The Ford Escape aims to be fun to drive

Those vehicles affected are fitted with 3.0 litre V6 engines and made between 2001 and early 2003.

Ford said it had received reports of eight alleged minor accidents caused by the stalling, which can happen while decelerating below 40 miles per hour.

Despite the recall, Ford said the stalling problem posed "no unreasonable risk of accident or injury".

It said three of the alleged accidents included allegations of minor injuries.

The Escape is one of Ford's most popular models in the US and it recently announced a hybrid version that runs on both gasoline and electricity.

Ford's share price fell 31 cents to $13.38 on the recall announcement.

In January it reported a $793m (�430m) loss for the fourth quarter of 2003 after it was hit by the cost of job cuts in Europe and a new supply deal.