According to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), as of December 19, there have been a total of 390 vehicle recalls in the United States, affecting over 25 million vehicles. Ford led the way with 65 recalls and over 8.6 million vehicles affected, followed by Volkswagen with 45 recalls and over 1 million affected vehicles, and Daimler Trucks with 42 recalls and 273,311 affected vehicles. Stellantis came in fourth with 38 recalls and over 3 million affected vehicles, followed by Forest River with 35 recalls and 203,694 affected vehicles, and General Motors with 30 recalls and 3.26 million affected vehicles.
In November alone, Ford issued two major recalls: one for over 500,000 Broncos due to a fire risk, and another for around 450,000 F-150 trucks due to potential wiper motor failure. The most frequently recalled component category for the company was powertrains. Additionally, Ford recalled nearly 50,000 Mustang Mach-E electric crossovers due to a potential power loss.
According to Ford CEO Jim Farley, "we're improving our launch and initial quality, but our overall quality isn't as good as it should and can be." Ford spokesperson Maria Buczkowski also told Automotive News that "that's why we're deploying a comprehensive end-to-end process to raise quality and keep it high - in design, production, delivery, and after-sale service and support."
There are several factors that can affect the number of recalls issued by an automaker in a given year. For example, the more new models an automaker introduces, the more recalls there may be. Additionally, the inclusion of more high-tech safety and assist features in vehicles can also lead to an increase in recalls. According to Ford spokesperson Maria Buczkowski, "while we don't ever want customers inconvenienced by problems with our products when it's necessary, we're going to use recalls to call attention to them."
Source: Automotive News