Recall · 26V726000
Ford Motor recalled the Ford Explorer over interior lighting
33,578
Vehicles covered
1
Model
2
Model years
November 2, 2026
Filed with NHTSA
INTERIOR LIGHTING
- The defect
- Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2026-2027 Explorer Police Interceptor vehicles. A phantom "Global On" command in the overhead console may illuminate the map lights and prevent them from being turned off. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) Number 101, "Controls and Displays."
- What it can cause
- Overhead map lights that illuminate unintentionally and cannot be turned off may distract the driver or cause interior glare, increasing the risk of a crash.
- What the dealer does
- Dealers will replace the overhead consoles on vehicles built prior to July 9, 2026. Dealers will inspect the overhead console for a "SW2" marking on vehicles built after July 9, 2026 and replace as necessary. Repairs will be performed free of charge. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26C50. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on November 6, 2026.
The repair is free, whatever the age or mileage of the vehicle, and whether or not you are the original owner.
Which vehicles
A recall reaches a range of VINs inside these model years, not every car built in them. Yours may not be covered even if it is listed here, and the only way to find out is NHTSA's own VIN lookup.
| Vehicle | Model years | Safety record |
|---|---|---|
| Ford Explorer | 2026 to 2027 | 2026 |
How this campaign compares
At 33,578 vehicles this is a bigger campaign than 87% of the 19,945 vehicle recalls with a published size filed from 1995 up to this one. The middle campaign among them covers 473. It covers model years 2026 to 2027, and the defect was reported to NHTSA in 2026, at or before the oldest model year it covers — as current as a recall gets.
Ford vehicles have been recalled over the interior lighting once before this, most recently in February 2006 as 06V033000. That is not evidence the earlier repair failed.
This site holds the complaint record for 1 of the 2 model years the campaign names. Their owners have filed 44 complaints with NHTSA, 38 of them before this campaign was filed.
The vehicles on this campaign carry 14 other recalls published here, the newest being: 26V581000 (air bags), 26V548000 (engine and engine cooling), 26V532000 (engine and engine cooling), 26V470000 (seats).
Check your own car
A VIN check is the only answer for a specific vehicle, and it also shows every other open recall on it, which is usually the reason it is worth doing rather than reading one campaign.
Filed by Ford Motor Company with NHTSA on November 2, 2026 as campaign 26V726000. Every word of the defect, consequence and remedy above is NHTSA's published record of that filing, not a summary of it.
Compiled and maintained by guarledes. Data last checked 2026-11-02.
Independent developer and analyst