The class has been certified in an action filed against Ford Motor Company on behalf of all Ohio residents who own or lease 1999 or 2000 Mercury Villagers. The action alleges that the throttle body assembly on the vans is defective, and causes the gas pedal to lock in place without warning. The action alleges violations of Ohio consumer protection laws, and seeks unspecified compensatory damages. Persons eligible to take part in the action may contact the attorneys for the class for more information.

Named plaintiff Pat Daffin alleges that, less than a year after she bought her $29,000 minivan in 1999, the accelerator pedal balked, and she could not press it down without an unusually hard push. The problem caused her particular grief when she pulled out across street lanes or merging into fast-moving traffic. She filed this lawsuit, claiming that Ford knowingly installed defective throttle body assemblies on Mercury Villagers made in 1999 and 2000. The judge ruled against a nationwide class action in 2002, but in July 2004 she agreed that the estimated 7,000 to 8,000 Ohioans who bought or leased the vehicles may now join the case.

Daffin alleges that her first attempts to replace the throttle body were in vain because dealers didn’t seem to have the part. When one was finally installed, it didn’t last-- a year later, a replacement had to be found. And then again, one year after that. Today, her Villager has more than 100,000 miles on it and is on its fifth throttle body assembly.

Owners of 1999 and 2000 Villagers across the country have complained of the same sticking accelerator pedals. As of mid-August 2004, 58 people have reported the problem on the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration's Web site. "About 50 percent of the time, the accelerator pedal sticks, as if there is something blocking it from being depressed," states one unsigned complaint. "When it finally releases, the car shoots forward and the tires squeal."

Nissan Motor Company manufactured the engine for both the 1999 and 2000 Villager and Nissan Quest minivans. It, too, was sued by Daffin's lawyers. Unlike Ford, it settled out of court in July 2003 and agreed to reimburse all Quest buyers for the full cost of replacing the throttle assemblies, even if their warranties had expired. Settlement papers were sent to more than 130,000 Quest buyers and owners, and payouts are expected in September 2004.

Ford company documents filed in the Villager case indicate that Ford knew about the sticking gas pedals. One internal document from the company's "Critical Concerns Review Group" said the problem was caused by excessive heat from exhaust gases "causing a sludge buildup in the throttle body." But the 2001 document said there a "very low" incident rate and that the problem "does not pose an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety as condition occurs while vehicle is stopped and does not negatively affect vehicle control." The investigation was closed, but the problem was corrected for 2001 model Villagers.