2023 Ford Bronco Problems

Rear defroster connector becomes detached from the defroster grid rendering it inoperable. Ford has acknowledged it is a common issue due to poor design. My local dealership repaired the broken tab and it once again broke off within a week or two. When I returned to the dealership, they refused to cover it under the vehicles original owner warranty or their labor warranty for working on it previously. After some back and forth with management and Ford Customer Care, they told me they have changed the design of the entire rear glass and the only way to fix it would be to pay $1600~ to have it replaced with the updated design. Upon researching the issue online, it is clear that the rear defroster has an astonishingly high failure rate, and Ford should be pushed to offer a better solution than to charge owners to fix something that was sold to them defective. To learn more about this issue, simply search “Bronco Rear Defroster” and you will see the amount of owners complaining

My infotainment screen goes blank when I backup instead of displaying my backup camera. There is an active recall on this but there is no remedy and no estimated remedy date. Ford Motor Company is only prioritizing 2026 model years so they can sell brand new vehicles. They are not trying to fix previous model years. This poses a safety risk that can result in a crash and/or death. Cars are required by law to have a backup camera, so Ford is breaking the law by not fixing this issue.

I am reporting unresolved safety recalls and unreasonable delay in repair for my 2023 Ford Bronco (VIN: [XXX] ). This vehicle currently has two open safety recalls issued by Ford Motor Company     •    NHTSA Recall 25V721 (issued October 2025) – seat frame defect that may increase injury risk in a crash. There is currently no available remedy, and Ford has notified me that a repair is not expected until April 2027.     •    NHTSA Recall 26V124 (issued March 2026) – APIM defect that may overheat and cause the rearview camera to fail while reversing, increasing crash risk. In addition, this vehicle has had prior recalls (25V025 and 25V273) that remained unresolved for extended periods. One of these recalls had no available repair for approximately 10 months. These recalls affect critical safety systems including suspension, rear visibility, and seat safety. The delay for Recall 25V721 is expected to exceed 18 months, which I believe is an unreasonable delay for a safety recall repair. Ford has continued issuing new recalls while prior recalls were still unresolved, indicating a pattern of repeated safety defects and delayed remedies. Due to these active recalls, I have been unable to use my vehicle commercially. Rental platforms such as Turo prohibit listing vehicles with open safety recalls. This has resulted in financial losses exceeding $80,000. This situation forces consumers to choose between operating a vehicle with known safety defects or suffering significant financial loss due to lack of repair availability. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate whether Ford is complying with its obligation to provide timely safety recall remedies and whether delays of this length are reasonable. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

1. Component/system that failed/malfunctioned — Braking system (electronic parking brake and brake control modules) combined with electrical/communication defect preventing storage of diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs). Vehicle available for inspection upon request. 2. How safety was put at risk — Repeated "Park Brake Fault – Service Now" and "Brake System Fault" warnings on dash while driving risk sudden loss of parking brake function, reduced braking, or unexpected behavior (e.g., transmission no-engagement beyond walking pace after cold start), impairing safe stopping/control and endangering driver and others. 3. Problem reproduced/confirmed by dealer — Yes — reproduced/confirmed multiple times by authorized Ford dealer (Town & Country Ford, Evansville, IN) across five visits (invoices attached): active brake faults visible on dash during service, yet "no codes found," "unable to verify," "NP no problem found." Examples: [XXX] (30,113 mi) brake fault while driving; [XXX]intermittent parking brake light, no codes; [XXX] transmission slip and brake fault, no codes. 4. Inspected by manufacturer, police, insurance, or others — Inspected only by dealer. Ford CX team contacted (CRM [XXX] , July 2025) but no further inspection/resolution. No police or insurance inspections. 5. Warning lamps/messages prior to failure and when first appeared — "Park Brake Error Message" and "Park Brake Fault" warnings first documented ~25,722 miles (early visits after [XXX] purchase at 13 miles). No-DTC retention defect prevented earlier alerts/diagnosis. Symptoms escalated (transmission slip, cold no-start die-out, brake faults recurring). 6. Additional notes — Out of service >60 cumulative days; loaner restricted to local driving only when provided. Part of Indiana Lemon Law claim (BBB AUTO LINE Case [XXX]). Due to 10-file/10MB upload limit, core documents attached; additional photos, full invoices, loaner agreement, BBB correspondence available upon request. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.

