I wonder if the recall wasn't done by the previous owner, if a Ford dealer would point out to the new owner about still needing the part replaced or if ,they would even bother to check to see if it had been done already? The second owner would never receive a recall letter, if Ford's records showed the original owner was already sent one. Many manufactures are not thrilled about doing recalls, and won't go out of their way for insuring they get done.
Honda used a method of marking a vehicle, so that at a glance, a technician could see if a recall had been done previously or not. A punch mark would be placed by the stamped VIN number on the firewall. The mark was placed above a certain letter or digit, after a recall had been completed. Even if the car had changed hands several times, if it was brought to a dealer for service, the current owner could be made aware if there was still a recall outstanding on their vehicle.
It was possible for a service writer to run the VIN in a computer, to see what recalls were done. Unfortunately. this wasn't done automatically with every vehicle brought in for service, as recall work didn't offer any personal bonus's to them. The service writer was never rewarded for up-sell hours on a warranty labor, nor would he get any up-sell parts bonus, So to some of them, looking up recall info on a vehicle, was a waste of their time.
The firewall marking method, gave the tech a chance to check the vehicle, without needing the service writer's involvement. The benefit to a flat-rate tech was, he could make more hours, thus a bigger paycheque. Some recalls paid lousy flat-rate times. Lousy, in that it actually took the book time to do the job, They would often be "overlooked", by the savvy tech if that were the case. But.. a recall job that paid five hours, and in reality took only three to do, would get noticed.
