# What does it take? **URL:** \ **Category:** General Discussion\ **Created:** [January 18, 2013, 11:18am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767 "2013-01-18T11:18:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![JDN88762](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/85f322/32.png) [@JDN88762](https://community.cartalk.com/u/JDN88762)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 11:18am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767/1 "2013-01-18T11:18:00Z")
What does it take to get a company to acknowledge and fix safety issues? I owned a 2012 Ford Mustang that had a safety issue with the stability control. At random times around 50MPH, the stability control would randomly kick on, cutting throttle and applying the brakes - sometimes with force - causing the car to slow down, shimmy, and sway from side to side. These incidents didn’t happen often, but when they did - watch out! Since the dealer couldn’t replicate the issue, I decided to take a video of the car performing it’s deed (and others have as well. This is by no means limited to just my car). Ford - at the corporate level - basically told me that unless the problem was happening when the dealership was looking at it, they weren’t going to do a thing about it. As far as they were concerned, what I was experiencing was perfectly acceptable, and apparently normal. Has anyone had experience getting a company to acknowledge and fix an issue they are determined not to??? ---
**Author:** ![LetsPlayArmis](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/letsplayarmis/32/3177_2.png) [@LetsPlayArmis](https://community.cartalk.com/u/LetsPlayArmis)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 11:32am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767/2 "2013-01-18T11:32:51Z")
The first place to go to is the dealer, since they didn’t find the problem the second place would be your own independent mechanic. Obviously if they don’t replicate the problems you have no apparent issue, however if they do experience the problem hopefully they could fix it. What you have described is a serious problem that should be fix immediately, regardless of who initially pays for the repair. After the problem is fixed the safety issue is no longer an issue, at that point it is only about reimbursement. Place the video documenting the problem on youtube, then contact your local TV station to report the problem by the time it makes its natural rounds Ford will gladly reimburse you for the cost of the repairs, and likely acknowledge the problem with a proper recall. Hopefully no one gets hurt because of the problem. ---
**Author:** ![kmccune](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/kmccune/32/1237_2.png) [@kmccune](https://community.cartalk.com/u/kmccune)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 5:16pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767/3 "2013-01-18T17:16:47Z")
Sometimes these systems get a little too complex and a glitch in the software or sensors can create a dilemma, I dont really see the need for a system like this on a sporty car,top heavy vehicles and vehicles with poor weight distribution yes,but sometimes cant these good intentions be taken a bit too far ?-Kevin ---
**Author:** ![jtsanders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c2a13f/32.png) [@jtsanders](https://community.cartalk.com/u/jtsanders)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 7:42pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767/4 "2013-01-18T19:42:04Z")
Your next step is the contact the US Department of Transportation and register a complaint. [https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/](https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/) You can also search complaints to see if anyone else has the same issue and filed it. ---
**Author:** ![texases](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/texases/32/862_2.png) [@texases](https://community.cartalk.com/u/texases)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2013, 7:59pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767/5 "2013-01-18T19:59:27Z")
You need to check on the ‘lemon law’ terms for your particular state, you may be able to make a claim and get replacement car. ---
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2013, 6:09am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767/6 "2013-01-19T06:09:39Z")
There’s that story about the floppy disc drive problem I hear now and then, pretty well known here in Silicon Valley … ok, here’s the link … “… $2.1 billion settlement in a class-action suit for shipping computers with an arcane flaw.” > **[Whistle-Blower Changes Sides To Aid Hewlett, Once a Target](http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/13/business/whistle-blower-changes-sides-to-aid-hewlett-once-a-target.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm)** > > Court papers reveal that Phillip M Adams, former IBM engineer, sold Hewlett-Packard a software patch to remedy alleged flaw in floppy disk controllers of its computers and agreed to assist company in its defense against class-action lawsuits related... ---
**Author:** ![JDN88762](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/85f322/32.png) [@JDN88762](https://community.cartalk.com/u/JDN88762)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2013, 7:06pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767/7 "2013-01-21T19:06:53Z")
I’ve logged the complaint with NHTSA. Unfortunately, I have too many miles on it to benefit from the lemon law ---
**Author:** ![meanjoe75fan](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/meanjoe75fan/32/552_2.png) [@meanjoe75fan](https://community.cartalk.com/u/meanjoe75fan)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2013, 8:11pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/what-does-it-take/76767/8 "2013-01-24T20:11:40Z")
If it were my Mustang, I’d just disable the stability control and drive on…