The contact owns a 2023 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced an issue with the rearview camera while in use. The contact received a notice for NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V124000 (Back Over Prevention), and the recall repair was subsequently performed. However, after the recall repair was completed, a new 'overheating' warning appeared on the infotainment system. The vehicle was returned to the dealer, where technicians tested the system and confirmed that during a single operation, the system's temperature spiked from 93°F to 150°F. The contact confirmed that they received an overheating warning on the infotainment system display. The manufacturer has been notified of the failure, but the vehicle has not yet been repaired. The failure mileage was 32,752.

My husband was sitting at a stop light when he noticed what appeared to be steam/smoke coming out from under the hood of the Bronco. Then smoke came into the vehicle through the air vents. When he looked up, flames were coming out from under the hood. He got out and the whole front of the car burst into flames and torched the car.

We sometime have loss of drive power while driving or a total failure to engage a gear. Happens sometimes when moving from a stop sign or stop light. Like the transmission is slipping in def case.

2023 Ford Bronco with 7 speed manual transmission. The transmission started grinding while shifting into 3rd gear and occasionally popping out of 3rd gear. This mostly occurred while upshifting and rarely while downshifting. All other gears are operating as normal. While the grinding problem would pop up occasionally around the 40,000 mile mark, it became chronic at 58,000 mile mark (24Jun2026)

TOTAL BRAKE FAILURE IN 2023 BRONCO. What happened is exactly what is described for current recall of the electronic brake booster for 2025 broncos. Mine is a 2023.

when engine is cold and I go down a hill to a stop sign and apply the brakes , the brakes begin to engage almost fully then release and the Bronco lurches forward 6-8" and then the brakes grab and slam the car to a stop. This only happens on an incline and when the engine is cold or has sat for awhile. THe brake pedal is fully depressed and when the bronco rolls forward, there is nothing to do to stop it since the pedal is already fully engaged. I have taken it to the dealer numerous times to diagnose, but since there is not a hill or incline near them, they are not able to reproduce the same issue. I have videos of this happening and it is a known problem that has been diagnosed in the Ford bronco online forums. The dealer suggested I call Ford Service to report the issue and I started a case complaint.There are no warning messages or codes that are present that the dealer can find to explain the problem. The car is not safe to rely on due to the brake system currently and the dealer nor Ford corporate will do anything but document my issue.

The contact owns a 2023 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced an issue with the rearview camera while in use. The contact received a notice for NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V124000 (Back Over Prevention), and the recall repair was subsequently performed. However, after the recall repair was completed, a new 'overheating' warning appeared on the infotainment system. The vehicle was returned to the dealer, where technicians tested the system and confirmed that during a single operation, the system's temperature spiked from 93°F to 150°F. The contact confirmed that they received an overheating warning on the infotainment system display. The manufacturer has been notified of the failure, but the vehicle has not yet been repaired. The failure mileage was 32,752.

Camera and sensor on driver side does not indicate movement/stops working. This results in the Blindspot detection not working or any cross traffic alerts or object detection, which can lead to an accident. occurs intermittently and car does not issue a warning that the system is not working or down. Also causing an issue when backing up

Cracking of the roof which has caused leaks. Common issue for Broncos, but only recalled for 2021-2022 Broncos. My Bronco is 2023 and has the same issue. It should also be a recall.

Front roof panel is cracking and chipping. Rear roof panel is cracking around the side windows. Bronco is never in direct sunlight unless driving. And the vehicle is never driven off-road.

-Complete steering and suspension failure occurred while driving on highway. Vehicle is currently sitting at Ford dealer. - The safety of all passengers was put at risk and nearly caused a fatal accident. -Dealer and another shop are saying it was lower control arm and bushing failure. They are unclear on path forward for repairs and it seems like something bigger is going on they do not want to disclose. They deny problem has been reproduced on this model, however a similar recall for this type of failure has occurred on other bronco models under recall number 26S36. That recall report matches what happened to my vehicle. -It has been inspected by Ford and Bronco Barn in Las Vegas. I will be getting a third opinion for a clear path forward since none has been supplied by ford or the third party company. -There were no warning lamps, check engine lights, or messages prior to failure. There was a slight misalignment of tires felt while driving just prior to losing full steering control.

