23S07 Front Axle Ring and Pinion Replacement – 2023 Ford F-150, Expedition, & Lincoln Navigator

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February 24, 2023 NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 23V128000

Front Axle Pinion Not Heat-Treated

A fractured pinion can result in a loss of 4-wheel drive and may cause the front wheels to lock up, increasing the risk of a crash.

 

NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V128

Manufacturer Ford Motor Company

Components POWER TRAIN

Potential Number of Units Affected 240

 

Summary

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2023 F-150, Expedition, and Lincoln Navigator vehicles. The front axle pinion may not have been heat-treated, which can cause it to fracture.

 

Remedy

Dealers will replace the front axle pinion gear set. If there is a broken front axle pinion, the entire axle assembly will be replaced. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 21, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford’s number for this recall is 23S07.

 

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.nhtsa.gov.

 

Check if your Vehicle has a Recall

 


April 4, 2023

NEW VEHICLE DEMONSTRATION / DELIVERY HOLD – Safety Recall 23S07
Certain 2023 Model Year F-150 and Expedition Vehicles Equipped with 4×4 and 3.73:1 Gear Ratio Axles
Front Axle Pinion Gear Inspection

 

AFFECTED VEHICLES

Vehicle Model Year Assembly Plant Build Dates
F-150 2023 Dearborn January 17, 2023 through January 24, 2023
Kansas City January 15, 2023 through January 23, 2023
Expedition Kentucky Truck January 15, 2023 through January 26, 2023

U.S. population of affected vehicles: 239 Affected vehicles are identified in OASIS and FSA VIN Lists.

Note: Some vehicles may be in the process of being repaired at the plant. Monitor OASIS before opening an RO and/or beginning a repair. Parts purchased for an FSA can be returned for credit, if required. See the EXCESS STOCK RETURN details in Attachment II for more information.

NOTE: All originally included Lincoln Navigator vehicles have been confirmed repaired prior to dealership delivery, therefore have been removed from this program and are no longer on demo / delivery hold.

 

REASON FOR THIS SAFETY RECALL

In some of the affected vehicles, it’s possible the front axle pinion gear was not properly heat treated during the manufacturing process. Pinions that did not receive proper heat treatment may fracture, which may lead to the loss of the 4×4 application with the potential of the front wheels locking up, increasing the risk of a crash.

The failure mode could occur at any time in 4×4 application but is expected to occur primarily while in reverse as the pinion is subject to higher loads.

 

SERVICE ACTION

Before demonstrating or delivering any new in-stock vehicles involved in this recall, dealers are to inspect the front axle pinion gear for hardness, following the procedure in Attachment III. If a suspect pinion is found, dealers are to replace the front axle assembly. This service must be performed on all affected vehicles at no charge to the vehicle owner.

 

OWNER NOTIFICATION AND MAILING SCHEDULE

Owner letters are expected to be mailed the week of April 10, 2023. Dealers should repair any affected vehicles that arrive at their dealerships, whether or not the customer has received a letter.

PLEASE NOTE:

Federal law requires dealers to complete this recall service before a new vehicle is delivered to the buyer or lessee. Violation of this requirement by a dealer could result in a civil penalty of up to $26,315 per vehicle. Correct all vehicles in your new vehicle inventory before delivery.

 

SOLD VEHICLES

  • Ford has not issued instructions to stop selling/delivering or driving used vehicles under this safety recall. Owners should contact their dealers for an appointment to have their vehicles remedied as soon as practicable.
  • Immediately contact any of your affected customers whose vehicles are not on your VIN list but are identified in OASIS. Give the customer a copy of the Owner Notification Letter (when available) and schedule a service date.
  • Correct other affected vehicles identified in OASIS which are brought to your dealership.
  • Dealers are to prioritize repairs of customer vehicles over repairs of new and used vehicle inventory.

 

STOCK VEHICLES

  • Correct all affected units in your new vehicle inventory before delivery.
  • Use OASIS to identify any affected vehicles in your used vehicle inventory.

 

DEALER-OPERATED RENTAL VEHICLES

The Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act law effective June 2016 prohibits a rental company from selling, renting, or leasing vehicles subject to a safety or compliance recall. Please consult your legal counsel for legal advice.

