A larger-scale recall impacts the Ford Bronco and Ranger, while the smaller Bronco campaign affects some previously repaired cars.
Ford Motor Company is still grappling with its fair share of recalls, and two of the latest campaigns affect the popular Bronco SUV.
The first (and smaller) of the two campaigns only affects 4,922 units, but covers a potentially serious safety issue that Ford dealers already attempted to repair. This recall, according to documents Ford submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on April 14, deals with incorrectly performed repairs. The earlier remedy may have affected the transmission-to-transfer case joint, which may now be misaligned and could lead to premature wear of the splits between the transmission’s output shaft and the transfer case’s input shaft.
The impacted 2021 – 2025 Model Year Bronco SUVs were originally built between January 20, 2021 and December 16, 2025.
If that wear gets too great, torque transfer between the two may not happen as it should. Drivers could either lose power while driving, or vehicles may roll while in Park due to the loss of the transmission’s park pawl function, if the parking brake isn’t applied as well. Ford says owners may notice a grinding or a clunking noise before losing power or experiencing a rollaway condition when the splines completely fail.
The fix for this one is fairly straightforward: Fix it again.
Eventually, owners will be able to take their Broncos back to the dealer, where technicians will inspect the joint between the transmission and transfer case inspected. If the joint is misaligned or there’s excessive spline wear, Ford will replace the transmission and transfer case replaced, free of charge. Remedied cars will have a properly aligned joint with bolts that are adequately torqued.
More information on this recall is available through the NHTSA’s website (recall number 26V-236), or Ford’s owner support portal (Ford recall number 26S26).
The second recall impacts the Bronco and the Ranger pickup.
Another recall campaign in the mix is NHTSA recall number 26V-268. This one impacts the Bronco and the Ranger for front seat height-adjust pivot bolts that may be loose or dislodged completely from their correct position. This can happen on either of the front seats, and it’s not just annoying — a loose/missing pivot bolt could create a safety issue. In the event of a crash, the affected seat(s) may fail to properly restrain the driver or passenger, increasing the risk of an injury.
To-date, Ford notes 60 warranty claims and one field report (for 59 unique vehicles) as of April 10. This campaign expands upon an earlier safety recall (NHTSA recall 25V-721/Ford recall 25SB5) that homed in on the same issue. The company’s internal safety review group monitored an additional population of vehicles during the time a torque check for the front seat pivot bolts was in place at the seat frame assembly’s supplier (and obviously noticed the issue on these Broncos/Rangers as well).
Ford claims it is not aware of any injuries related to the issue, and also noted that occupants could notice their seat being loose, squeaking or rattling may be a sign of a loose or dislodged pivot bolt.
In all, this recall impacts 179,698 vehicles. That figure includes as many as 62,255 Ranger trucks built between November 4, 2024 and October 1, 2025. For the Bronco, the population is the lion’s share of the total recall, affecting 117,443 SUVs built between the same dates. Ford assembles both vehicles at its Wayne Assembly Plant in Michigan.
The automaker also provided a more specific breakdown for recall population by model year:
| Model | MY 2024 | MY 2025 | MY 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bronco | 25,704 units | 91,669 units | 70 units |
| Ranger | 12,289 units | 49,916 units | 50 units |
Ford will notify owners in two stages. An interim notice (there’s an issue but the fix isn’t ready just yet) will go out between May 11 and May 15. The remedy notice (the fix is ready, take your vehicle into the dealer) will be mailed between July 13 and July 17, 2026. All vehicles in the recall population are VIN searchable through the NHTSA’s database or through Ford’s own recall site as of April 30.
When owners are able to take their Bronco or Ranger into the dealer, technicians will inspect the seat cushion height-adjust link and pivot bolts. If they fail inspection, then the techs will replace those pieces, free of charge. Ford has a general reimbursement plan to cover owners who may have had to pay for this fix out-of-pocket, but all of the impacted vehicles should still be under warranty.