I am reporting unresolved safety recalls and unreasonable delay in repair for my 2023 Ford Bronco (VIN: [XXX] ). This vehicle currently has two open safety recalls issued by Ford Motor Company     •    NHTSA Recall 25V721 (issued October 2025) – seat frame defect that may increase injury risk in a crash. There is currently no available remedy, and Ford has notified me that a repair is not expected until April 2027.     •    NHTSA Recall 26V124 (issued March 2026) – APIM defect that may overheat and cause the rearview camera to fail while reversing, increasing crash risk. In addition, this vehicle has had prior recalls (25V025 and 25V273) that remained unresolved for extended periods. One of these recalls had no available repair for approximately 10 months. These recalls affect critical safety systems including suspension, rear visibility, and seat safety. The delay for Recall 25V721 is expected to exceed 18 months, which I believe is an unreasonable delay for a safety recall repair. Ford has continued issuing new recalls while prior recalls were still unresolved, indicating a pattern of repeated safety defects and delayed remedies. Due to these active recalls, I have been unable to use my vehicle commercially. Rental platforms such as Turo prohibit listing vehicles with open safety recalls. This has resulted in financial losses exceeding $80,000. This situation forces consumers to choose between operating a vehicle with known safety defects or suffering significant financial loss due to lack of repair availability. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate whether Ford is complying with its obligation to provide timely safety recall remedies and whether delays of this length are reasonable. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

The steering rack on my 2023 Ford Bronco Outer Banks failed at approximately 23,000 miles. This caused my steering wheel to lock up and become very difficult to turn, especially while making turns. The dealer confirmed that the steering rack failed and needed to be replaced. They performed the repair. There were no other warning lights or indicators.

Steering rack component failure, vague steering, play during steering directional change, Light grinding noise when turning steering wheel.

After Avis Ford replaced my seatbelt on the driver’s side, my vehicle began to rattle from underneath the same area and in the front. The seatbelt side was serviced twice, and now the car feels unsafe. The dealership refused to re-inspect and told me to fix it out of pocket. I’m concerned this may be a structural or safety-related defect caused by improper repair.

We have 3 Diono 3QXT car seats in our 2023 Bronco back seat. I noticed today that two of the car seat's vehicle seatbelts were unlatched. The middle car seat and the passenger-side car seat were loose because the securing seatbelt in the Bronco was unlatched. My concern is that one of the car seats activated the seat belt release button in the Bronco. I will monitor my car seats to see if the issue occurs again, but I thought it was important enough to report, in case there are any other similar complaints regarding either the Diono car seat or the Ford Bronco's rear seatbelts.

The contact owned a 2023 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that while her boyfriend was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made an abnormal noise. The contact's boyfriend had pulled over. They discovered an unknown fluid leaking under the vehicle and a spark coming from the engine before the vehicle caught fire. There were no injuries were sustained. The firefighters arrived and extinguished the fire. Police and fire department reports were filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed totaled by the insurance company. Upon research, the contact related the failure to the fuel injector. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.

My husband was sitting at a stop light when he noticed what appeared to be steam/smoke coming out from under the hood of the Bronco. Then smoke came into the vehicle through the air vents. When he looked up, flames were coming out from under the hood. He got out and the whole front of the car burst into flames and torched the car.

The contact owned a 2023 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that while her boyfriend was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle made an abnormal noise. The contact's boyfriend had pulled over. They discovered an unknown fluid leaking under the vehicle and a spark coming from the engine before the vehicle caught fire. There were no injuries were sustained. The firefighters arrived and extinguished the fire. Police and fire department reports were filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed totaled by the insurance company. Upon research, the contact related the failure to the fuel injector. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that there was no recall associated with the VIN. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.

We installed new tires and wheels on our vehicle and it immediately started having engine problems and the check engine light comes on. We took it to the dealer and after several days back and forth Ford told the deal that it's a known problem with the 2.3L version of the Ford Bronco however they had no fix and no timeline to fix the problem. This creates a safety hazard as the engine program can't be updated and could cause damage to the engine and cause it to fail. The dealer then stated that they could not return the vehicle to us with the new tires and wheels we purchased and we had to put our old tires and wheels on. We counted on the old tires for a spare since we already blew one tire out. So in addition to a safety hazard we are currently out $2,500 we spent on new tires and wheels, and now have to purchase another tire of the exact same original size to have a spare, costing us another $300.

