Ford recalls more than 456,000 Bronco and Maverick vehicles

Ford is recalling 456,000 Bronco Sport and Maverick vehicles due to battery detection issues, which can lead to an increase of crash risks. The recall announcement was made on April 12 by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,

According to the recall announcement, the body and power train control modules for these cars may fail to detect changes in battery charge. As a result of no detection, a low battery charge can cause “an unexpected loss of drive power,” which can include sudden stalling, an inability to restart, or impacting the use of other electric capabilities such as hazard lights, the publications claim.

The recall covers about 403,000 model year 2021-2024 Bronco Sports produced between February 2020 and March 2024, as well as more than 53,000 model year 2022-2023 Mavericks manufactured from February 2021 to October 2022, the recall report stated.

In response to this issue, car dealers will recalibrate the impacted vehicles’ body and power train control modules at zero cost to owners. Additionally, notification letters are set to be mailed out on May 13, according to the NHSTA recall acknowledgment letter.

Although the software update is not available yet, a Ford spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday that, “it should arrive by later in the second quarter.” In an official statement, the spokesperson added that “safety is a top priority, and we are taking proactive measures to address this issue promptly and effectively.” While Ford was unaware of any injuries tied to the issue, according to the NHSTA report, the automobile brand’s Dearborn, Michigan plant noted 917 related warranty reports, 11 field reports and 54 customer complaints. There were also two property damage claims and three unverified fire reports, the file states.

On Thursday, April 11, the NHTSA stated that it was investigating the remedy Ford had proposed after the recall of nearly 43,000 select Bronco Sport and Escape SUVs, in which gasoline can leak from the fuel injectors onto hot engine surfaces, increasing the risk of fires, according to manufacturing reports. The NHTSA concluded that the resolve did not include repairing the fuel leaks from dealers.