What 664 owners told NHTSA about the 2021 Ford Bronco Sport Later Release

2921 FORD BRONCO SPORT HIGHWAY 14, Santa Clarita CA Driver noticed another car pointing to the Bronco’s hood frantically. As the Bronco slowed, the driver noticed flames coming out of the sides of the hood on both sides. Driver pulled to shoulder of highway and the driver and passenger VERY QUICKLY got out and moved approx.. 100 feet behind vehicle to safety. Flames very quickly engulfed the entire Bronco. 911 was called by driver. Santa Clarita Fire Department responds in 10 minutes. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. The fire burned for about 30 minutes and COMPLETELY DESTROYED THE VEHICLE Towing/Wrecker company was called to remove destroyed vehicle. Tow truck driver provided transportation of passengers to the Freeway Towing Company in Santa Clarita. Freeway Towing held the destroyed vehicle at their lot. Insurance company took possession of the destroyed vehicle on March 11 and is currently holding it at their location. In January the Bronco owner noticed the check engine light was on and took it to a Ford dealership in California to have it serviced. We have videos of the fire as well.

NHTSA ODI 11726002

The contact owns a 2021 Ford Bronco Sport. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at 60 MPH and entering the base at 15 MPH, the overheating message was displayed. The driver pulled over, and the light turned off. After exiting the vehicle, he noticed the vehicle had caught fire. The driver disconnected the battery. There were no reported injuries. Another driver stopped with a fire extinguisher to assist with putting out the fire. The fire department was able to extinguish the fire. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V467000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The manufacturer was contacted, who initially was sending an inspector but changed to viewing the photos. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

NHTSA ODI 11720708

This vehicle is subject to NHTSA Recall 25V467 involving potential fuel injector cracking and risk of fuel leaking onto the engine, creating a fire hazard. The recall status shows “Remedy Not Yet Available,” leaving the defect unresolved. While driving, the vehicle suddenly displayed an engine overheating warning and immediately entered limp mode, causing abrupt loss of power. The vehicle decelerated unexpectedly and was not able to maintain normal driving speed. This created a dangerous situation in active traffic and required a safety tow. The sudden power reduction could have resulted in a rear-end collision or loss of vehicle control. There were no prior overheating warnings immediately before this incident. The failure occurred abruptly. A warning message appeared at the time of the event, followed by limp mode activation. The vehicle had to be towed to a dealership for inspection. Given that the open recall involves fuel injector cracking and potential fuel accumulation near hot engine components, there is concern that the unresolved recall condition may be related to engine overheating and loss of power. The vehicle remains under an active fire-risk recall, yet no repair remedy is available. Owners are left operating vehicles with a known safety defect and no corrective action timeline. The defect has not been remedied because parts are not available. The vehicle was inspected by a dealership after the overheating event. The primary safety concern is the combination of an open fire-risk recall and a sudden overheating/limp mode event causing abrupt power loss in traffic, creating a serious risk of injury. Due to this open recall with no available remedy, the vehicle cannot be listed or rented on a peer-to-peer vehicle sharing platform, resulting in loss of legitimate income. The vehicle was previously eligible for use, but is now restricted solely because the safety recall remains unresolved without a repair solution. Owners are financially impacted.

NHTSA ODI 11717430

The contact owned a 2021 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact noticed smoke coming from the front of the vehicle. After pulling to the side of the road, the contact noticed that the engine compartment had caught fire. The fire was extinguished by the Fire Department. A fire report was filed, but a fire report number was not provided. The cause of the fire had not yet been determined. A police report was not filed. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V467000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and a case was opened. The approximate failure mileage was 83,000.