On November 30th, 2025 I drove southbound from Milwaukee to Chicago, leaving at approximately 5:30 a.m., on I-41. There was a winter storm warning in effect. Approximately every twenty miles I needed to stop and deice my headlights as light output had diminished to almost zero, resulting in extremely dangerous visibility. I have experienced similar problems in Manitoba and western Minnesota. In these areas, there is often more than fifteen miles before you can exit the highway or find a safe place to pull over. It is not possible to get this problem diagnosed by a dealer. However, it is a common complaint among Bronco (and Jeep) owners. The combination of an upright grill and the low heat output of LED lighting quickly render headlights useless in snowy or icing conditions. No warnings appear; light output simply quickly drops to almost nothing.

Right turn signal in front and rear went out

The main issue is the airbag light, it is available for inspection. Warning indicator on Ford app states safe to drive without a passenger. Dealer repaired a couple parts got better for a while but continued. Was told they had a wiring harness ordered, but canceled and told to call Ford about a buyback, dealt with Ford, Better Business Bureau about lemon law, but still have not giving me a price for the buyback even though they agreed to buy it back. The vehicle had been in an accident [XXX], it was repaired at the Ford dealer And completed 6/7, was dropped off to have a new aftermarket bumper and winch, lights installed. The first time airbag light came on was [XXX]. At first, I could turn the vehicle off and then back on, and the light would go away, did not get consistent enough to take to dealer till [XXX]. Warning light was on when I dropped it off, which was witnessed by the associate but off by the time it made it to repair bay. Back to ford on [XXX]. Did get a code to change an airbag indicator and sensor in the rear seat. Picked up after repairs February 16. No warning lights, next day the warning light was back on contacted Maria at Ford. Dropped off to Ford again on 2/26. Call the dealer not being done in a timely manner on 3/15. I was told to request a buyback on March 18. The vehicle status changed on 3/20 showing no alerts on my Ford pass app. They had a wiring harness ordered, but canceled. Picked up my vehicle on March 29. I asked if the vehicle failsafe that if it can’t tell if somebody’s in a seat while the airbag go off and got no reply. Wife is afraid to drive in the front seat on the airbag light is on. Light on continuously now Ford won’t give me a rental car to do more investigation because I get no code to tell him what part to change and I’ve not been given a buyback price. Intermittent Pre-collision / adaptive cruise control will stop working while driving on the highway be out for 11 minutes and then come back on. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA),

I turned on the car and the airbag light was on. I took to a Ford dealership they said this was not under warranty. The sensor to the airbag is not working and will not go off if I'm actually in an accident. The sensor needs to be properly installed as this was an issue with many Ford Broncos years 2021-2022.

The contact owns a contact owns a 2023 Ford Bronco equipped with Continental Tires, Tire Line: ProContact, Tire Size: 225/65/R17, DOT Number: IP50GBV3K. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 MPH, the contact heard a loud booming sound. The contact stated that after stopping and inspecting the vehicle, it was discovered that the rear driver’s side tire had experienced a blowout and the tire was flat. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 15,000.

I am reporting unresolved safety recalls and unreasonable delay in repair for my 2023 Ford Bronco (VIN: [XXX] ). This vehicle currently has two open safety recalls issued by Ford Motor Company     •    NHTSA Recall 25V721 (issued October 2025) – seat frame defect that may increase injury risk in a crash. There is currently no available remedy, and Ford has notified me that a repair is not expected until April 2027.     •    NHTSA Recall 26V124 (issued March 2026) – APIM defect that may overheat and cause the rearview camera to fail while reversing, increasing crash risk. In addition, this vehicle has had prior recalls (25V025 and 25V273) that remained unresolved for extended periods. One of these recalls had no available repair for approximately 10 months. These recalls affect critical safety systems including suspension, rear visibility, and seat safety. The delay for Recall 25V721 is expected to exceed 18 months, which I believe is an unreasonable delay for a safety recall repair. Ford has continued issuing new recalls while prior recalls were still unresolved, indicating a pattern of repeated safety defects and delayed remedies. Due to these active recalls, I have been unable to use my vehicle commercially. Rental platforms such as Turo prohibit listing vehicles with open safety recalls. This has resulted in financial losses exceeding $80,000. This situation forces consumers to choose between operating a vehicle with known safety defects or suffering significant financial loss due to lack of repair availability. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate whether Ford is complying with its obligation to provide timely safety recall remedies and whether delays of this length are reasonable. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)