Dearborn, MI– June 10, 2021 – Ford (NYSE:F) has announced a recall for 192,080 vans due to the risk of a rollaway when the car is placed in “Park.” This is caused by the missing links between the shifter cable – which is what puts a car into a driver’s desired gear – and transmission.
The component in question is the shifter cable bushing; part number DT1P-7E395-AB.
The recall includes the following vans:
- 2013 Ford Transit Connect
- 2014 Ford Transit Connect
- 2015 Ford Transit Connect
- 2016 Ford Transit Connect
- 2017 Ford Transit Connect
- 2018 Ford Transit Connect
- 2019 Ford Transit Connect
- 2020 Ford Transit Connect
- 2021 Ford Transit Connect
Summary
The missing links are called bushings and their role is to “act as a cushion” between the shifter cable and transmission so that the car can shift into the appropriate gear when the lever is switched. Due to potential “thermal degradation” and contaminant exposure, the bushing may “degrade or detach.”
This can cause the vehicle to shift into the wrong gear without proper instrument panel notification, meaning that it may appear that the vehicle is, for example, in “Park,” while it is actually not.
Risks
This defect can cause the van to roll away unexpectedly when parked, which may result in it hitting the driver or pedestrians or causing property damage. This is particularly dangerous if the van is parked on the incline.
Warning signs
Drivers may be alerted to this problem if the instrument panel display position on the cluster does not match the gear shift lever position. They may also notice that when they shift into a gear, the vehicle responds differently than it should based on the transmission gear state. Finally, if the engine was turned off in a gear other than “Park” – regardless of the gear lever position – the car may not restart.
Other Ford Transit recalls
In 2017, there was a recall issued for over 1 million Ford Transit vehicles due to faulty automatic transmission. In November of last year, 2019-2020 Transit Connect vans were recalled due to engine fire risk.
Repair
Owners will be notified by mail starting June 28 and instructed to take their vehicle to a Ford or Lincoln dealer. The dealer will replace one of the bushings and add a protective cap over the other This service will be free.
Is your vehicle part of this recall?
Approximately 192,080 vehicles are part of this Ford recall. To do a Ford recall check, use Motorsafety’s free vehicle lookup tool.