Ford bulletin SSM 53879
What it saysSome 2020-2025 F-Super Duty vehicles equipped with a 10R140 automatic transmission may exhibit a delayed engagement into drive and/or reverse on initial start-up. NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Ford filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Jun 6, 2025, received Jun 11, 2025, about the power train. It names 24 model years (2020–2025). 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 communicationWhat it applies to, as NHTSA’s summary states it — build dates and equipment as the manufacturer filed them. The dealer checks the VIN and the build date on the door jamb; a vehicle outside the window is not covered by this bulletin.
Some 2020-2025 F-Super Duty vehicles equipped with a 10R140 automatic transmission may exhibit a delayed engagement into drive and/or reverse on initial start-up. The condition may occur at times after sitting overnight or for a couple of days. This may be due to the transmission fluid draining back from the torque converter. This is a normal characteristic of the 10R140 transmission and has no effect on durability, do not attempt to repair. Advise the customer to allow more time after first engine start-up and before shifting into gear allowing time for the torque converter to refill.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 53879 | Service bulletin | Jun 6, 2025 | 11019495 | PDF, 67 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 themAlso filed against model years this site has no page for: 2020 Ford F-550 SD; 2021 Ford F-550 SD; 2022 Ford F-550 SD; 2023 Ford F-550 SD; 2024 Ford F-550 SD; 2025 Ford F-550 SD.
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 18 model years this bulletin names have filed 1,249 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 241 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.
On the 2020 Ford F-350 Super Duty, the 28 owners who gave an odometer reading for Power Train reported it at a median of 69,500 miles. That figure is one model year’s, not the whole range this bulletin covers — medians from different model years are not averaged.
The contact owns a 2024 Ford F-350. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer informed the contact that a software update had been completed on the TCM.
2024 Ford F-350 Super Duty · Power Train · filed with NHTSA Jul 16, 2025 · ODI 11674055
Less than 4000 miles- first transmission failed while pulling a large trailer- ford replaced the transmission and the new transmission, only 200 miles later did the same thing when pulling a trailer, up hill. It throws the transmission into 10th gear and you loose all power, Check engine light comes on and it slams back into 4th gear.
2025 Ford F-450 Super Duty · Power Train · filed with NHTSA Sep 3, 2025 · ODI 11684755
On 2 separate occasions (3-25-23, 3-26-23) the transmission was frozen in drive, could not bring it up to neutral ,reverse,or park. The first incident took about 10 minutes to put the truck in another gear. The second incident took about 20 minutes to engage in neutral and then another 20 minutes to engage the reverse mode.
2022 Ford F-250 Super Duty · Power Train · filed with NHTSA Mar 29, 2023 · ODI 11514343
In depth: 2020 Ford F-250 Super Duty transmission and drivetrain problems → · 2020 Ford F-350 Super Duty transmission and drivetrain problems →
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 group61 other manufacturer communications filed against these Ford models under the same component group (power train), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Ford list.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 55218 | Service bulletin | Oct 6, 2026 | For 20202026 vehicles equipped with the 10R140 transmission, a new Transmission Clutch Circuit Leak Test has been introduced in the Ford… |
| TSB 26-2088 v2 | Service bulletin | Oct 1, 2026 | This bulletin supersedes 24-2249. Reason for update: update the claim quantity of the torque converter nuts, part number and claim quantity… |
| TSB 26-2406 | Service bulletin | Sep 5, 2026 | Some of the vehicles listed in the Model statement above may exhibit at least one of the following conditions: Poor shift quality Illumi… |
| TSB 26-2252 | Service bulletin | Sep 5, 2026 | Some of the vehicles listed in the Model statement above may exhibit at least one of the following conditions: Poor shift quality Illumi… |
| SSM 55098 | Service bulletin | Aug 18, 2026 | Some 2013-2016 Super Duty vehicles equipped with a 6.7L diesel engine and 2015-2019 Transit vehicles equipped with a 3.2L diesel engine may… |
| SSM 54900 | Service bulletin | Jun 4, 2026 | Some 2023-2026 F-Super Duty vehicles equipped with a 10R100 or 10R140 transmission may exhibit an intermittent failure to engage forward or… |
| TSB 26-2263 | Service bulletin | May 30, 2026 | This bulletin supersedes 26-2112. Reason For Update: add 2026 model year vehicles, update LV fluid XT-10-QLVC and CXT-10-LV6 description to… |
| TSB 26-2251 | Service bulletin | May 28, 2026 | This article supersedes TSB 25-2545. Reason for update: To correct the current Pinpoint Test description. Some of the vehicles listed in the… |
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 53879 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 53879 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 53879 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 24 model years: 2025 Ford F-250 Super Duty, 2024 Ford F-250 Super Duty, 2023 Ford F-250 Super Duty, 2022 Ford F-250 Super Duty, 2021 Ford F-250 Super Duty, 2020 Ford F-250 Super Duty and more. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.