2023 Ford Bronco transmission & drivetrain problems

Related recalls

• Recall 26V236000Apr 14, 20264,922 vehicles
  POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

  Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2021-2025 Bronco vehicles. The transmission to transfer case joint may be misaligned due to an incorrectly performed previous repair, which could lead to wear of the transmission output shaft splines and transfer case input splines.

  Risk: Excessive wear of the transmission and transfer case splines may result in a loss of drive power or vehicle rollaway, increasing the risk of a crash.

  Remedy: Dealers will inspect the transmission to transfer case joint and replace the transmission and transfer case as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 9, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S26. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on April 15, 2026.

• Recall 23V546000Aug 3, 20232 vehicles
  POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:INTERNAL:PARK PAWL

  Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2023 Bronco vehicles. The transmission park system may have been damaged during assembly, which can prevent the parking pawl from fully engaging and result in a vehicle rollaway.

  Risk: A vehicle rollaway can increase the risk of a crash.

  Remedy: Dealers will replace the transmission, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed August 11, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 23S44.

• Recall 23V070000Feb 10, 20231,138 vehicles
  POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

  Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2022-2023 F-150, Mustang, Explorer, Bronco, and 2023 Lincoln Aviator vehicles equipped with automatic transmissions. The transmission may contain a loose bolt which could prevent the transmission from engaging the park gear, although the gear shifter position may indicate that the vehicle has been shifted to "PARK."

  Risk: The inability to secure the vehicle in the park position can result in a rollaway, increasing the risk of a crash or injury.

  Remedy: Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the transmissions, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 25, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 23S06.

What owners say

1. Filed Oct 2, 2026AZTransmission & Drivetrain

   Transmission failed while towing in Neutral Flat Tow mode and destroyed the entire transmission resulting in a $7,600 repair bill. Ford will not warranty this as they claim is was might fault. Not true, I had flat towed the vehicle for months without an issue and its their electronic system that failed and destroyed my transmission.

   NHTSA complaint #11768601 · source
2. Filed Sep 16, 2026VATransmission & Drivetrain

   We sometime have loss of drive power while driving or a total failure to engage a gear. Happens sometimes when moving from a stop sign or stop light. Like the transmission is slipping in def case.

   NHTSA complaint #11764606 · source
3. Filed Jul 14, 2026SCTransmission & Drivetrain

   2023 Ford Bronco with 7 speed manual transmission. The transmission started grinding while shifting into 3rd gear and occasionally popping out of 3rd gear. This mostly occurred while upshifting and rarely while downshifting. All other gears are operating as normal. While the grinding problem would pop up occasionally around the 40,000 mile mark, it became chronic at 58,000 mile mark (24Jun2026)

   NHTSA complaint #11750266 · source
4. Filed Mar 6, 2026INBrakesElectrical SystemTransmission & Drivetrain

   1. Component/system that failed/malfunctioned — Braking system (electronic parking brake and brake control modules) combined with electrical/communication defect preventing storage of diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs). Vehicle available for inspection upon request. 2. How safety was put at risk — Repeated "Park Brake Fault – Service Now" and "Brake System Fault" warnings on dash while driving risk sudden loss of parking brake function, reduced braking, or unexpected behavior…

   NHTSA complaint #11722617 · source
5. Filed Mar 4, 202610,642 miNYTowedTransmission & Drivetrain

   The contact owns a 2023 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that while driving a motorhome at an undisclosed speed and towing the vehicle in tow mode, the transmission blew up. The contact pulled over to retrieve sunglasses from the vehicle and became aware that there was an odor of transmission fluid coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, who confirmed there was no warranty coverage for the failure. The dealer stated that the failure was due to…

   NHTSA complaint #11721952 · source
6. Filed Feb 23, 2026VATransmission & Drivetrain

   Automatic 10 speed transmission has unpredictable shifting from 1st through 3 gears, offten with long lags between shifts, losing power temporarily, especially from 1st to 2nd gear, and harsh shifting. Sometimes, the 1st - 2nd shift lag happens upon acceleration during merging or in an intersection and that loss of power is critical, requiring an adjustment in throttle position, and when 2nd gear catches, then there is too much power. It is unpredictable. The Bronco has…

   NHTSA complaint #11719951 · source
7. Filed Jan 21, 2026WASuspensionTransmission & Drivetrain

   Front differential mounts are cracking and breaking leading to insecure front differential and damage to adjacent suspension and power train components. This is a significant risk to both the driver/occupants and potentially other vehicles on the road. This problem is appearing with increasing frequency on the Ford Bronco forums to the point that Ford now has a TSB out relating to this known engineering failure. It require an extensive repair including rewelding the mounting…

   NHTSA complaint #11712487 · source
8. Filed Jul 28, 202550,200 miCAEngineTransmission & Drivetrain

   The contact owns a 2023 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and flat towing an RV, the Flat-Tow mode inadvertently disengaged and the contact smelled a burning odor permeating the interior of the vehicle with the message "Stop vehicle immediately, excessive temperature detected" displayed. The transmission temperature warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that there was damage to the…

   NHTSA complaint #11676815 · source
9. Filed Sep 17, 2024CATransmission & Drivetrain

   Front pinion seal leak is detected at where the front drive shaft meets the front differential. Ford attempted to fix it with a pinion seal replacement and the leak is still unresolved, second attempt was done by changing the front differential fluid which also did not resolve the issue. This issue is fairly common amongst bronco owners on forums and will be hard to come to the users’ attention unless the user checks under the vehicle so the problem may be more widespread…

   NHTSA complaint #11614975 · source
10. Filed Jul 27, 2024MSTransmission & Drivetrain

    3 separate times while driving on the on the interstate doing between 70-75 mph the vehicle completely lost power and an alert was displayed saying “Powertrain Malfunction”, the most recent incident was 07/26/24, before was 06/16/24 and 06/22/24. The vehicle speed dropped down to 35-40 and wouldn’t go any faster, and we had cars behind us, this created a major safety issue for me and my family. We had to pull over on the interstate, turn the car off and back on. We took it…

    NHTSA complaint #11604880 · source
11. Filed Jun 3, 2024COTransmission & Drivetrain

    When the vehicle downshifts in the lower gears, specifically 3rd to 2nd, and 2nd to 1st, the vehicle will often dangerously accelerate, sometimes doubling the speed for a few seconds. This happens fairly consistently when using the lower gearing offroad mode but I've had it happen in normal modes too. There is a TSB that may deal with the issue (TSB 23-2352), but Ford service has not been cooperative with addressing it because they claim to not be able to reproduce the issue…

    NHTSA complaint #11592267 · source
12. Filed Apr 23, 2024WATransmission & Drivetrain

    On Sunday [XXX] I experienced a mechanical failure while off road with my Bronco, after getting myself unstuck from a snowbank I had backed into, I heard a clicking coming from my right front wheel, and the clicking continued once I got myself out, I experienced my front wheels lock up twice and a “service 4x4 system” with a wrench, this appeared two different times. This occurred approximately 6.6 to 7 miles up a trail and 9 miles from the nearest town with cell service.…

    NHTSA complaint #11584747 · source

Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation public data. Complaints are submitted by owners and are not verified by NHTSA or by us; a complaint does not prove a defect exists. View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov Methodology