A small number of 2024 Ford F-150 trucks were produced in the period from April 28 through May 2 with potentially inadequate windshield adhesion. The front windshield may not have been properly bonded to the half-ton pickup, allowing it to detach in the event of a crash.
In addition to increasing the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger, an improperly bonded windshield also goes against the requirements of a certain federal motor vehicle safety standard. As per documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the automaker's part numbers for the suspect windshields are RL34-P03100-A, RL34-P03100-B, and RL34-P03100-F. As for the urethane sealer that bonds the windshield to the cabin, the part number in question is WSS-M2G316-B4.
Although the problem was identified by Kansas City Assembly Plant workers on May 2, the automaker's Critical Concern Review Group started looking into this concern a week later. Back on May 2, workers identified excess urethane sealer on the interior passenger-side A pillar. The sealer was off-location relative to the truck's windshield and flange. Further investigation revealed that variations in the manufacturing fixture process could lead to improper adhesion to the pickup truck's cabin.
Windshield cut-out inspections were also conducted on vehicles from the suspect production timeframe, along with air and water leakage audits. To identify trucks that had their windshields improperly positioned during the urethane application process, FoMoCo used an overhead camera artificial intelligence pilot program. Considering that AI still has a long way to go, a manual review surely wouldn't hurt.
Prior to submitting this recall to the federal watchdog, the Dearborn-based automaker was aware of zero reports potentially related to the described condition. Dealers have already been instructed to remove and reinstall the windshield using camera calibration. If the windshield molding is damaged by the service tech during removal, it will be replaced at no charge.
Photo: Ford
Owners can expect recall notifications to arrive via first-class mail in the period from July 8 through July 12. Said owners can take matters into their own hands by accessing Ford's portal for safety recalls and customer satisfaction programs, where owners have to simply enter the 17-character vehicle identification number.
Be it the Kansas City Assembly Plant in Missouri or the Dearborn Truck Plant in Michigan, the 2024 Ford F-150 features vehicle identification numbers beginning with 1. This obviously applies to the F-150 Lightning from the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn as well, for the all-electric truck is assembled stateside.
The 2024 model year marked a mid-cycle refresh that saw the Ford Motor Company operate a number of changes to the half-ton pickup. For example, the 3.3-liter Cyclone V6 is out in favor of either the 5.0-liter Coyote V8 for the XL Regular Cab or 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6 for the XL Super Cab and XL SuperCrew with rear-wheel drive.
Regardless of specification, the combustion-engined 2024 Ford F-150 sports a 10-speed automatic transmission. Prices kick off at $36,965 for the lowliest XL of the bunch, whereas the Raptor is $78,440 before taxes and options. The most expensive option is – naturally – the Raptor R equipment group that includes a 720-horsepower V8 of the supercharged variety. Said package adds a whopping $31,925 to the final price.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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