- Ford may again take the wooden spoon for issuing the most recalls of any automaker in the US.
- CEO Jim Farley has headed a push to improve quality and alter production practices.
- The company was fined $165 million for not conducting a timely recall concerning 620,000 vehicles.
Ford has had another year filled with recalls and will appoint a new head of quality in a bid to get things under control. The new leader will take over from Jim Baumbick, who will now oversee Ford’s entire vehicle programs team, including its EVs. The company is also looking to reduce warranty costs, which have spiraled this year.
As of early December, Ford was tied with Stellantis in issuing the most recalls of any carmaker in the US this year, totaling 62. In the four years that Jim Farley has been at the helm of the Blue Oval, it’s been making changes to reduce recalls, altering production practices, and employing more workers to identify safety concerns. Now, Ford is focusing on “execution” and dealing with these issues.
Read: Ford Drops Four Recalls In One Day, Hitting Mustang, F-Series, And More
“After three years of hard work fixing all of our deficits… we now have everything in place to really see our quality turn for our customers and for our business,” Farley said at a recent event.
Ford hasn’t announced its new head of quality, but the change should take effect in early 2025. The brand says the changes will allow its teams to “collaborate and work more efficiently to deliver exciting vehicles and software with the highest levels of quality for our customers.”
It’s not just recalls Ford is concerned with but also warranty costs. Ford’s warranty expenses increased by $800 million in the second quarter compared with the same period in 2023, Reuters reports. This is predominantly because of issues with vehicles launched in 2021 or earlier.
The brand endured a particularly rough November, twice issuing four recalls in a single day. In mid-November, Ford was fined $165 million by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for failing to conduct a timely recall about a circuit board fault that could stop the rearview camera from working on over 620,000 Ford and Lincoln vehicles.
