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Ford · NHTSA safety record

2026 Ford Expedition

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

Owners have filed 10 safety complaints about the 2026 Ford Expedition with the US government. Of those, no death is recorded. 2 recall campaigns are open against it, covering the exterior lighting and the electrical system.

The most complained-about system is the steering, named in 4 complaints, 40% of the total.

Compiled from NHTSA's complaint, recall and investigation files · Covers March 2026 to September 2026 · How this is counted

What is on file

10 complaints on file

10

Complaints

0

Describe a crash

0

Mention fire

0

People injured

0

Deaths

A complaint is an unverified account by the person who filed it, not a finding of fault. One complaint is one ODI number, which is how NHTSA counts them.

A recall is the manufacturer conceding a defect, and the repair is free. Whether one covers your particular car is a question only its VIN can answer, because a campaign covers a production range rather than a model year.

Which system owners named

Complaints naming each system
STEERING 4 · 40%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 4 · 40%
WHEELS 4 · 40%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 · 10%
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 · 10%
SEATS 1 · 10%
SERVICE BRAKES 1 · 10%
SUSPENSION 1 · 10%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 1 · 10%
VISIBILITY/WIPER 1 · 10%
0 4 8

Red marks a system with a recall campaign against it. One complaint can name several systems, so these add up to more than 10.

Crash test ratings

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program

NHTSA crashes a car into a barrier and a pole and measures what happens to the dummies inside. This is what it awarded the 2026 Ford EXPEDITION, and it is a separate question from what owners report going wrong later.

Test SUV N/A 4WD SUV N/A RWD
Overall
Frontal crash
Frontal, driver
Frontal, passenger
Side crash
Side barrier
Side pole
Rollover
Chance of rollover 20.4% 23.7%
Stability control standard Forward collision warning standard Lane departure warning standard

A rating belongs to a tested body style and drivetrain, not to the model as a whole, which is why more than one is listed. A dash means NHTSA did not rate that test for this vehicle.

Recall campaigns

2 on file

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS

26V606000 · September 22, 2026

The defect
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2025-2027 Expedition, 2026 F-250 SD, F-350 SD, F-450 SD, and F-550 SD vehicles. The headlight assemblies may contain a contaminated LED chip, which can result in a loss of daytime running lights, parking lights, high beams or low beams. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
The risk
A loss of exterior lighting can reduce visibility, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Dealers will inspect and replace the headlight assemblies, as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed October 26, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26C43. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning October 26, 2026.

Ford Motor Company · up to 41,748 vehicles across all model years covered

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INTEGRATED TRAILER BRAKE CONTROL

26V104000 · February 20, 2026

The defect
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2021-2026 F-150, 2022-2026 F-250 SD, F-350 SD, F-450 SD, F-550 SD, Maverick, 2024-2026 Ranger, 2023-2026 F-600 SD, 2022-2027 Lincoln Navigator, Expedition, and 2026 E-Transit vehicles. When towing a trailer, the integrated trailer module (ITRM) may lose communication with the vehicle, possibly causing a loss of brake and turn signal lights, or a loss of brake function. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 108, " Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
The risk
Trailer lights or brakes that do not function can reduce the driver’s ability to control the trailer and decrease the trailers visibility to other road users, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
The integrated trailer module software will be updated by a dealer, or through an over-the-air (OTA) update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 25, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26C10. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning March 17, 2026.

Ford Motor Company · up to 4,381,878 vehicles across all model years covered

In owners’ own words

Quoted from the complaint file

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Today, while driving on the Causeway in New Orleans, the longest bridge in the world, my panoramic sunroof exploded at 70 mph and almost caused me to wreck my car. The exact same thing happened to my previous expedition. It was a 2024 limited trim and both instances are very disturbing and have really affected me negatively. I almost wrecked the car both times. Something has to be done about these panoramic sunroofs.

NHTSA complaint 11767603. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE: ADAPTIVE CRUISE CONTROL
Traveling south onXXX toward [XXX] approx 15 miles south of [XXX]. 3 pm. Was in outside lane. Ford Blue Cruise was engaged. My hands were near the wheel. I noticed a heavy white lane marking coming diagonally from the right outside lane to the inside lane. Evidently this was a painting error. When I approached the abnormal paint line my vehicle swerved abruptly to the left in attempting to follow the lane marking. I was able to grab the wheel at the last moment. With a little force I was able to straighten the vehicle. I believe my vehicle swerved into the inner south lane leading to the median. Fortunately there was no vehicle in the inner lane at the time. I possibly would have collided

NHTSA complaint 11763359, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

WHEELS
The empty passenger sea, steering wheel, center console and sun visor has aggressive shake at speeds over 35MPH. Dealer did the road force balance but that didn't fix it, it's something in drivertaina nd they are refusing to fix it. Vehicle seems unsafe to derive

NHTSA complaint 11755439. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Sun roof exploded while we were driving along on the interstate.

NHTSA complaint 11752496. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES
Description On your vehicle it is possible that the trailer module trm may lose communication at vehicle start-up. If a trm loss of communication occurs and a trailer is connected to the vehicle, trailer stop lamps and turn signal indicators will not function. Additionally, for trailers equipped with electronic trailer brakes, the trailer brakes will not function. This loss of communication can occur with-or-without a trailer connected to the vehicle and can only initiate at vehicle start-up. If this occurs, a trailer brake module fault notification will pop-up on the vehicles instrument panel cluster. The vehicle brake and turn signal lamps will continue to operate normally and are not

NHTSA complaint 11744046, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STEERING

800 miles

The contact owns a 2026 Ford Expedition MAX. The contact stated that while driving at 70 MPH or higher speeds, the steering wheel shuddered due to a front suspension issue. The contact completed some research online and learned that it was a known failure associated with 2025 - 2026 model years. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 800.

NHTSA complaint 11742718. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Ford Expedition

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2025 36 6 —
2024 76 7 —
2023 65 8 —
2022 113 12 —
2021 235 12 —
2020 417 18 —
2019 505 11 —
2018 375 14 —
2017 357 4 —
2016 217 3 —
2015 164 3 —
2014 72 0 —
2013 92 0 —
2012 118 3 —
2011 71 0 —
2010 58 0 —

Other 2026 Ford models

Every Ford on this site — 359 vehicles.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. How many repair attempts it takes, and how long you have to file, is set by the state you bought in and by nothing on this page.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst