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A Ford Mustang Mach-E class action lawsuit alleges door lock problems are caused by defective and dangerous E-Latch systems.
However, the Mustang Mach-E lawsuit includes only California, specifically:
“All persons within the State of California who (a) purchased and still own, and/or (b) lease or leased, at least one new Class Vehicle for the 2022 through 2025 model years.”
The Ford Mustang Mach-E is an all-electric vehicle, and the door lock problems are allegedly caused by electronically latched doors that use keyless entry for the passenger and driver doors.
But the lawsuit says the E-Latch system is a safety risk because occupants can be locked out if the battery dies, requiring a battery jump-start to open the doors from the outside.
The Ford Mustang Mach-E E-Latch System
Ford describes the E-Latch system:
“With your key fob on hand, or while using Phone As A Key, the button will illuminate as you approach your vehicle. Simply push the button to activate E Latch. Doing so will cause the door to unlatch and pop open slightly. A convenient latch just below the button is there to assist with opening the front door. Simply pull the handle to open it all the way.”
Ford continues:
“The Mustang Mach-E also knows when the driver leaves – automatically locking all the doors. To open the rear doors, press the button on the door. The door will unlatch and open slightly. Then, simply pull the door open the rest of the way using the grab pad on the inside of the door.”
According to Ford, the E-Latch system is “an easier way to access your vehicle.”
However, the class action alleges everything depends on a charged 12-volt battery. Ford says, “[i]f you lose power, you will need to attach jumper cables to your vehicle and charge the battery in order to access your vehicle.”
Although a high-voltage battery powers the Mach-E, the vehicle also contains a 12-volt battery under the front hood of the vehicle underneath the front luggage compartment. The 12V battery is used to control the switches and contacts that engage the high voltage battery.
The Mach-E door lock problems can allegedly create a lot of drama if the battery dies.
“Indeed, to access the front luggage compartment (where the battery is located) in the case of battery failure, drivers are required to follow a series of complicated and time-consuming steps that an average driver, without superior knowledge of vehicles and the proper equipment, may not be able to successfully complete.”
First, the driver must somehow have access to “an external power supply such as a 12 volt jump box.” But the lawsuit says that can be a problem because equipment like this is typically stored inside the vehicle, which is locked.
Then, if the driver has the necessary equipment located outside the vehicle, the driver must “[r]emove the cover at the front of [the] vehicle below the headlight [and] [p]ress firmly on the top right of the cover’s edge, then pull the raised section on the bottom left toward [themselves].”
According to the class action, the door lock problems next require the driver to pull out two wires and connect them to the external power supply making sure “to match the red positive cable (A) to the red positive terminal and the black negative cable (B) to the black negative terminal.”
There is a lever inside the arm rest of the Ford Mustang Mach-E interior door, but the lawsuit says the door lock problems can remain if the passenger (child or pet) is unable or does not know how to pull that lever.
The class action lawsuit argues the doors of the Mustang Mach-E electric vehicles are intentionally “designed to open electrically at the touch of a button, but unlike most cars with electronic door handles, the Mustang Mach-E does not have a fail-safe physical key that can be used should the battery fail; there’s no hidden physical slot to insert one.”
The Ford E-Latch system lawsuit was filed by California Ford Mustang Mach-E owners John Salas and Francisco Xavier Gonzalez.
The Ford Mustang Mach-E door lock problem class action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California: John Salas, et al., v. Ford Motor Company.
The plaintiffs are represented by Kazerouni Law Group, APC, and Diab Chambers LLP.