A dislodged bolt in the front seat frame could prevent proper restraint of an occupant in a crash
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has flagged a loose bolt in the front seat frame of certain 2024–2026 Ranger and Bronco vehicles, prompting Ford $F to issue a recall covering 179,698 U.S. vehicles.
According to NHTSA, if the bolt comes loose, the seat could lose its ability to hold an occupant securely in the event of a collision. The remedy will be carried out at no charge, with dealerships checking each vehicle and swapping out the pivot links and bolts where required.
The recall is the latest in a string of safety actions Ford has taken in recent years. Ford has recalled about 1.4 million F-150 pickup trucks over unexpected transmission downshifts, and separately recalled more than 254,000 Lincoln and Explorer SUVs over a software flaw that could knock out rearview cameras and driver assistance features. In the first half of 2025, Ford issued 88 separate recalls, according to The Wall Street Journal — a pace that at the time appeared to put the company on track for the most recalls by any automaker in a single year. Ford COO Kumar Galhotra told The Wall Street Journal that the elevated recall activity reflects an "intensive strategy to quickly find and fix any hardware and software issues and go the extra mile to protect customers," adding that the company has doubled its safety team and expanded testing on critical systems.
