Ford Kuga owner leaps from burning vehicle in Durban

Ford could face a class action lawsuit after yet another Kuga family SUV burst into flames at the weekend after technicians assured the owner the vehicle was safe to drive in Durban.

The Times has revealed that as many as 23 Kugas have caught fire this year. Some of the affected owners are considering a class action lawsuit‚ including the family of a man who died after being trapped inside his burning vehicle.

Democratic Alliance provincial leader Zwakele Mncwango witnessed the latest vehicle to burst into flames at the weekend and posted photographs of the smouldering wreckage after calling the fire department.

“Wonderful work by eThekwini Fire Emergency team‚ they were able to be on site in few mins after receiving a call. The owner of the car is safe but the car is beyond repairs‚” he wrote on Facebook.

Nivesh Sewpersadh‚ 39‚ was driving in Westville North when his 2014 Ford Kuga burst into flames on Saturday. He was travelling a short distance to a Ford dealership‚ concerned because the engine light kept turning on‚ for the third time in the space of a week.

“I noticed smoke and pulled off to the centre island. I opened the door and had one leg out before the car even came to a stop‚” he told The Mercury - IOL.

“I took the service books‚ my cellphone‚ and my keys and ran across the road. Then I saw it was in flames.” Ford technicians‚ he said‚ had assured him the vehicle was safe to drive.

Forensic investigator Dr David Klatzow is assisting the family of 33-year-old Reshall Jimmy‚ who burnt to death in his Kuga while on holiday at the Wilderness in December 2015. The family is reaching out to Kuga owners after battling to get closure more than a year after the tragedy.

Klatzow said Ford was facing a public relations disaster over the way the company had handled the incident.

A Facebook page called “Ford vehicles burning” has been set up for victims of Kuga vehicle fires to share their stories.

Ford told The Times earlier this month that it was not considering a recall of the Kuga. Ford has recalled tens of thousands of similar models‚ named the Escape‚ in the US and China citing the risk of engine fires.

– TMG Digital