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How do we find new 1997 Ford F-150 XLT or Lariats? - READ ONLY

17 messages,  Last post on May 08, 1998 at 7:02 PM

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#16 of 17 Ping to Brutus by Ping

May 08, 1998 (7:49 am)

I used your advice in the claim above, the only difference being that I did not set the parking brake but as I have indicated this could have got me and the kids 11 & 12 year olds killed had I set the parking brake and the vehicle not moved until I released it. I can always get another truck when I am on the out side watching it go. Better on the out side than under water on the in side.

#17 of 17 Brutus by Brutus

May 08, 1998 (7:02 pm)

Good luck in your endeavors. Maybe if you bug them enough, they will settle out of court. My guess is that the difference between what your insurance will cover and what you paid for the vehicle is probably only a few grand. Unless there are a bunch of other people out there who have had the same problem, it seems like it would be cheaper for them to settle even if they feel they are right. But you will probably still have to get an attorney, etc.


I think it will be a tough case to prove if it goes to court, since you will have to prove that the vehicle failed and it wasn't driver error. If you're taking this to court, I'm assuming that you have had a mechanic that has inspected the vehicle and is ready to testify that the tranny did indeed fail and pop out of gear.


Ford will argue that if you had your foot on the brake when you released the parking brake, the vehicle would not have rolled backwards even if it had popped out of gear. They will probably also argue that the truck slipping out of gear could not have caused the problem because you would have taken the car out of park and put it in gear while your foot was still on the brake. If you were in gear and you released the brake to drive forward and it popped out of gear, your claim might be easier. But your claim is that you were in Park when you released your foot from the brake and Ford will almost certainly ask why you didn't put in drive before releasing your foot from the brake.


I'm just playing devils advocate here. The nuisance route with a possible out of court settlement is probably your best bet, but you probably want to get some good legal advice before you decide to spend any serious money fighting the issue. The burden is going to be on you to prove that the vehicle failed.

Messages Page 3 of 3

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