Ford issued a recall for 79,579 Ford Explorers and Lincoln Aviators due to a driver's seat with a reclining function that turns on unexpectedly. The recall applies to 64,409 Ford Explorers and 15,170 Lincoln Aviators that may have a malfunctioning driver's seat capable of trapping second-row passengers when unlocking the vehicle.
Documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) say the action only happens when the driver's seat is unoccupied and the vehicle is parked. There haven't been reports of injury yet, likely because the malfunction only occurs when the car is remotely unlocked, started, or when a driver approaches the vehicle while carrying their key fob.
View Price on AmazonDrivers have nothing to fear in terms of surprise changes in seating elevation once they're in the vehicle, but any passengers lurking in the second row of the locked car may get bruised kneecaps. The recall applies to 2026 and 2027 models of the Explorer and Aviator. NHTSA documents say the unexpected seat movement is caused by a faulty memory recall function, which is meant to automatically bring the driver's seat to their preferred position when they get in the car.
In its investigation, Ford found that the seat motor will stall when it meets resistance instead of bouncing back up like it's supposed to. While it may pose a threat of minor entrapment, passengers can rest assured that the reclining seat won't cut off their legs should they get stuck. The documents report that Ford is currently working on a solution for the faulty mechanism, and owner notifications haven't been scheduled yet.
Source: caranddriver.com