NHTSA ODI 11693691

The car caught fire the morning of Dec 11, 2024 while the vehicle's owner was driving their children to school. There are photos and a fire report is being generated. The vehicle's owner and her children could have been killed. Early indications are that the fire was caused by the same faulty engine/exhaust system defect that the owner has been complaining to Ford about for years. It is assumed the fire report will confirm that. For the past two or more years the vehicle has been emitting exhaust fumes into the passenger compartment of the vehicle while driving. This has caused the vehicle's owner and her children to get sick and forced them to drive the vehicle with the windows down at all times even in cold weather. Ford's dealers have confirmed the problem several times, but either could not or refused to fix it. A summary of the vehicle's service history is included below: 35,662 miles Customer states inside of vehicle smells like exhaust. 37,431 miles Inside of vehicle smells like exhaust. 39,856 miles inside of vehicle smells like exhaust. confirmed customers concern found cat warped at mating surface to turbo replacement required. 46,832 miles Fumes getting inside the Cab, seems to be blowing in from vents. Misdiagnosed as blower motor electrical smell and missed broken catalyst. 47,300 miles Customer had car towed into shop stating car was shaking and smelled flumes inside the car. Verified concern that exhaust smell was present in car and loud noise was coming from engine, found catalytic converter had broken at flange to turbo causing exhaust leak. Recommend new catalytic converter, removed and replaced catalytic converter. Low pressure fuel injectors are leaking. Verified customer concern, found fuel seeping out of all 3 low side injectors, recommend injector replacement, remove and replaced all 3 low side fuel injectors, found no other leak at this time. Found injectors were leaking fuel. 47,829 miles Check engine light. Remove and replace purge valve.

NHTSA ODI 11631525

On 1/23/24, car was serviced for an electrical fault with the fuel pump control module which was confirmed via a vehicle alert. On 6/12/24, car was serviced for a software update recall. (I believe this was in relation to the fuel injector issue.) On 7/4/24, the car would not start but kept clicking trying to start. White smoke started coming out from under the hood. Panicked, we called the fire department and my niece's husband disconnected the battery so that the car would quit trying to start in an effort to mitigate a full fire. We could smell burning and fuel. The fire department even confirmed something smelled like it had burned but there was no active fire, so they told us to leave the battery disconnected and have it towed. I had the car towed to the dealership for $249. (Of which Ford only reimbursed me $140) My car sat for 2 weeks before Ford service confirmed the fuel injectors needed to be replaced as part of the 22N18 recall, but also said the battery was bad. Prior to this incident, I had 0 issues other than the issue in January. I had no notifications of battery issues in my app, no dimming of lights, etc. I had to pay over $300 to replace the battery so Ford could do "further testing" since I was a month out of the 36 month warranty. I picked up my car on 7/26/24 and when I started it in the bay, I smelled burning and even asked a different employee who confirmed he smelled it, and we were told by the manager that it was "old fuel burning off." He assured me the car was fine. I noticed my car being slow to start and having an odd issue whenever I turned, like a rubbing sound and it still had a burning smell even though I had to pay Ford to replace the cabin air filter. This was all new. Then, 8/18/24, my car again would not start, all the electrical lit up and the brakes were locked up. My car started smoking again under the hood as it kept trying to start. We could hear sounds like it was trying to start. Again, car is being towed to Ford.

NHTSA ODI 11609221

The contact owned a 2021 Ford Bronco Sport. The contact stated that while driving at 55 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently drove off the roadway and caught fire. The fire started from the front of the vehicle. The air bags were deployed. The contact sustained a broken hip, injuries to her pelvis, left clavicle, and right rib, as well as a head injury causing a minor brain bleed. Medical attention was received. The fire department arrived on the scene and extinguished the fire. A police report was filed. The contact was unaware if a fire department report had been filed. The vehicle was towed to an unknown location, where it was deemed totaled by the insurance company. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.

NHTSA ODI 11502250

I started my car on 2/15. Drove about .5 miles down the street through a fast food place. Drove another .9 miles down the street. I heard a pop and pulled over immediately and the car was already on fire. The car had around 3542 miles on it. I had just leased it in September. Ford says this was the only vehicle that this has happened too. The inspection is happening with the insurance company as well as Ford Motor Company. No prior issues and no warning signs on the car before the fire.

NHTSA ODI 11454100