WASHINGTON — Ford Motor Co. recalled about 155,000 pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles on Monday to repair a cruise control switch system that already had led to millions of recalls.

Ford said the latest recall involved 2003 versions of the F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450 and F-550 Super Duty truck, the Ford Excursion SUV and the Lincoln Blackwood pickup.

The No. 2 U.S. automaker previously had recalled 5.8 million vehicles in the past two years because of engine fires linked to the cruise control systems in trucks, SUVs and vans. That recall, one of the largest in history, covered vehicles from the 1994-2002 model years.

Ford officials said Monday an internal check found the switch systems in some early 2003 trucks and SUVs and the company acted to allow owners to get it repaired. The switch system could corrode over time, overheat and ignite.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration completed an extensive investigation last year into the cause of the fires. Through August of last year, the most recent data available, the agency had received 1,472 complaints connected to the problems, including 65 reports of fires.

The safety agency has said there have been no confirmed deaths or injuries, but lawsuits were filed in Iowa, Georgia and Arkansas over deaths allegedly tied to the fires.

Ford said last year its review found that brake fluid could leak through the cruise control's deactivation switch into the system's electrical components, leading to corrosion. That could produce a buildup of electrical current that could cause overheating and a fire.

TRENTON, N.J. — The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., operator of A&P and other supermarket chains, is buying Pathmark Stores Inc. for about $679 million in cash and stock in a deal that would turn two rival, struggling grocers into a Northeast powerhouse.The deal would create a 550-store supermarket chain, with annual sales of $11 billion, operating in the New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia metropolitan areas as well as in Michigan, Louisiana and the Baltimore-Washington, D.C., region.Pathmark stores will retain their name and format at least initially, but over time some of the store names may be swapped.