Earlier this year, Ford earned an ignominious distinction after it issued its 89th recall of the year before July. The Blue Oval shattered the record General Motors set in 2014 when it issued 77 recalls in the whole year.
Last month during its second-quarter earnings call, Ford said that it is taking the issue seriously.
“We are not satisfied with the current level of recalls or the number of vehicles impacted. We are working to reduce the cost of these recalls,” said Chief Operating Officer Kuman Galhorta.
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But the company also downplayed the issue in some ways.
Ford says that about a third of its recalls over the past three years have been software-related, and over-the-air recalls cost 95% less than physical ones.
So even though Ford is breaking recall records this year, the issues are less costly to fix.
Galhorta also said that the majority of its recalls are “tied to vehicles engineered several years ago before we made all the robust process changes across our industrial system.”
But the latest Ford recall shows that the problem may not be explained away so easily.
Image source: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Ford recalls another 100,000 Ford F-150 pickups over dangerous axle issue
On August 11, the National Highway Traffic Safety Association announced that Ford is issuing a recall for certain 2023-2025 F-150 vehicles equipped with the Trailer Tow Max Duty package and a 9.75-inch heavy duty axle with a 3/4 float axle design.
The agency says the rear axle hub bolt may fatigue and eventually break, which could cause the vehicle to roll away, even when when in park, if the parking brake isn’t also engaged.
Ford does have a fix for this issue, and owners will be notified of the change via mail in phases beginning August 18, 2025, through May 22, 2026.
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Ford’s number for this recall is 25S82, and it expands previous NHTSA recall number 23V896.
The Ford F-150 is the country’s most popular pickup, but the NHTSA estimates that just about 1% of the vehicles have the defect.
Ford recalls are costing the company billions
Ford says that tariff costs will shave about $2 billion off its bottom line this year, but if Ford doesn’t get its recall issues under control, its tariff expenses could pale in comparison.
Ford just announced that is recalling 2021-2024 Bronco Sport vehicles, 2020-2022 Escape vehicles, and 2019-2024 Kuga vehicles due to cracked fuel injectors that could leak fuel into the engine and increase the risk of fire.
More than 694,000 vehicles could have the problem, so it’s calling for a field service action that will cost Ford about $570 million. This was reflected in its second-quarter results but won’t affect the company’s full year EBIT.
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As bad as the recent spate of recalls has been, Ford says field service actions (FSA) costs for 2024 and 2025 model-year vehicles are at least 50% better than those for 2020 and 2022 model-year vehicles.
FSAs account for about 40% of Ford’s warranty costs.
The other 60% covers bumper-to-bumper and powertrain warranty coverage.
Last week, the NHTSA announced that Ford is recalling 312,120 vehicles in the U.S due to a brake assist issue that could cause the loss of that function.
Vehicles affected by Ford brake assist recall:
- 2025 Ford Bronco
- 2025 Ford Expedition
- 2025 Ford F-150
- 2025 Ford Ranger
- 2025 Lincoln Navigator
Ford will start mailing letters for that recall to owners starting August 25. Owners can contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332.
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