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Manufacturer communication · Service bulletin

Ford bulletin SSM 52525

What it saysSome 2024 Ranger vehicles equiped with a park by wire electronic shifter may exhibit a "Transmission Not In Park" message in the instrument panel cluster (IPC). NHTSA’s full summary ↓

Ford filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated May 9, 2024, received May 22, 2024, about the power train. It names 1 model year (2024). 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 communication

Some 2024 Ranger vehicles equiped with a park by wire electronic shifter may exhibit a "Transmission Not In Park" message in the instrument panel cluster (IPC). This may be due to the transmission park by wire manual release being in the released position. Before performing normal Workshop Manaul (WSM) diagnostics, verify that the transmission park by wire manual release is engaged. Refer to the WSM, Section 307-05 Automatic Transmission External Controls > General Procedures.

Kind Service bulletin Manufacturer date May 9, 2024 Received by NHTSA May 22, 2024 Components Power Train

Document filed under this number

DocumentKindDatedNHTSA idAt NHTSA
SSM 52525Service bulletinMay 9, 202411000289PDF, 68 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.

Model years it names

Source: as the manufacturer filed them

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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A weekly email, sent only in a week when Ford files something new with NHTSA for the model you pick — service bulletins, campaigns, warranty extensions, over-the-air notices, every model year. Nothing else is sent; one-click unsubscribe in every message. Separate from recall alerts.

What owners reported

Source: NHTSA complaint database

Owners of the 1 model year this bulletin names have filed 96 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 39 of them name Power Train — 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.

When driving truck especially in rolling traffic truck has hard time downshifting and clunky and lunches as transmition tries to figure what gear to be in. It is an intermittently happening but now evolved to completely dropping out of gear goes into neutral were you can rev engine without truck moving foward.

2024 Ford Ranger · Power Train · filed with NHTSA Aug 10, 2025 · ODI 11679678

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 power train

Source: same model, same component group

34 other manufacturer communications filed against the Ford Ranger under the same component group (power train), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Ford list.

NumberKindDatedNHTSA’s summary
TSB 26-2408 v2Service bulletinOct 22, 2026This bulletin supersedes 26-2309. Reason for update: update the Model section to remove Aviator 10R80, update theParts list to add 3.3L to W…
SSM 55257Service bulletinOct 19, 2026Some 2024 Ranger vehicles equipped with a rotary selectable drive mode control may exhibit a condition where the Drive Mode will change unco…
TSB 26-2408Service bulletinSep 22, 2026This bulletin supersedes 26-2309. Reason For Update: update the Model section to remove Aviator 10R80, update the Parts list to add 3.3L to…
TSB 26-2359Service bulletinAug 4, 2026Some of the vehicles listed in the Model statement above may exhibit an incorrectly illuminated malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) with diagno…
TSB 26-2309Service bulletinJul 2, 2026This bulletin supersedes 26-2241. Reason For Update: update the parts list to correct the claim quantity of the part number JB3Z-4B496-B fro…
PCM-26.20.0Over-the-air updateJul 2, 2026Quality improvements include: -Powertrain Control Module calibration update to prevent a DTC that may lead to a wrench light
PCM-26.10.0Over-the-air updateJul 2, 2026Quality improvements include: -Updates the Powertrain Control Module documentation to ensure vehicles can receive the latest updates
TSB 26-2301Service bulletinJun 30, 2026Some of the vehicles listed in the Model statement above may require the replacement of the ambient air temperature sensor for various conce…

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.

Photo: Christian Buehner / Unsplash

Common questions

Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR 579.5

Is Ford SSM 52525 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 52525 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 52525 cover?

The manufacturer filed it against 1 model year: 2024 Ford Ranger. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.