TransitWorks Recalls Ford Transit and Dodge Ram Vehicles For Rear Seat Defect

Laguna Hills, CA – Sep 21, 2022 – Driverge (formerly Transitworks) has remedied seat back issues in 2 vehicles including the 2015-2018 Ford Transit and 2016 Dodge Promaster equipped with Freedman Seating GO-ES seats. Additionally, 0 of these Ford and Dodge models have been categorized as unreachable and 0 have been removed from the recall. One group of these 2015-2018 Ford Transit and 2016 Dodge Promaster with Freedman Seating GO-ES seats were remedied in 2019.

Laguna Hills, CA – May 7, 2019 – TransitWorks is recalling certain 2015-18 Ford Transit, 2018 Ford Transit Connect, and 2016 Dodge Ram ProMaster vehicles equipped with Freedman Seating GO-ES seats. The back seat cushion may not lock in place properly. In the event of a crash or a sudden stop, if the seat back moves the occupant would have an increased risk of injury. As many as 776 vehicles may be affected.

The Defect

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration report on this issue, when the back seat cushion is changed from the stowed position to an upright one, the cushion may not remain locked in place when under load, such as in a crash or a sudden stop. During the operation of the seat, and specifically when rotating the seat back cushion from the stowed to the upright position, there needs to be an audible click of the mechanism locking into position. In addition, the mechanism will rotate downwards. If the seat back failed to lock into place as designed, the back seat occupant would be at increased risk of injury during a crash or unexpected stop.

Timeline of Events

Freedman Seating Company GO-ES seats may have been manufactured with a back frame weldment that was too narrow, resulting in deformation of the seat back cushion dump mechanism, which may cause it to malfunction.

TransitWorks was notified of the recall Nov. 1, 2018 via email by Freedman Seating Company. On Nov. 6, TransitWorks requested additional information to determine whether single seats were also affected by the recall, and also began the process of identifying affected vehicles at this time.

The Solution

The recall began Dec. 19, 2018. TransitWorks has notified owners and instructed them to contact Freedman seats for a repair kit, along with information on obtaining any necessary repairs.

Owners may contact Freedman Seating customer service at 1-800-443-4540 or TransitWorks customer service at 1-855-337-9543. Owners may also contact the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov. The NHTSA Campaign Number for this recall is 19V229000.

Sean ReyesTransitWorks Recalls Ford Transit and Dodge Ram Vehicles For Rear Seat Defect