Ford is offering $1,000 to its network of U.S dealerships for every Ford Ranger they find that's included in the Takata airbag recall list that was issued earlier this year. The basically emergency-status list urges drivers of affected vehicles to stop driving them immediately and contact their local dealership.

The Drive has learned that the reward program began earlier this week and that it only covers the 2006 Ford Ranger. Furthermore, the vehicles must be fully repaired per the recall guidelines in order for the dealership to receive the $1,000 reward. It's not clear if others will eventually be added to the list, but so far 2006 is the only year model listed in the "Do Not Drive" memorandum issued by the automaker in February of this year.

Dealerships are typically reimbursed by the manufacturer for the cost of parts and labor of recall- or warranty-related issues, so Ford expects that the reward, which in theory can be seen as pure profit, will motivate dealers to clean up the remaining 25 percent of midsize pickup trucks that have yet to be repaired.