Campaign 25V-541

Side curtain air bags may contact the B-Pillar inner reinforcements and tear during deployment

Defect summary

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2024-2026 Ranger vehicles. The side curtain air bags may contact the B-Pillar inner reinforcements and tear during deployment. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 226, "Ejection Mitigation."

Consequence

Air bags that deploy improperly during a crash increase the risk of injury.

Remedy

Dealers will install protective shields, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed September 26, 2025. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25C41.

Source: NHTSA ODI recalls file, campaign 25V541000. Text as published by NHTSA.

Vehicles covered

One product line is covered

Owner complaints filed with NHTSA about airbags on these vehicles: 5, of which 1 involved a crash, fire, injury or death. Complaints are not verified by NHTSA.

Vehicles covered by campaign 25V-541
Make	Model	Model years	Complaints on this component
Ford	Ranger	2024 to 2026	5

Source: NHTSA ODI recalls and complaints files. Equipment, tire and child-seat campaigns list products, not vehicles.

Investigation

No NHTSA investigation is linked to this recall

Most recalls are started by the manufacturer. This one lists "Manufacturer" as its origin.

Before the recall

No service bulletins on this component preceded the recall

Distinct manufacturer communications on the same component group, make, model and model year in the 24 months before the report date.

Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications file.

Service bulletins

26V-581 Sep 9, 2026
Active vent on the passenger side may not open as intended, preventing the air bag from deploying properly
26V-580 Sep 9, 2026
Mounting bracket on the right-hand-side side curtain air bag may have a metal burr that can tear the air bag during deployment
26V-201 Mar 31, 2026
Occupant Classification Sensor (OCS) unit may fail to correctly detect the presence of an adult or child in the front passenger seat
25V-678 Oct 9, 2025
Instrument panel top cover may prevent the passenger air bag from deploying as intended
25V-439 Jun 27, 2025
Passenger side air bag may have been manufactured incorrectly, which can cause the air bag to deploy with excessive force during a crash
25V-396 Jun 13, 2025
Active vent flap on the passenger side may prevent the air bag from deploying as intended