Ford F-150 and SD tailgate cable recall: 30,123 potentially affected

Is your car affected?

What to do

Watch for a letter from Ford. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk are expected to be mailed Dec. 14, 2026.

Additional letters will be sent once the remedy is available, which the record says is anticipated in January 2027.

You can call Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S78.

The NHTSA record carries no "park it" or "park outside" advisory for this recall, and it does not list the remedy as an over-the-air update.

NHTSA's recall list for the 2026 F-150 shows eight recall campaigns and the list for the 2027 F-150 shows three. The lists for the 2026 F-250 SD, F-350 SD and F-450 SD show eight, seven and five. Each of the five lists includes this recall.

What happened

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2026-2027 F-150, 2026 F-250 SD, F-350 SD and F-450 SD vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) lists 30,123 vehicles as potentially affected across the campaign.

According to the NHTSA recall record, the left-side tailgate cable may fail under certain heavy load conditions.

Tailgate cable failure may allow the tailgate to drop onto the rear bumper, increasing the risk of injury, the record says.

NHTSA received the report on Oct. 20, 2026. It lists the recall as campaign 26V-689 (26V689000), with the tailgate hinge and attachments as the component.

Is my car affected?

The recall covers certain 2026-2027 F-150 vehicles and certain 2026 F-250 SD, F-350 SD and F-450 SD vehicles, not every one.

Enter your 17-character VIN in our free recall check at /vin-check/ or on NHTSA.gov. NHTSA's record says VINs involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning Dec. 7, 2026.

The record says dealers will replace the left-side tailgate cable, free of charge.