Yet another Ford Kuga has caught fire, this time just outside Estcourt in KZN last Friday. This follows a number of safety recalls in South Africa for the model due to fire concerns.
"I could have crashed into a truck and we would have never known what really happened," said Sissy Mkhwanazi, following her narrow escape.
The Durban resident had been Southbound on the N3 around Estcourt, when she felt the car losing power and it became tougher to change gears.
She found her brakes not functioning properly as soon as she moved into the slow lane, stuck between two trucks on a road going downhill.
Forced back onto the fast lane, she heard a loud noise coming from somewhere in the vehicle and observed a dark object flying off as she applied her handbrake in order to safely pull off the road.
At this point she had not smelled any smoke nor seen any flames coming from the vehicle, and her initial suspicion was that she had blown a tire. Upon exiting the vehicle and making her way towards the boot, she noticed that the car was locking itself and that the side mirrors were cycling back to their parked configuration.
She raced to retrieve her handbag in the boot and recalled just managing to do so before it too locked.
Expecting to see a blown tire, she inspected the rear tires and upon finding them intact, made her way towards the front of the vehicle. It is as this point that she saw the fire coming out from under the bonnet and soon after, the entire car was up in flames.
"I am not looking for fame, I want Ford to take responsibility for what is happening," Mkhwanazi added, as she recalled her ordeal to News24.
At the time of the interview, she was trying to collect records of her compliance to Ford SA's recall directives from her Ford dealer in Newcastle, as her copies have been destroyed in the fire.
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SOURCE: NEWS24
