Ford dominates recalls; Jeep obstructs tail-lights, forgets welds

While Ford dominated the week’s recalls, Jeep had two of its own—obstructed tail-lights on the 2024 Jeep Wrangler and insufficient welds on child-seat tethers on the 2024 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Only 27 Wranglers in the USA were affected, and the fix is to replace the tail-lights with new ones that won’t be blocked by the spare tire and wheel assembly. The Grand Cherokee recall is arguably more important, given the consequences; but it only affects 243 Grand Cherokees, all of them the long L version. The dealers will reinforce child seat tether welds at no cost to the owners.

Ford had the equivalent of stalling in the 2022 Maverick when the battery voltage drops too far without being detected. 2023-24 Transits were made with the wrong bolt in the steering column, and 2024 Mustang rear suspension knuckles may fail with bad consequences. The 2023 Bronco Sport, 2023-24 Maverick, and 2023 Mustang Mach E have failing windshield wiper motors, while the 2024 Ranger and Nautilus may have power windows which can pinch rather than stopping on obstacles.

The most serious Ford recall was engine failures on 2020-2022 Explorers, which surprisingly, though consistently with Ford’s recalls, can cause fires.

Jeep and Ford did not monopolize recalls last week though they did come close. The 2025 Lexus UX Hybrid was recalled for loss of power due to damaged wire harnesses; coolant leaks in 2018 BMW 540Ds can cause fires; and 2023-24 Cadillac Lyriq EVs can lose brake effectiveness due to unexpected antilock activation.