Ford bulletin SSM 55194
What it saysSome 2021-2024 Mustang Mach-E, 2025-2026 Navigator and 2024 F-150 vehicles may exhibit inoperative welcome/approach detection lights. NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Ford filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Sep 23, 2026, received Sep 30, 2026, about the exterior lighting. It names 7 model years across Ford and Lincoln (2021–2026). 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.
Get the next Ford bulletin for your model by email Weekly, only when something new is filed. Nothing else; one-click unsubscribe.
What the bulletin says
Source: NHTSA's summary of the manufacturer's communicationSome 2021-2024 Mustang Mach-E, 2025-2026 Navigator and 2024 F-150 vehicles may exhibit inoperative welcome/approach detection lights. This may be due to the body control module (BCM) software. To correct the condition, download and run the "BCM - Programmable Module Installation (PMI)" application using the latest software level of the Ford Diagnosis and Repair System (FDRS) scan tool. If the condition persists after PMI, refer to Workshop Manual (WSM), Section 417-01 for normal diagnostics and repair as necessary outside of this article. For claiming, use causal part 15604 and labor operations 12651D and BCM.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 55194 | Service bulletin | Sep 23, 2026 | 11037561 | 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 themFord 5 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.
Email me new Ford bulletins for one of these models
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 databaseOwners of the 7 model years this bulletin names have filed 889 complaints with NHTSA since 2015. 424 of them name Electrical System, Exterior Lighting — 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 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E, the 17 owners who gave an odometer reading for Electrical System reported it at a median of 30,696 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 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, a MIL warning illuminated, with the message “Immediate Loss of Power” displayed. The contact stated that the vehicle shut off and the battery was drained. The contact stated that the vehicle stopped and independently shifted to park(P).
2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Dec 5, 2023
After charging for the first time at a DC fast charge station to 80%, I resumed my trip and drove about 3 miles to merge onto the expressway, my screen panel said "safely stop now", with a turtle logo and battery icon coming on. my car then came to a complete stop within a few seconds in the middle of the on-ramp leaving me stranded.
2022 Ford Mustang Mach-E · Electrical System · filed with NHTSA Jun 6, 2023
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
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 exterior lighting
Source: same model, same component group10 other manufacturer communications filed against these Ford models under the same component group (exterior lighting), newest first. The eight newest are listed; the rest are on the Ford list.
| Number | Kind | Dated | NHTSA’s summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| ITRM-26.B04 | Over-the-air update | Jun 6, 2026 | 26C10 Recall remedy -Addresses instances where the trailer lights and trailer brakes may not function |
| SSM 54811 | Service bulletin | May 8, 2026 | 2022-2026 Mustang Mach-E vehicles built on or after 03-Jan-2022 are no longer equipped with a hands free liftgate system. The vehicle is not… |
| LDCMC-25.10.08 | Over-the-air update | Mar 3, 2026 | "Quality improvements include: -Addresses an intermittent resistance fault that defaults the system to the lowest setting. Although intensit… |
| TCU-25.2.9.3 | Over-the-air update | Mar 2, 2026 | "26C10 Recall remedy -Addresses instances where the trailer lights and trailer brakes may not function" |
| LDCMB-25.10.08 | Over-the-air update | Mar 2, 2026 | "Quality improvements include: -Addresses an intermittent resistance fault that defaults the system to the lowest setting. Although intensit… |
| ECG-25.2.9.4.1 | Over-the-air update | Mar 2, 2026 | "26C10 Recall remedy -Addresses instances where the trailer lights and trailer brakes may not function" |
| SSM 54536 | Service bulletin | Jan 30, 2026 | Some 2025-2026 Navigator vehicles may experience condensation buildup within the reversing lamp assembly… |
| SSM 54008 | Service bulletin | Jul 2, 2025 | Some 2021-2025 F-150 non-Lightning, 2023-2025 F-Super Duty, 2024-2025 Ranger, and 2025 Explorer vehicles may exhibit a perceived improper fu… |
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 55194 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 55194 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 55194 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 7 model years across 2 brands (Ford and Lincoln): 2024 Ford F-150, 2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E, 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E, 2022 Ford Mustang Mach-E, 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E, 2026 Lincoln Navigator and more. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.