 

TITLE BRANDED / SALVAGED VEHICLES

Affected title-branded and salvaged vehicles are eligible for this recall.

 

OWNER REFUNDS

  • This safety recall must still be performed, even if the owner has paid for a previous repair. Claiming a refund will not close the recall on the vehicle.
  • Ford Motor Company is offering a refund for owner-paid repairs covered by this recall if the repair was performed before the date indicated in the reimbursement plan, which is posted with this bulletin. Owners are directed to seek reimbursement through authorized dealers or, at their option, directly through Ford Motor Company at P.O. Box 6251, Dearborn, MI 48121-6251.
  • Dealers are also pre-approved to refund owner-paid emergency repairs that were performed away from an authorized servicing dealer after the end date specified in the reimbursement plan. Non-covered repairs, or those judged by Ford to be excessive, will not be reimbursed.
  • Refunds will only be provided for the cost associated with front axle pinion gear replacement due to breakage.

 

RENTAL VEHICLES

For vehicles requiring front axle assembly replacement, dealers are pre-approved for up to 5 days for a rental vehicle. Follow Extended Service Plan (ESP) guidelines for dollar amounts. Rentals will only be reimbursed for the days the vehicle is at the dealership for part replacement. Prior approval for more than 5 rental days is required from the SSSC. Contact the SSSC via the SSSC Web Contact Site for consideration and approval if appropriate.

 

TOWING

If towing is required, dealers are authorized to claim up to a maximum value of $250 to provide towing services for this program.

 

PICK-UP AND DELIVERY

All customers affected by this program have the option of complimentary Vehicle Pick-up & Delivery service (at participating dealers) in lieu of a rental vehicle. Refer to EFC12071, 2023 Remote Experience Program, Pickup & Delivery (PDL) Offset section for additional details.

 

PARTS REQUIREMENTS

Part Number  Description Order Quantity
****-993-** Front axle assembly (3.73:1 gear ratio) 1 if required.

NOTE: For additional required parts such as gaskets, fasteners, seals, etc. refer to the WSM procedures and Ford Ecat for additional parts requirements.

 


CERTAIN 2023 MODEL YEAR F-150 AND EXPEDITION VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 4X4 AND 3.73:1 GEAR RATIO AXLES — FRONT AXLE PINION GEAR INSPECTION

SERVICE PROCEDURE

1. If equipped remove the nut, bolts and the transmission shield. See Figure 1.

 

2. Index-mark the front driveshaft flange CV joint to the pinion flange cup. See Figure 2.

 

3. Remove the front driveshaft CV joint-to-pinion flange cup bolts and retaining straps. See Figure 3.

 

4. Position the front driveshaft aside. See Figure 4.

 

5. Using a 5/16 in (8 mm) drill bit and moderate pressure drill the drive pinion stem pilot hole for two
seconds. See Figure 5.

 

6. Did the 5/16 in (8 mm) drill bit remove material from the drive pinion stem pilot hole? See Figure 6.

YES – Inspection PASS. The front drive axle/differential DOES NOT need to be replaced.
Proceed to Step 7.

NO – Inspection FAIL – REPLACEMENT IS REQUIRED.

  • Capture and submit clear photo(s) showing the INABILITY TO REMOVE material from the pinion with the drill test to the Special Service Support Center (SSSC) for front drive axle/differential assembly replacement approval. Install the new front drive axle/differential assembly, follow the Workshop Manual (WSM) procedures in Section 205-03.

NOTE: Prior approval and an approval code from the SSSC will be required for claim submission.

NOTE: For this procedure only new front driveshaft CV joint-to-pinion flange cup bolts and retaining straps are not required. See Step 8 for front driveshaft CV joint-to-pinion flange cup bolts and retaining straps cleaning and reuse instructions.

NOTE: For this procedure only it is not necessary to lower the sway bar or remove the front driveshaft from the transfer case.

 

7. Clean any debris from the drive pinion stem pilot hole.

8. Clean threads of the original driveshaft flange to pinion flange bolts with a wire brush and coat the threads with Red TA-26, Red Loctite 263 or equivalent thread locker. See Figure 7.

