Ford Explorer And Bronco Sport Need Fixes For Electrical And Software Issues

Friday the 13th of September was not a good one for Ford as it issued two separate US recalls for two of its popular SUVs that day. If there’s a little bit of good news for the brand, it’s the fact that neither of the recalls is big.

The first of the two recalls impacts 2024 Bronco Sport models built on October 24, 2023. Ford has revealed that 76 vehicles were incorrectly marked as having been repaired under a previous recall related to a fault with the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) software.

Read: Ford Needs To Fix Over 144,000 Mavericks And 16,000 F-150s For Two Faults

In this recall, investigations revealed the PCM is unable to detect a sudden change in the 12-volt battery state of charge during driving, which can cause the Bronco Sport to fail to restart after the auto start/stop system is triggered or if the engine stalls at low speed. Some of the 76 vehicles affected by this follow-up were closed in Ford’s recall tracking system before they were fixed.

Owners affected by the recall will be notified from October 25 and instructed to take their vehicle to a Ford or Lincoln dealer where the BCM and PCM software will be updated free of charge.

Ford’s second recall issued on Friday the 13th affects select 2024 Explorer models assembled from May 1, 2023, to March 28, 2024, totaling 61 vehicles.

In this case, SUVs equipped with the available 3.3-liter hybrid powertrains may have a 12-volt battery cable that’s not secured properly and could contact the Belt-integrated Starter Generator. This could damage the battery cable insulation, increasing the risk of a short circuit and fire.

Owners of vehicles with the fault may notice a check engine light or a slow crank or no crank when attempting to start the vehicle. Dealers have been instructed to remedy the fault by installing a tie strap between the battery cable and high voltage cable.