Ford has announced a recall for 42,652 units of the 2022-2023 Bronco Sport and 2022 Escape SUVs to address a fuel leak issue caused by cracked fuel injectors. Vehicles with 1.5-liter EcoBoost engines are affected by the recall. The solution involves installing a drain tube to redirect leaking fuel and updating the engine control unit with fuel injector leak detection.
This situation may ring a bell for owners of these specific models. In November 2022, Ford issued a larger recall for a similar range of Escape and Bronco Sport models due to cracked fuel injectors, involving an ECU flash and a fuel drain tube. So, what’s the catch?
According to documents from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Ford’s IPTSE team identified leaks during injector flow testing on fuel injectors from two Bronco Sport vehicles that had fires under the hood after the initial recall. These incidents occurred on vehicles produced after the supposed fix date.
These two vehicles had HX7G-9F597-BC fuel injectors, an upgraded design from the older HX7G-9F597-BB parts, and were not part of the initial recall or received the software update and drain tubes. Ford’s decision was based on the improved robustness of the new injectors. Five underhood fires have been reported on vehicles with these updated injectors but without the updated software and drain tube.
Ford plans to send notification letters to owners in April 2024. Owners can reach out to Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332 with recall number 24S16. All necessary repairs will be carried out at no cost.