The defect
Ford Motor Company, Inc. (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Lincoln MKX and 2019-2020 Nautilus vehicles equipped with 16-way electric tilt seats. The seat cushion frame edge may contact the wire harness when the seat occupant uses the tilt function of the seat, potentially damaging one or more wires within the harness, which can result in either inadvertent deployment of the air bag or nondeployment of the air bag in the event of a crash.
The risk
An air bag that deploys inadvertently increases the risk of a crash. An air bag that does not deploy in the event of a crash increases the risk of injury.
The remedy
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will install protective flocking tape onto the exposed edge of the 16-way seat cushion frames, and inspect the wire harness for damage, and repair or replace it as needed, free of charge. This recall began August 12, 2020. Owners may contact Ford/Lincoln customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S37.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Lincoln MKX | 2016, 2017, 2018 |
| Lincoln Nautilus | 2019, 2020 |
Components: AIR BAGS | ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:INTERIOR/UNDER DASH | SEATS:FRONT ASSEMBLY:POWER ADJUST
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln MKX | 2016 | 156 | 7 |
| Lincoln MKX | 2017 | 52 | 5 |
| Lincoln MKX | 2018 | 31 | 5 |
| Lincoln Nautilus | 2019 | 102 | 8 |
| Lincoln Nautilus | 2020 | 34 | 5 |
Other seats recalls in 2020
20 of the 782 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2020 concerned the seats; Ford Motor Company filed 737 campaigns in all.
| 20V794000 17 Dec 2020 | Jaguar Land Rover North America, LLC |
| 20V735000 25 Nov 2020 | General Motors LLC |
| 20V673000 30 Oct 2020 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 20V644000 19 Oct 2020 | Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. |
| 20V633000 14 Oct 2020 | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing |
| 20V558000 14 Sept 2020 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 20V537000 3 Sept 2020 | General Motors LLC |
| 20V505000 26 Aug 2020 | Volkswagen Group of America, Inc. |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2020