- Vehicles
- 231,664
- Built between
- Oct 2015 – Nov 2019
- Models
- 3
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 22 January 2020
- Repaired
- 77%
- Unrepaired
- 51,653
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between October 2015 and November 2019. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2017-2019 Ford F-250 SDBuilt October 2015 to November 2019
- 2017-2019 Ford F-350 SDBuilt October 2015 to November 2019
- 2017-2019 Ford F-450 SDBuilt October 2015 to November 2019
Repair progress
51,653 of 231,664 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q2 2021.
77% repaired — 177,424 of 231,664 reported
- Owners not reachable
- 2,579
- Scrapped or exported
- 8
Manufacturers file these figures with NHTSA each quarter. Vehicles the manufacturer could not trace, or that have been scrapped or exported, are counted separately and are not included in the unrepaired figure.
What the defect is
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Super Duty F-250, F-350, and F-450 trucks equipped with an electric tailgate latch release switch mounted in the tailgate handle. Water may enter the electrical wiring system and cause a short circuit, activating the switch and releasing the tailgate latches.
What could happen
Unintended tailgate opening may allow unrestrained cargo to fall out of the truck bed and become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.
What gets fixed
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will modify the tailgate/frame wiring harnesses by adding jumper pigtails to isolate the tailgate release control circuits and will install a new tailgate handle release switch, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin January 20, 2020.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtOctober 2015 to November 2019
- Recall reported to NHTSA4 December 2019
- Owners notified22 January 2020
- Latest repair reportQ2 2021 — 77% repaired
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 4 December 2019.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Manufacturer contact
Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S48.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- 19S48
- Recalling manufacturer
- Ford Motor Company
- Recall initiated by
- ODI
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.