Lincoln bulletin SSM 53351
What it saysSome 2025 Aviator vehicles built on 11-May-2024 and through 07-Oct-2024 may exhibit an inoperative approach detection illuminated entry function and/or reduced passive entry functionality. NHTSA’s full summary ↓
Lincoln filed this with NHTSA as a service bulletin dated Feb 4, 2025, received Feb 11, 2025. It names 1 model year (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 2025 Aviator vehicles built on 11-May-2024 and through 07-Oct-2024 may exhibit an inoperative approach detection illuminated entry function and/or reduced passive entry functionality. This may be due to the body control module (BCM) configuration.
Document filed under this number
| Document | Kind | Dated | NHTSA id | At NHTSA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SSM 53351 | Service bulletin | Feb 4, 2025 | 11014156 | PDF, 47 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 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 1 model year this bulletin names have filed 18 complaints with NHTSA since 2015.
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.
Quote the number at the service desk. It is what the dealer’s system is keyed on.
Every manufacturer communication NHTSA holds for Lincoln, by the number printed on the letter.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR 579.5Is Lincoln SSM 53351 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 53351 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 53351 cover?
The manufacturer filed it against 1 model year: 2025 Lincoln Aviator. Whether one particular vehicle is affected is a matter of its VIN and its build, not its model year alone.