Local
couple might join lawsuit over car
Raymond and Mary Hansen bought a 1996 Super High
Output Ford Taurus in June.
Now, the Gillette couple find themselves among 10,000
potential plaintiffs against Ford after two SHO owners
in Illinois filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Chicago alleging
that Ford Motor Co. concealed a defect with the car's
high-performance V8 engine which causes engine damage
and high-cost repairs.
The complainants in the lawsuit are Larry Eck of
Wheaton, Ill., and Timothy Wright of Decatur, Ill.
The lawsuit charges Ford with two counts of fraud and
one count of breach of implied warranty and says that
Ford sold a vehicle "not fit for ordinary
driving." The lawsuit also seeks class-action
status to gather other SHO owners with the same problem.
The Hansens say they experienced the same problem
while driving their new car in the Big Horns in June two
weeks after they bought it.
Coming down Powder River Pass, the engine began
misfiring. Next, the "check engine" light came
on only moments before the power steering and power
breaks in the car shut down.
With continual attempts to turn the key, Raymond
Hansen couldn't restore complete order but managed to
get enough of the car's juices flowing to control it and
steer it down the hill to a safe stop.
Since the breakdown, the car has sat and continues to
sit outside the Hansens' home. After looking for auto
mechanics, the Hansens say they found the estimated
repair bill to be $15,000, plus labor.
"The price to fix them is more than the car's
worth," Mary Hansen said.
-- For a complete story, see Sunday's News-Record
