Ford Recalls 200K 2013-21 Transit Connect Vehicles To Repair Faulty Tranny Bushing

Ford has recalled 200,000 2013-2021 Transit Connect cargo and passenger vans with potentially problem-plagued six-speed automatic transmissions. The recall involves vehicles equipped with the 2.5-liter engine mated to the 6F35 transmission.

Ford also recently announced the recall of 2019 Transit Connect van to repair rear wheel flange studs.

In another recent recall, Ford called back 660,000 Explorer SUVs to repair a roof rail problem.

Meantime, the continuing Takata safety recall issue continues to plague automakers like Ford. The Takata recall is the biggest safety recall in history and involves front driver and passenger airbag actuators that can explode throwing shrapnel throughout the interior. The problem has caused fatalities and serious injuries. Recently, the automaker another recall covering 2.6 million vehicles.

Ford Describes Recall Problem

According to the automaker, a bushing that attaches the shifter cable to the transmission may degrade or detach. This could mean that though the driver has shifted into Park, the vehicle may not be in that gear. Further, it could allow a driver to move the gearshift lever into Park, shut down the vehicle, and exit with no warning message or chime sounding that would indicate the vehicle isn't in Park.

The recall affects 192,080 vehicles in the U.S. and federal territories and 12,629 vehicles in Canada. The Car Connection (TCC) reported that the issue relates to the six-speed automatic that was new in 2007. The eight-speed automatic is unaffected.

Ford reported that it has not heard of any crashes or injuries involving Transits, equipped with the transmission. Ford issued an earlier recall in 2018 for more than 500,000 2013-2014 Fusion and Escape cars for unintended vehicle movement due to a faulty bushing, TCC reported late last week.

Ford Announces Notification Plan

Ford will begin to notify owners of the recall at the end of June. Dealers will inspect and replace the under-hood shifter bushing free of charge. They will also add a protective cap over the shifter cable bushing.

The Ford reference number for this recall is 21S24. For more information, you can contact Ford customer service and check out Ford's recall website.

Marc Stern has been an automotive writer since 1971 when an otherwise normal news editor said, "You're our new car editor," and dumped about 27 pounds of auto stuff on my desk. I was in heaven as I have been a gearhead from my early days. As a teen, I spent the usual number of misspent hours hanging out at gas stations Shell and Texaco (a big thing in my youth) and working on cars. From there on, it was a straight line to my first column for the paper, "You Auto Know," an enterprise that I handled faithfully for 32 years. Not too many people know that I also handled computer documentation for a good part of my living while writing YAN. My best writing, though, was always in cars. My work has appeared in venues including Popular Mechanics, Mechanix Illustrated, AutoWeek, SuperStock, Trailer Life, Old Cars Weekly, Special Interest Autos, and others. You can follow me on: Twitter or Facebook.