- Ford has issued a recall for the dealer-installed hood scoop on the Bronco Sport due to the possibility of it detaching while driving.
- The exact cause of the detachment is under investigation, but Ford suspects issues with adhesive and potential installation errors.
- Thankfully, there haven’t been any reports of injuries or accidents caused by detached hood scoops.
Hood scoops are explicitly designed to catch the wind, so it must be difficult to keep them stuck on a vehicle. At least, that’s the case for Ford, as an accessory hood scoop for the Bronco Sport has enough possibilities to fly off the vehicle that triggered a recall.
Bronco Sport owners who opted for the $399 dealer-installed hood accessory will now have to return it. Ford isn’t yet 100 percent sure as to why their scoops fly off the hood but they have issued a recall and will reimburse affected Bronco Sport owners.
Read: Ford Recalls 661,000 Explorers Over Detaching Roof Rail Covers
The automaker first learned that this issue might exist about three years ago when, on April 8, 2021, one hood scoop flew off a vehicle in the U.S. Since then, the automaker has become aware of a total of 24 instances of loose or detached hood scoops in North America. Fortunately, it is not yet aware of any reports of injuries or accidents that have resulted from this problem.
The problem does appear to be limited to the Bronco Sport. When Ford looked at other models with similar accessories, it found no evidence of a detachment trend.
In some cases where the scoop was blown off the hood, there is little evidence of adhesive residue, and in addition, they discovered that the honeycomb grille was warped. Ford believes that may prevent the part from sitting flush against the hood.
Ford also suggests that in some cases, the application instructions may not have been followed accurately by the installer. That problem may be worsened by the specific curvature of the vehicle’s hood.
Whatever the case, if the hood scoop on your Bronco Sport is rattling, or if you can see gaps around it, it may soon fly off your vehicle.
As a result, Ford is asking dealers to reach out to affected customers to remove their scoops and scrap them. Bronco Sport owners will not have their accessory replaced, but they will be fully reimbursed for the price of the part.
