As 2026 begins, many automakers are celebrating record sales achieved in 2025. Ford also set a record, not for sales, but for recalls, both in the number of campaigns and the volume of vehicles affected.

Ford's 153 recall campaigns, affecting nearly 13 million vehicles in one year, are not only a new record but also nearly double the previous record of 77 campaigns set by General Motors in 2014. This figure may slightly increase, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) only released data up to 23/12 when the list was published.

Ford states that this surge in recalls is not due to a sudden drop in vehicle quality. Instead, the company decided to stop avoiding problems. Ford has doubled its safety team, expanded testing, conducted software checks, and started identifying and fixing errors faster. The goal is to detect faults before they lead to lawsuits, fires, or viral videos.

A Ford F-150 model at a repair and maintenance center in New York, US. *IDeal Auto Body*

Kumar Galhotra, Ford's chief executive officer, told Detroit News that the company's initial quality improved significantly this year. He emphasized that if something goes wrong with their vehicles, Ford will act quickly to resolve the issue.

A term frequently mentioned in relation to Ford's recalls is "gremlin code." This term describes hard-to-explain errors, incidents, or mysterious malfunctions in a vehicle's electronic or software systems. These errors often pose a challenge for technicians to diagnose due to unclear specific causes.

Software plays a crucial role in these issues. Approximately 40 of the recall campaigns were actually re-issued updates. Ford realized they had no reliable way to confirm that previous patches were installed correctly, leading them to recall those patches again.

There are signs that this improvement process is working. Ford reports that warranty costs are decreasing, which typically happens when vehicles experience fewer malfunctions. According to Galhotra, this directly relates to improving the initial quality of sold vehicles, reducing repair costs for customers.

Ford executives affirm that the initial quality of 2025 model year vehicles is among the brand's best. Consumer Reports moved Ford into the upper half of its reliability rankings for the first time in years. J.D. Power also showed improvement, though Ford still ranks below the overall average.

Despite these internal improvements, customers and dealers are not entirely satisfied. Dealer service stations are overwhelmed with recall work, and one dealer noted that Ford does not compensate them as well as actual customers. Sometimes, new vehicles cannot even be delivered because they require repairs first.

Ford finds itself in a difficult position, publicly doing what it believes is the right thing rather than quietly ignoring issues.