In 2023, the automaker with the Blue Oval, Ford (F) , earned an accolade that distinguished it from its competitors.
According to data compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Ford had the most recalls of any automaker last year, with 55 recalls affecting nearly six million vehicles in 2023.
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Even this year has been a rough one for the automaker. At the time of writing, 62 recalls have affected millions of cars for the Dearborn-based manufacturer, with more than a month left until 2025.
However, about two weeks into November 2024, Ford was about to have at least one month where it could skate by without any recalls, but a flurry of them came in a single day, potentially presenting a tough hurdle for its bottom line.
Ford's 'bad recall day'
According to reports by the NHTSA, the Ford Motor Company issued four separate recalls regarding some of its popular crossovers and pickup trucks.
The first recall only affects 15 units of the 2024 and 2025 model year Ford Escape crossover. However, it does affect the operation of a critical safety component: the airbag.
As per Ford and the NHTSA, the affected handful of 24' and 25' model-year Escapes have been improperly manufactured such that the passenger airbag can fail to deploy in the unfortunate event of a crash, which can pose a risk of serious injury to passengers riding shotgun with you.
Ford says that a replacement dashboard cover will help remedy the situation.
However, the seriousness of the recall of the 15 affected Escape crossovers pales in comparison to the 65 Ranger pickup trucks that the automaker had to recall due to a potential fire risk.
According to Ford, the fuel line in the mid-size pickup trucks could have insufficient clearance from the bracket that holds it to the car. As a result, the line risks being fractured, which, if left untreated, can cause a fuel leak and create a fire risk. Ford's remedy is for dealer service departments to secure the fuel line with a tie strap.
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Another recall that Ford issued that day was also due to a fire risk. According to the manufacturer, the risk stems from misaligned engine cup plugs, which can leak oil and cause a fire if left untreated.
The Blue Oval says this issue is present in 2,418 units of the 2024-2025 model years of the popular F-150 pickup truck, the 2024 Expedition SUV, and the 2024 model of its luxury sibling, the Lincoln Navigator. Ford says that a replacement plug will only be necessary if dealers find that the plug is misaligned.
However, the biggest recalls that affect the most cars are usually not due to a fire risk but rather a safety risk stemming from something missing.
According to Ford, about 27,678 of the 2020-2025 Explorer and Lincoln Aviator SUVs, 2020-2024 models of its Escape and Lincoln Corsair crossover SUVs, and 2018-2024 models of its F-150 pickup, Expedition, and Lincoln Navigator SUVs could have a missing dashboard air bag warning label, which can pose a threat to occupant safety.
Federal law requires airbag labels. Ford asks owners who have the missing labels to return them to their local dealer to have them applied.
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Ford's repair financial burden
Despite lassoing in costs related to EVs and other expensive expenditures during Q3 2024, higher-than-expected warranty costs were still a significant drag on the brand's earnings and growth when it reported earnings last month.
Though warranty fixes are typically issued at no cost to the consumer and absorbed by the automaker, many, if not all, of the vehicles affected by Ford's latest recalls fall under Ford's three-year/36,000-mile limited warranty and its five-year/60,000-mile warranty.
Even though these recalls supersede said warranties, they represent a bad omen about Ford's quality state. During its Q3 2024 earnings call, Ford CEO Jim Farley informed analysts and other listeners that the company is well aware of its current situation.
"Clearly, our strategic advantages are not falling to the bottom line the way they should," Farley said on the call. "Cost, especially warranty, has held back our earnings power. But as we bend that curve, there is significant financial upside for investors."
Despite improving, Ford CFO John Lawler pointed out that warranty costs are still an anchor on the automaker's bottom line, noting that they are a burden that prevents it from reducing costs "at a pace faster than our competition."
However, Farley is optimistic that quality issues will improve at Ford, noting that the company offers managers and executives financial rewards based on cost and quality metrics and that a recent product release saw significant improvements.
"Our three MIS or three months in service quality is getting a lot better, a 31% increase in the last three years," Farley touted.
"This year, the high-volume vehicle lines like F-150 and Escape had huge launches and had virtually no warranty spike. J.D. Powers typically sees a 92% increase in defects during a launch."
The Ford Motor Company, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker F, is down 0.67% from the opening bell. At the time of writing, it is trading at $11.15 per share.
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