Karmactive Team
Ford Motor Company is pulling nearly 102,000 Taurus sedans from the road because pieces of door trim can break loose and fall off while people are driving. The recall affects 101,944 vehicles from 2016 to 2019 model years across the United States.
The problem centers on black plastic trim pieces called B-pillar appliques that sit on the driver and front passenger doors. These decorative pieces can detach completely from the car during normal driving, creating dangerous road debris that other drivers must dodge.
NHTSA assigned this recall the campaign number 25V611, while Ford uses the internal designation 25S91. The government safety agency confirmed no crashes or injuries have been reported yet, but the loose trim poses a clear hazard to other road users.
What Went Wrong at the Factory
The root cause traces back to July 25, 2016, when Ford changed how workers installed these trim pieces at the Chicago Assembly Plant. Before that date, factory workers used hand rollers to ensure the adhesive tape stuck properly to the car’s metal surface. Ford eliminated these rollers as part of a process change, and workers continued installing the trim without this extra step until Taurus production ended on March 1, 2019.
Ford estimates only 1% of the affected vehicles will actually develop this problem. However, the company has already received 452 warranty claims between June 2017 and December 2022 from owners whose trim pieces detached or came loose.
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Warning Signs for Owners
Car owners might notice several warning signs before the trim falls off completely. The black plastic pieces may start separating at the top near the door frame when getting in or out of the vehicle. While driving, loose trim can create wind noise or rattling sounds that weren’t there before.
Dealer Repairs Coming in December
Ford dealers will inspect both front door B-pillar appliques on every recalled vehicle and replace them if needed at no charge. The company expects to begin mailing interim warning letters to owners on September 22, 2025, followed by final remedy notices in December 2025.
VIN numbers became searchable in NHTSA’s database on September 15, 2025. Owners can check if their vehicle is affected by calling Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332 or contacting NHTSA’s Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236.
This recall follows a similar problem Ford discovered earlier in 2025 with Explorer SUVs. In June, the company recalled 492,145 model-year 2016-2017 Explorers for B-pillar trim issues caused by insufficient adhesive and process problems.
The pattern suggests Ford learned from the Explorer investigation and applied those lessons to identify the same manufacturing flaw in Taurus production. Ford’s Critical Concern Review Group opened the Taurus investigation on July 22, 2025, specifically as a read-across exercise following the Explorer recall approval.
