Ford has racked up many recalls over the last few years, and the costs are weighing down its bottom line. The automaker reported its second-quarter financial results this week and revealed that recall and warranty costs hit $2.3 billion over the last three months, costing the company $25.5 million a day. That's up a whopping $800 million compared to the first quarter.
The automaker has implemented several initiatives to improve the quality of its products, but results from those efforts aren't immediately noticeable. Ford is attributing the cost increase to vehicles built during the height of the pandemic—the 2021 model year—and earlier, when supply chain issues and government shutdowns disrupted global automotive production.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's online Data Hub, Ford has issued 37 recalls this year for over 3.5 million vehicles. It leads every automaker, but Chrysler is a very close second, with 36 recalls issued this year for just over 2.2 million cars.
Earlier this year, Ford told Motor1 that it was working to improve its initial quality, which the company says is showing up in its internal data. Thirty percent fewer Ford customers were affected by recalls in 2023 compared with 2022, according to the company, two years that it led with the greatest number of them. It's now holding vehicles before launching them to guarantee they meet quality standards, which CEO Jim Farley says will lower costs over time even as it presents challenges.
