Vehicle recall 02V323000 · December 9, 2002
Ford Escort and Mercury Tracer
On certain passenger vehicles, the integrated air bag monitor (iabm) can be contaminated with water or other liquids and could experience internal electrical shorting.
Source: NHTSA data as of September 22, 2026. Last refreshed Sep 23, 2026, 2:43 AM UTC.
- Summary
- On certain passenger vehicles, the integrated air bag monitor (iabm) can be contaminated with water or other liquids and could experience internal electrical shorting.
- Consequence
- This may, in turn, cause the air bag readiness light to illuminate and in very rare occurrences, air bag deployment, melted wiring, or fire may occur.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install the shield over the iabm and apply nyogel grease to the connector. Owner notification began February 11, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332.
- Notes
- Customers can also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-dash-2-dot (1-888-327-4236).
Recall details
- NHTSA campaign
- 02V323000
- Reported to NHTSA
- December 9, 2002
- Filed by
- FORD MOTOR COMPANY
- Manufacturer campaign
- 02S44
- Owner notification
- February 11, 2003
- Vehicles potentially affected
- 396,217
- Initiated by
- NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation
- Components
- Air bags › Frontal › Sensor/control module-inactive
Vehicles covered
As listed by NHTSA. A recall usually covers only some vehicles of each model and year, often a production date range.
- Ford Escort (1997): 1997
- Mercury Tracer (1997): 1997
Has your Ford been repaired?
Recalls here come from NHTSA’s records for the model and year. Not every vehicle of a model is included in every recall, and this site can’t see whether a repair has been done. Only a VIN lookup can tell you that.
NHTSA’s VIN search doesn’t show recalls that were already repaired, recalls more than 15 years old, or some small manufacturers’ recalls. Recall repairs are free.