Ford Motor Company: Exterior Lighting › Back Up Lights › Switch
Ford Motor Company reported this defect to federal regulators on Jan 21, 2026 and put the number of vehicles at risk at 231. The repair is free for as long as the recall stands.
The defect
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2025 F-59 and F-53 vehicles. The exterior brake lights may illuminate unexpectedly or fail to illuminate when the brake pedal is activated, due to an incorrectly installed switch. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
The risk
Brake lights that do not illuminate properly while driving increase the risk of a crash. In addition, the vehicle may be shifted out of park without the brake pedal applied, increasing the risk of a rollaway and crash.
The remedy
Dealers will replace the stop light switch, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 30, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26C01. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning January 22, 2026.
2 model years covered
Newest first| Vehicle | Complaints | Recalls | Fires | Crashes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Ford F-53 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 Ford F-59 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
What this page is, and what to do next
A recall is not an opinion. It is a Part 573 report a manufacturer is required by federal law to file once it decides a defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety, and it commits them to repairing the vehicle at no cost to the owner. The three passages above are the manufacturer’s own wording as published by NHTSA.
This page describes the campaign. It cannot tell you whether one particular car has already been through the shop — that is tracked by VIN, and only the manufacturer knows it. Check yours at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with a franchised dealer, quoting campaign number 26V025000.
Full record for the 2025 Ford F-53 → · Recalls carrying a do-not-drive advisory → · Where this data comes from →