Ford bulletin SSM 53955
What it saysSome 2025 Expedition/Navigator vehicles equipped with 3rd row power seats may experience an inoperative power fold condition when a seat control switch button is pressed (3L, Center or 3R). NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Ford filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Jun 19, 2025, received Jun 24, 2025, about the seats. It names 2 model years across Ford and Lincoln (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.
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 communicationSome 2025 Expedition/Navigator vehicles equipped with 3rd row power seats may experience an inoperative power fold condition when a seat control switch button is pressed (3L, Center or 3R). This condition may be caused by an obstruction detected during a prior power fold event, triggering a protective lockout. 3rd row seat power fold function may be restored with the following relearn procedure: 1. Start the vehicle and open the tailgate. 2. Remove all items from the 2nd and 3rd row seats including any obstructions that can prevent from folding/unfolding. 3. Slide the 2nd row seats forward. 4. Press and hold the center 3rd power fold seat control button (located between 3L and 3R) for 1 minute. The seats will begin to move. 5. Continue holding the center button for an additional 5 seconds after the seats have stopped moving. 6. Press the 3L and 3R buttons independently to verify that the seats are folding properly. If the inoperative condition remains, continue with normal diagnostics in Workshop Manual (WSM), Section 501-10C. The Owner's Manual and WSM have been updated with this revised procedure.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 53955 | Service bulletin | Jun 19, 2025 | 11019698 | PDF, 40 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 themFord 1 model year
Lincoln 1 model year
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 2 model years this bulletin names have filed 51 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 15 of them name Electrical System, Seats — 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.
This vehicle has been returned to service 5 times. It is currently in service for the same 4 issues that it was taken to service for the very first time on 12/10/2025. This includes inappropriate braking on the interstate, driver window malfunction, the key intermittently stops working, and the connectivity does not regularly work.
2025 Lincoln Navigator · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Feb 2, 2026 · ODI 11715174
This was a rental vehicle hybrid, while driving on a highway, the vehicle first developed a flat tire. Afterward, while the vehicle was in motion, smoke appeared and the vehicle caught fire spontaneously. There was no collision or impact of any kind. The driver pulled over and all passengers exited safely.
2025 Ford Expedition · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Jun 12, 2026 · ODI 11743790
The metal emblem on the driver and passenger seats continuously pulls my hair. I believe it is the emblem itself (sharp lettering) and not how it is adhered to the seat. I am unable to drive the vehicle with hair down
2025 Ford Expedition · Seats · filed with NHTSA Jun 11, 2026 · ODI 11743630
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 seats
Source: same model, same component group24 other manufacturer communications filed against these Ford models under the same component group (seats), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Ford list.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 55226 | Service bulletin | Oct 7, 2026 | For 2020-2026 Aviator/Corsair and 2018-2026 Navigator vehicles, if diagnostics in Workshop Manual (WSM) Section 501-10A > Front Seats > Diag… |
| SSM 55100 | Service bulletin | Aug 22, 2026 | For Various Ford and Lincoln vehicles, if diagnostics lead to the replacement of the front seat cushion cover J-clips, lower-level service p… |
| SSM 55051 | Service bulletin | Jul 28, 2026 | Some 2025-2027 Navigator vehicles equipped with multi-contour seats (minor feature code BYBAL) may exhibit a "Seat cannot lock, Do not use"… |
| SSM 55037 | Service bulletin | Jul 24, 2026 | Some 2018-2024 Expedition and 2018-2027 Navigator vehicles equipped with a rear seat entertainment system/Lincoln Play may experience variou… |
| SSM 54819 | Service bulletin | May 12, 2026 | Some 2025-2026 Navigator vehicles equipped with multi-contour seats (minor feature code BYBAL) may exhibit a condition where the second-row… |
| TSB 26-2186 | Service bulletin | Apr 22, 2026 | This bulletin supersedes 26-2146. Reason for update: to add a labor operation for replacing two brackets. Some of the vehicles listed in the… |
| SSM 54711 | Service bulletin | Apr 1, 2026 | Some 2025-2026 Expedition/Navigator vehicles may experience a second row armrest pin that is loose or broken. Engineering is aware of this c… |
| DSM-26.5.71.DC | Over-the-air update | Mar 24, 2026 | 26-OTA DSM-26.5.71. DC Navigator |
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 53955 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 53955 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 53955 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 2 model years across 2 brands (Ford and Lincoln): 2025 Ford Expedition, 2025 Lincoln Navigator. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.