Ford bulletin SSM 51789
What it saysSome 2022-2023 Expedition/Navigator vehicles built on or before 13-May-2023 may exhibit the power liftgate not fully opening when the vehicle is locked. NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Ford filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Jul 14, 2023, received Jul 18, 2023, about the electrical system. It names 4 model years across Ford and Lincoln (2022–2023). A service bulletin is not a safety recall: it is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a condition, and whether the work is paid for depends on the warranty in force. Quoting the number at a service desk can save a diagnosis.
One page for every brand it was filed under. Each brand’s bulletins: Ford · Lincoln.
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What the bulletin says
Source: NHTSA's summary of the manufacturer's communicationWhat it applies to, as the document itself states it — the build window in the manufacturer’s own words, read by machine from the PDF NHTSA serves. The build date is on the certification label in the driver’s door jamb; the dealer settles a borderline vehicle by its VIN.
Some 2022-2023 Expedition/Navigator vehicles built on or before 13-May-2023 may exhibit the power liftgate not fully opening when the vehicle is locked. This may be due to rear gate trunk module (RGTM) software. To correct this condition, reprogram the RGTM using the latest version of the Ford Diagnosis and Repair System (FDRS) scan tool. For claiming, use casual part 14b291 and the applicable labor operations of Section 10 of the Service Labor Time Standards (SLTS) Manual.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 51789 | Service bulletin | Jul 14, 2023 | 10239480 | PDF, 28 KB |
The summary is NHTSA’s abstract of the document, as filed under 49 CFR 579.5. One communication is usually filed as several documents — the bulletin, a dealer notice, an owner letter — and the number on any of them finds this page. A PDF link is shown only once NHTSA’s own server has been seen to serve that document; the rest are checked over the following nights. Quote the number at a service desk; it is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Doing the repair yourself, or pricing it before the shop does? Search the part by fitment on eBay Motors — the listing and the price are the seller’s.
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Model years it names
Source: as the manufacturer filed themFord 2 model years
Lincoln 2 model years
A vehicle page’s bulletin list shows the newest few communications filed against that model year; the count there is every one.
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What owners reported
Source: NHTSA complaint databaseOwners of the 4 model years this bulletin names have filed 210 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 66 of them name Electrical System, Structure — the same broad component group this bulletin is filed under. NHTSA groups complaints coarsely, so that means the same area of the vehicle, not necessarily the same fault.
2022 Lincoln Navigator L Reserve has many issues with Modules one of them that keeps goes bad is Apin which controls the screen and all other features like Massage seats Running Boards and Music and all other controls that gets disabled when it goes bad it’s a frequent problem which I has been having often changed 3 times but the problem…
2022 Lincoln Navigator · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Jul 11, 2023 · ODI 11531641
Upon starting, my 2023 Lincoln Navigator Reserve L has a significant delay when booting the back up camera and infotainment system and renders the vehicle safety systems unusable. Sometimes the back up camera freezes and locks the screen, sometimes it doesn't turn on at all. Often, the infotainment screen doesn't launch at all.
2023 Lincoln Navigator · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA May 9, 2024 · ODI 11587929
The rear portion of the moonroof on the vehicle, spontaneous imploded while sitting in the parking area in the middle of the night we have video evidence to prove that nothing happened to the vehicle during the night, and it also appears that the moonroof imploded from the inside as it expanded towards the outside of the body
2022 Lincoln Navigator · Structure · filed with NHTSA May 23, 2026 · ODI 11739703
A complaint is one owner’s account, not a defect finding, and a bulletin is not a recall. Nothing here says this bulletin was issued because of these complaints, or that the repair it describes fixed them. Complaint files on this site begin in 2015.
More bulletins about the electrical system
Source: same model, same component group160 other manufacturer communications filed against these Ford models under the same component group (electrical system), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Ford list.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 55262 | Service bulletin | Oct 22, 2026 | Some 2027 Expedition/Navigator vehicles equipped with power running boards built on or before 13-Sep-2026 may exhibit an intermittent condit… |
| 26-2431 v2 | Service bulletin | Oct 22, 2026 | This bulletin supersedes 26-2226. Reason for update: update the Service procedure for 2021-2022 F-150 3.5L EcoBoost vehicles with new Ford D… |
| SSM 55258 | Service bulletin | Oct 19, 2026 | Some 2025-2027 Expedition/Navigator vehicles may exhibit an intermittent electronic static/buzzing/screeching/humming noise from the front a… |
| TSB 26-2442 | Service bulletin | Oct 14, 2026 | This bulletin supersedes 26-2297. Reason for update: Add 2022-2025 Transit vehicles. Some of the vehicles listed in the model statement abov… |
| SSM 55220 | Service bulletin | Oct 6, 2026 | Some 2024-2026 Nautilus and 2025-2026 Explorer/Aviator/Expedition/Navigator vehicles may experience Android Auto connection or general Bluet… |
| SSM 55208 | Service bulletin | Sep 25, 2026 | Some 2024-2026 F-150, 2025 Explorer/Aviator, 2025-2026 Expedition/Navigator, or 2026 F-Super Duty vehicles may exhibit diagnostic trouble co… |
| DDM-PDM-26.21.7 | Over-the-air update | Sep 25, 2026 | Quality improvements include: -Software update to improve responsiveness of the door control system after the vehicle enters a low-power sta… |
| SSM 55198 | Service bulletin | Sep 24, 2026 | Some 2025-2027 Navigator vehicles equipped with multi-contour seats (minor feature code BYBAL) may exhibit a condition where the second-row… |
Quote the number at the service desk. It is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Every manufacturer communication NHTSA holds for Ford and Lincoln, by the number printed on the letter.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR 579.5Is Ford SSM 51789 a recall?
No. A service bulletin is a manufacturer communication filed with NHTSA under 49 CFR 579.5; a safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number (two digits, a letter, six digits) and a federal duty to repair for free. Check the vehicle’s recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls, or on its page here.
Is the SSM 51789 repair free?
Not automatically. A service bulletin describes how to diagnose or repair a condition; who pays depends on the warranty in force, any extension, and the dealer. Quoting the number can save a diagnosis either way.
Which vehicles does SSM 51789 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 4 model years across 2 brands (Ford and Lincoln): 2023 Ford Expedition, 2022 Ford Expedition, 2023 Lincoln Navigator, 2022 Lincoln Navigator. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone. The document itself sets the build window: 2022-2023 Expedition/Navigator: built on or before 13 May 2023 — the build date is on the certification label in the driver’s door jamb.