Ford to Inspect 386,000 Cars for Steering Trouble

Ford Motor Co. will inspect 386,000 large sedans in the U.S. to make sure they don’t have a steering problem that caused a recall in August.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says Ford will check 2005 through 2011 Ford Crown Victoria, Mercury Grand Marquis and Lincoln Town Car vehicles that weren’t included in the August recall.

Dealers will check and repair steering shafts if needed.

The August recall included more than 419,000 of the same cars in 22 cold-weather states and Washington, D.C.

Ford determined that the steering shafts could rust and come apart in areas where salt is used to clear snow, causing a loss of steering.

The company later found that steering shafts can separate on cars outside the recall area, if they were involved in front-end collisions.