Ford bulletin SSM 51874
What it saysSome 2021-2023 Bronco Sport and 2020-2023 Escape vehicles may exhibit a rattle or flapping noise coming from the rear air extractors while driving. NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Ford filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Aug 21, 2023, received Sep 2, 2023, about the equipment. It names 7 model years (2020–2023). 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.
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What the bulletin says
Source: NHTSA's summary of the manufacturer's communicationSome 2021-2023 Bronco Sport and 2020-2023 Escape vehicles may exhibit a rattle or flapping noise coming from the rear air extractors while driving. This may be due to the normal operation of the rear air extractors. To determine if this is a normal condition, perform a road test at 40 mph (65 km/h) or above. Inspect if the noise is coming from the rear extractors. During the road test alternate air conditioning (A/C) between fresh mode and air re-circulation mode. If the noise is eliminated when the A/C is in fresh mode, this is considered a normal characteristic of the vehicle and no repairs should be performed.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 51874 | Service bulletin | Aug 21, 2023 | 10241597 | 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.
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Model years it names
Source: as the manufacturer filed themA 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 7 model years this bulletin names have filed 4,109 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 12 of them name Visibility/Wiper — 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.
On the 2020 Ford Escape, the 24 owners who gave an odometer reading for Visibility/Wiper reported it at a median of 40,000 miles. That figure is one model year’s, not the whole range this bulletin covers — medians from different model years are not averaged.
I was driving on the highway, when I got a small crack in the windshield on the passenger side. When I was able to stop and inspect the vehicle, there a crack about an inch long. A few hours later after I returned home, I went to retrieve something from the car and noticed the crack had spread to about 6 inches long.
2022 Ford Bronco Sport · Visibility/Wiper · filed with NHTSA Dec 12, 2022
When I was driving at about 40mph another car cut me off and launched a pebble to my windshield. When I got home I saw a tiny chip in the windshield at mid-height in line with the front seat passenger's sight line. Over the next month or so a crack developed spontaneously and spread across the whole windshield.
2023 Ford Bronco Sport · Visibility/Wiper · filed with NHTSA Apr 13, 2024
The windshield developed a crack down the center of the windshield starting at the top of the glass. There is no apparent indication that crack is due to an object hitting it
2021 Ford Bronco Sport · Visibility/Wiper · filed with NHTSA Dec 19, 2021
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 equipment
Source: same model, same component group26 other manufacturer communications filed against these Ford models under the same component group (equipment), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Ford list.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 52476 | Service bulletin | Apr 24, 2024 | All accessory stick-on keyless entry keypads come with a wallet card containing the master code. If the accessory keypad was factory install… |
| 22N15 | Service bulletin | Apr 1, 2024 | Customer Satisfaction Program 22N15 Certain 2020-2023 Model Year Bronco Sport, Escape, Corsair, E-Series, F-650/F-750, F-53 Motorhome Chas… |
| 23L05 | Service bulletin | Mar 5, 2024 | Special Field Action 23L05 Certain 2022 - 2023 Model Year Bronco Sport, and Certain 2023 Model Year Maverick Vehicles Mobile Hot Spot Credi… |
| SSM 52328 | Service bulletin | Mar 4, 2024 | Some 2021-2024 Bronco/F-150, 2023-2024 Escape/F-Super Duty vehicles equipped with SYNC 4 may experience a concern during accessory protocol… |
| SSM 52269 | Service bulletin | Feb 16, 2024 | 2022-2024 Explorer/Aviator vehicles built on or after 28-May-2022, 2022-2024 Expedition/Navigator vehicles built on or after 08-Jun-2022, 20… |
| SSM 52261 | Service bulletin | Feb 14, 2024 | Some 2023 Escape vehicles with hybrid powertrain built on or before 27-Oct-2023 and 2023 Corsair vehicles with hybrid powertrain built on or… |
| SSM 52246 | Service bulletin | Feb 12, 2024 | Some 2023 Escape vehicles may exhibit a Front Camera Fault and/or Pre-Collision Assist Fault message displayed in the instrumental panel clu… |
| SSM 52162 | Service bulletin | Jan 8, 2024 | Some 2023 Escape vehicles equipped with 1.5L engines may exhibit an Engine Coolant Over-Temperature Warning message displayed in the instrum… |
Quote the number at the service desk. It is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Every manufacturer communication NHTSA holds for Ford, by the number printed on the letter.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR 579.5Is Ford SSM 51874 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 51874 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 51874 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 7 model years: 2023 Ford Bronco Sport, 2022 Ford Bronco Sport, 2021 Ford Bronco Sport, 2023 Ford Escape, 2022 Ford Escape, 2021 Ford Escape and more. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.