Ford recalls nearly 454,000 F-150 pickups for faulty windshield wipers

WASHINGTON — Ford Motor Co. is recalling nearly 454,000 F-150 pickups in the U.S. because the front windshield wiper motor may stop working, resulting in reduced visibility in certain conditions and increasing the risk of a crash.

The recall covers F-150 pickups from the 2021-22 model years.

In a safety recall report submitted Tuesday to NHTSA, Ford said vehicles built at its Dearborn, Mich., truck plant are excluded from the recall because they were built with a different wiper motor design, citing microchip shortages at the time.

Ford told NHTSA that as of Oct. 13, it was aware of 1,378 warranty reports globally that were received from May 6, 2021, through Oct. 12, 2022 The automaker said it was not aware of any reports of accident or injury related to the defect.

The front wiper motor is supplied by Trico Componentes in Mexico, according to the recall report.

To fix the issue, dealers will replace the faulty wiper motor with a new motor manufactured on or after Aug. 1.

Dealers and vehicle owners will be notified starting Jan. 3.

In April, Ford recalled nearly 653,000 pickups and SUVs in the U.S. because the windshield wiper arms could break. The recall affected certain 2020-21 Ford F-150 pickups and Expedition SUVs; 2020-22 Super Duty F-350, F-450 and F-550 pickups; and 2020-21 Lincoln Navigator SUVs.

So far this year, Ford has issued 63 recalls — the most by any automaker — affecting more than 8 million vehicles, according to NHTSA data. Some of those vehicles might be part of more than one recall campaign.