Ford recalls Bronco Sports and Mavericks over battery issues: NPR

Ford is recalling nearly 273,000 vehicles due to a possible battery defect which, when present, can cause the vehicle to lose its driving power.

The recall specifically covers the 2021 through 2023 Ford Bronco Sports and the 2022 and 2023 Ford Maverick pickup trucks.

According to documents Ford has submitted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that a manufacturing defect can cause sudden battery degradation while driving. This could mean a loss of power to accessories such as hazard lights, or a vehicle stalling when stopping. It could also leave a driver stranded when the SUV or truck cannot restart after the engine automatically shuts off, such as at a red light.

As required by a safety recall, Ford will repair the problem free of charge.

Drivers can confirm whether their vehicle is covered by this or any other recall at NHTSA.gov, or by using the agency’s “SaferCar” application.

Ford documents say the problem was discovered after a larger recall last year, also linked to a loss of power in the vehicles. At the time, Ford identified a problem in the on-board computers that monitor a vehicle’s 12-volt battery. A recalibration was supposed to fix the problem.

But even after this fix, some drivers were reporting that their vehicle was experiencing battery issues. So Ford took a second look and this time discovered that a particular supplier’s 12-volt batteries had multiple manufacturing defects.

It is estimated that approximately 1% of batteries in these vehicles have this defect. Instead of identifying defective batteries, Ford will replace all such batteries with higher quality replacement batteries.