 

9. Align the index-mark on the driveshaft and pinon flange and install the front driveshaft CV joint-to-pinion flange cup retaining straps and bolts. See Figure 8.

  • Torque: 41 lb.ft (55 Nm).

 

10. If equipped install the transmission shield and the bolts. See Figure 9.

  • Torque: 71 lb.in (8 Nm).

IMPORTANT NOTE: Federal law prohibits selling motor vehicle parts or components that are under safety, compliance, or emissions recall. Unless a part is requested to be returned to Ford, all parts replaced under this FSA must be scrapped in accordance with all applicable local, state and federal environmental protection and hazardous material regulations. Refer to the Parts Retention, Return, & Scrapping section of the FSA dealer bulletin for further information.

 

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Chronology :

January – February 2023
On January 26, 2023, Ford’s Critical Concern Review Group (CCRG) opened an investigation into reports of front axle pinion fracture on three (3) 2023 model year 4×4 F150 vehicles as they were being backed onto a vehicle transporter. Ford Engineering performed a read-across and determined that, in addition to the F-150 4×4 vehicles, the pinions are also installed on 4×4 Expedition and Lincoln Navigator vehicles.

Initial investigation discovered that the fractured pinions did not go through the required heat treat (annealing) process at Ford’s axle manufacturing plant to reduce hardness and brittleness of the pinion stem threads. A team was immediately dispatched to conduct eddy current hardness checks of all available stock at affected assembly plants. Testing of axle assemblies determined this condition is limited to pinions in 3.73:1 gear ratio axles. The CCRG investigative team reviewed plant process records to determine a build population of suspect dates to derive the population of axles with pinions that may have bypassed the heat treat process.

As of February 13, 2023, Ford is not aware of any warranty, field reports or customer complaints related to this subject.

On February 17, 2023, Ford’s Field Review Committee reviewed the concern and approved a field action.

Ford is not aware of any reports of accident or injury related to this condition.

 


3 Affected Products

Vehicles

MAKE MODEL YEAR
FORD EXPEDITION 2023
FORD F-150 2023
LINCOLN NAVIGATOR 2023

 


11 Associated Documents

Recall 573 Report – 3/2/23

RCLRPT-23V128-8430.PDF 216.067KB

 


Recall 573 Report 3/2/23

RCLRPT-23V128-1678.PDF 216.067KB

 


Recall Acknowledgement

RCAK-23V128-2890.pdf 645.256KB

 


Defect Notice 573 Report

RCLRPT-23V128-6533.PDF 216.043KB

 


Manufacturer Notices(to Dealers,etc) – Advance Notice re NEW VEHICLE DEMONSTRATION / DELIVERY HOLD – Advance Notice – Safety Recall 23S07 Certain 2023 Model Year F-150, Expedition and Lincoln Navigator Vehicles Equipped with 4×4 and 3.73:1 Gear Ratio Axles Front Axle Ring and Pinion Replacement

RCMN-23V128-9931.pdf 43.363KB

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Manufacturer Notices(to Dealers,etc) – Dealer Bulletin re NEW VEHICLE DEMONSTRATION / DELIVERY HOLD – Safety Recall 23S07 Certain 2023 Model Year F-150 and Expedition Vehicles Equipped with 4×4 and 3.73:1 Gear Ratio Axles Front Axle Pinion Gear Inspection

RCMN-23V128-5742.pdf 4651.633KB

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Recall 573 Report – 4/12/23

RCLRPT-23V128-4239.PDF 216.069KB

 


ISSUED Owner Notification Letter(Part 577)

RCONL-23V128-2607.pdf 53.341KB

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Recall Quarterly Report #1, 2023-2

RCLQRT-23V128-5191.PDF 211.125KB

 


Recall Quarterly Report #2, 2023-3

RCLQRT-23V128-8800.PDF 211.364KB

 


Recall Quarterly Report #3, 2023-4

RCLQRT-23V128-3134.PDF 211.451KB

 


Latest Recalls Documents

For the Latest and Most Recent Recalls Information Visit the link below…

https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/acms/cs/documentList.xhtml?docId=23V128&docType=RCL

 


 

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