Recall Date: 6/9/2026
NHTSA ID: 26V368
MFr. Campaign Number: 26S38
Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Affected Components: Center console chrome trim
Potential Number of Units Affected: 548,463
This recall covers the 2018–2024 Ford Expedition, with 548,463 vehicles involved out of the population built between March 2017 and December 2024. Ford estimates roughly 12.8% of that population actually carries the defect, since the condition depends on which supplier lot produced the chrome trim on a given vehicle.
The chrome plating on the center console can bubble and eventually peel away from the base material. Ford traced the cause to plating parameters at the supplier that didn't meet Ford's specifications. Once the chrome starts to peel, it can leave a sharp edge exposed inside the vehicle, right where a driver or passenger would naturally rest a hand.
The defect gives fair warning before it becomes a hazard. Bubbling in the chrome finish typically shows up before the material actually peels, and both stages are visible to anyone looking at the console.
Ford has not issued a Do Not Drive or Park Outside advisory for this campaign. Owners will be notified by mail and asked to bring their Expedition to a Ford or Lincoln dealer, where the console will be inspected and replaced if bubbling or peeling is present, at no charge.
Dealer notification is expected on June 10, 2026. Interim owner letters go out between June 29 and July 2, 2026, with the permanent remedy letters following in a phased mailing between January and February 2027.
Ford first noticed a pattern in NHTSA complaint data in September 2025, when six Vehicle Owner Questionnaires described chrome peeling on 2019–2020 Expedition consoles, five of which alleged hand injuries. Ford's Critical Concern Review Group initially concluded the condition was too visible to customers to warrant a recall, since bubbling gives an obvious warning before it worsens. That changed after further testing showed console components that looked fine could still develop bubbling and peeling once put through environmental testing, and a fresh review of injury reports found the outcomes could be more serious than first assessed.
By early June 2026, Ford had logged 34 customer call center reports, 150 field reports, and 4,634 warranty claims globally tied to the peeling console, along with one accident and 65 injuries. That volume of injury reports on a trim-level defect is unusual, and it's what ultimately drove Ford's Field Review Committee to approve the recall on June 2, 2026.
A defect that's been building in the field since the 2018 model year means a lot of Expedition owners have been living with a console that's already bubbling, even if they haven't connected it to a safety concern. Dealers that reach those owners early can turn a routine recall visit into a chance to check in on a vehicle that hasn't been in the service drive in a while.
BizzyCar Recall Outreach flags which Expedition owners in a dealer's database fall inside the affected build window and automatically reaches out over two-way SMS to get the console inspected, before an owner finds the sharp edge the way Ford's earlier VOQs describe.
Ready to see how BizzyCar can automate recall response at your dealership? Book a demo.