Ford Recalls 2023 Super Duty Pickups for Failing Axles

Ford Motor Company is recalling 2023 Super Duty F250 and F350 vehicles equipped with single rear wheels and a 10.5-inch rear axle shaft. The left rear axle shaft may have been improperly heat-treated during manufacturing and may break, Ford said in the required filing just made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). More than half of the 42,000 vehicles made have the safety defect. Ford said it is not aware of any reports of accident or injury related to this safety defect.

Personnel at the axle shaft supplier Mid-West Forge Corporation in Ohio entered an incorrect process parameter into one of the two machines that perform electromagnetic induction heat treatment of the recalled left rear axle shafts. The axle shafts did not meet Ford’s torsional yield and case depth design specifications in the fractured area. Returned parts had fractured at ~44 mm from the flange, indicating an area of incomplete induction heat treatment.

Dealers will inspect the left rear axle shaft date code and replace the axle shaft as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed 16 October 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford’s number for this recall is 23S49. Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.nhtsa.gov. about NHTSA Ford recall 23V595.