Shelby GT350 Mustang owners are charging its maker, Ford, a class-action suit this week due to its apparent lack of muscles. Owners were dismayed to find out that their brand new muscle cars are prone to overheating transmissions and other issues which force the car into limp mode. The defects can potentially put the drivers at risk.
The unhappy Mustang owners banded together as they are being represented by law firms which include Hagens Berman. This is the same group which represented Toyota owners in the unintended acceleration lawsuit, which ended with the automaker paying up $1.6 billion settlement. Filed in a federal court for the southern district of Florida, the lawsuit cites Ford's marketing statement of the muscle car as "track ready" didn't live up to the claims and were unusable.
The class action suit against Ford Motor Company specifically pertains to the Shelby GT350 Mustang and not the GT350R models. Equipped with a transmission and differential cooler from the factory, the “regular” GT350 lacks the transmission and rear differential cooler. The Fortune reported that this results to an overheating after 15 minutes or less on a race track, causing it to drastically reduce speed and power known in the industry as "limp mode".
The lawsuit emphasizes that Ford enticed race enthusiasts with its appealing marketing statement when in fact it's actually too dangerous to drive. The sudden loss of speed due to overheating is even recognized by the vehicle’s on-board diagnostic system, which forces it to suddenly cut the engine power. Having the car go into limp mode is also dangerous for other vehicles around the Mustang, the Torque News reported.
It is understandably very frustrating to the group of owners who bought Ford's Shelby GT350 Mustang since they believed it to be a track-ready road car. Company spokesman Bradley Carroll writes in an email that the brand is committed to providing customers with top-quality vehicles, but did not comment on pending litigation. An estimated 3,991 units of the Mustang in question could be affected by the defect.
