Ford Expands Recall of 7,133 Imported Explorer Vehicles Due to Rear Suspension Corrosion Risks
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Ford Motor (China) Co., Ltd. has officially filed an expanded recall plan with the State Administration for Market Regulation in accordance with the provisions of the Regulations on the Administration of Defective Automobile Product Recalls and its supporting implementation measures. Covering a total of 7,133 imported Ford Explorer vehicles, the recall aims to completely eliminate potential safety hazards existing in the rear suspension and protect consumers’ driving safety.
According to the official recall announcement (Recall No. S2026M0055V), the recall takes effect immediately upon release. It targets 2017-2019 model year imported Ford Explorer vehicles manufactured from October 1, 2017, to October 4, 2018. Notably, this campaign is an expansion and supplement to the previous Explorer recall launched on July 8, 2022. It covers additional problematic vehicles that were not included in the prior rectification, addressing residual safety risks of certain batches.
Official technical inspections and hazard traceability indicate that the core defect of the involved vehicles lies in key components of the rear suspension system. In snowy northern regions of China, roads are heavily sprayed with de-icing agents in winter. Vehicles operating long-term in such high-salt and highly corrosive environments suffer continuous erosion on the ball joints of the rear suspension toe link. As vehicle usage time increases, corrosion worsens, causing ball joint seizing and functional failure, and even leading to fracture of the rear suspension toe link in severe cases.
The rear suspension toe link is a core component that maintains rear wheel alignment and ensures steering accuracy and driving stability. Once fractured, it will completely invalidate the rear wheel alignment parameters, severely impairing or even disabling vehicle control during high-speed driving and lane changes. This may result in deviation of driving tracks and delayed steering response, greatly increasing the risk of scratches, collisions and other traffic accidents during urban and highway driving, posing prominent and sudden threats to the safety of drivers and passengers.
Ford Motor (China) Co., Ltd. has formulated a comprehensive free rectification solution for the confirmed defects. Authorized Ford dealers nationwide will provide full free maintenance services for all involved vehicles, including replacing the original parts with upgraded rear suspension toe links with enhanced corrosion resistance, as well as inspecting and precisely adjusting the rear wheel toe parameters to restore the original driving performance and fundamentally eliminate suspension fracture risks. The manufacturer will fully bear all costs incurred by inspection, parts replacement and parameter adjustment at no expense to vehicle owners.
To ensure timely notification and rectification, Ford will inform relevant vehicle owners via registered mail, official short messages and exclusive dealer notifications. Vehicle owners may proactively contact nearby authorized Ford dealers for maintenance appointments or call the official customer service hotline for detailed information on recall batches, vehicle inspection and maintenance reservations. In addition, consumers can log on to the official website and WeChat official account of the Defective Product Recall Center of the State Administration for Market Regulation to check announcement details and report product defect clues.
Suspension hazards directly affect core driving safety. This expanded recall fully reflects the automaker’s commitment to product quality, responsibility and active risk elimination. Relevant Explorer owners are reminded to verify their vehicle production batches on time and schedule official maintenance as soon as possible to avoid driving with hidden faults and ensure travel safety.