Ford just added another 777,000 trucks and SUVs to its 2025 recall tally, pushing the automaker past 11 million affected vehicles in barely six months. That’s 53 recalls since January. Nobody else in the industry is even close.
The larger of the two new actions covers 741,195 vehicles — the 2021 F-150, 2020-2021 Explorer, 2020-2021 Lincoln Aviator, and 2018-2021 Expedition and Lincoln Navigator — for a transmission defect that could let a parked vehicle roll away. The smaller recall pulls in 36,046 Broncos from the 2022-2026 model years for fender flares that may detach while driving.
The transmission problem is the serious one. Ford says the valve body separator plate inside the 10-speed automatic can restrict flow to the park valve during certain shifts, momentarily engaging the parking pawl while the vehicle is still moving. That damages the parking components over time, and eventually, the transmission may not hold the vehicle in park without the parking brake engaged.
Ford has tallied 24 property damage reports, seven physical injuries, and two emotional injury claims tied to the defect. Vehicles rolling away in parking lots and driveways is exactly the kind of failure that erodes consumer trust fast.
The fix involves a PCM software update that prevents the transmission from commanding the shifts that trigger the problem. Ford will also inspect the parking components and replace them if necessary. Dealers will handle the work at no cost.
The Bronco recall is less dangerous but no less embarrassing. A supplier failed to maintain its tooling properly, producing fender panels with incorrectly sized attachment holes riddled with burrs and stray fibers. The result is clips that don’t hold. Owners may notice gaps, sagging, rattling, or flapping fender flares — or they may simply watch a piece of their $40,000-plus SUV peel off on the highway.
Ford logged 370 warranty claims and 36 field reports before issuing the recall. The remedy is straightforward — new push pins and replacement flares where needed.
Neither of these recalls involves cutting-edge technology or software-defined vehicle architecture. A transmission that can’t hold park and fender flares that fall off are the kinds of basic engineering and supplier quality failures that defined the domestic auto industry’s worst eras. Ford has spent billions positioning itself as a technology leader with electrification and connected vehicles, but the blocking and tackling keeps tripping the company up.
Eleven million vehicles recalled in half a year means Ford is touching a significant percentage of its entire fleet on American roads. Some of these are minor fixes. Some, like a transmission that won’t hold park, are not.
The cadence suggests deep issues in quality control and supplier management that no single software update can address. Ford owners affected by either recall should expect dealer notifications in the coming weeks.
In the meantime, anyone driving one of the listed models with the 10-speed automatic should make a habit of engaging the parking brake every time they stop. It’s advice that shouldn’t be necessary on a modern vehicle. But here we are, 53 recalls into the year, and it’s only July.
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