit alleging the automaker knowingly sold defective vehicles. exhaust manifold.
US District Judge Jesus G. Bernal, sitting in the Central District of California, dismissed the plaintiffs’ claims against Ford earlier this month, finding there was insufficient evidence that the company the problem before it sells the cars.
The class of plaintiffs includes anyone in California who purchased or leased a 2011 through 2016 Ford F-150 truck with a 3.5L V6 EcoBoost engine, according to Bernal’s ruling.
The plaintiffs, who own Ford F-150 trucks, allege in the complaint that the vehicles have exhaust manifolds that often fail prematurely, impairing vehicle performance and allowing toxic fumes who entered the part of the vehicle where the passengers were sitting. The manifolds tend to warp or crack, the complaint says, because Ford didn’t design enough attachment holes for the piece.
The plaintiffs argued that Ford and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration were aware of numerous complaints from Ford F-150 owners who reported an exhaust odor in the vehicle’s cabin, and that Ford issued bulletins of service for other types of vehicles with similar issues.
Bernal disagreed, finding there was insufficient evidence Ford had “pre-sale knowledge of the alleged defect.” The claim that Ford was aware of the problem because it designed a replacement kit for a different vehicle model was “too speculative” to support the plaintiff’s allegations, the judge found.
The judge threw out claims under the California Consumer Legal Remedies Act, breach of express warranty and breach of implied warranty.
In dismissing the implied warranty claims, Bernal found that the plaintiffs “failed to sufficiently allege that the Class Vehicles are unsaleable. More importantly, the Plaintiffs do not allege that they observed or experienced any issues with their exhaust manifolds, or that the alleged defect impaired the use of their vehicles in any way.”
The layoff is a big win for Ford because it includes the F-150, which has long been the best-selling pickup truck in the United States. Millions of these vehicles were sold in the years covered by the plaintiffs, said Carlos Arcos, a Baker Donelson spokesman.
Baker Donelson attorneys Joel Dewey, Jeff Yeatman and Sabrina Marquez represented Ford in the case.
The plaintiffs have the option to file an amended complaint on Monday. Attorneys for the plaintiffs did not return phone calls seeking comment.
The case is docketed as Ricardo Franco et al v. Ford Motor Company5:22-cv-00907 in the US District Court for the Central District of California.
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