Ford recalled more than 741,000 vehicles in the United States after identifying a transmission problem that could damage components responsible for keeping a vehicle stationary in park. The affected population spans several of the company’s high-volume Ford and Lincoln nameplates.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the action covers certain Ford F-150, Ford Explorer and Ford Expedition vehicles, along with certain Lincoln Aviator and Lincoln Navigator models. The vehicles were produced across model years 2018 through 2021, though the supplied notice did not specify that every vehicle from every listed model year was included.
The safety concern involves the transmission parking pawl, a mechanical component used to hold a parked vehicle in place. Under particular transmission shift commands, an affected vehicle may briefly engage that pawl while still moving. That temporary engagement can damage parts of the park system.
If damage occurs, selecting park may no longer be enough to prevent the vehicle from moving when its parking brake has not been applied. Regulators said that kind of unintended movement creates a risk of a collision or injury. The problem therefore combines an in-motion mechanical event with a potential later failure to remain stationary.
At the time described in the recall report, Ford was aware of 24 allegations involving property damage and nine alleged injuries connected to the issue. Two of the injury allegations concerned emotional injuries. The figures represent allegations reported to the company rather than final findings about each case.
Ford planned to notify owners by mail. Customers receiving a notice were to take their vehicles to a Ford or Lincoln dealership, where technicians would update the Powertrain Control Module to the latest software level. Dealers would also examine the transmission for evidence of park-system damage. Any damaged transmission components found during that inspection would be replaced as necessary.
The software update, inspection and any required replacement work were to be performed without charge to owners. The repair approach is intended both to address the control issue and to identify vehicles in which mechanical damage may already have occurred.
Owners seeking more information could contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. NHTSA’s Vehicle Safety Hotline was also available at 1-888-327-4236. Owners should rely on their recall notice or official vehicle-identification-number lookup to determine whether a particular vehicle is included, rather than assuming coverage solely from its model and year. Applying the parking brake remains important.
