Ford Motor Company of Australia has issued a recall for Ford Ranger and Everest vehicles manufactured between 2022 and 2025, warning that a defective engine component could fracture and lead to a sudden loss of motive power. In the official government recall notice, the defect is described as posing an accident risk that may result in serious injury or death. For owners, the recall highlights the seriousness of the issue and the need to check whether their vehicle is affected.
What the Camshaft Sprocket Defect Actually Does
The core of the problem is a manufacturing defect in the left-hand engine camshaft sprocket. According to the official government recall notice, the sprocket may fracture during normal operation. A camshaft sprocket is responsible for synchronizing the engine’s valve timing. When it breaks, the engine may stall and the vehicle may experience a sudden loss of motive power, which can increase the risk of an accident.
That sudden engine stall is the hazard that makes this recall so serious. Losing power at highway speed, on a merge ramp, or while towing a heavy load creates an immediate collision risk. The official recall language does not soften the stakes: it states the defect poses an accident risk that may result in serious injury or death. This is a safety recall relating to a potential mechanical failure that can lead to a sudden loss of motive power.
Scope of the Recall: Models, Years, and Scale
The recall, registered under campaign number 25S39 and identified as REC-006341, covers Ford Ranger and Everest models manufactured from 2022 through 2025. That four-year production window is significant. The Ranger has consistently ranked among the top-selling vehicles in Australia, and the Everest, its SUV counterpart built on the same platform, has a loyal following among families and fleet operators alike. Because the affected vehicles span multiple production years, the recall applies to a broad range of owners and fleets.
The government recall notice provides the number of affected vehicles; readers should refer to the official listing for the exact total and to confirm whether their VIN is included. Ford Motor Company of Australia Pty Ltd is the entity issuing the recall, and the notice was published through the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts, underscoring that it is a formal safety action rather than a voluntary service campaign.
Why a Multi-Year Defect Window Matters
A single model year recall is routine in the auto industry. A defect that persists across four consecutive production years is a different story. It suggests the faulty camshaft sprocket either passed quality assurance checks repeatedly or that the inspection protocols in place were not designed to catch this specific fracture risk. Neither explanation is reassuring for owners. The Ranger and Everest share significant drivetrain architecture, which means a supplier-level defect could propagate across both nameplates simultaneously without triggering separate red flags during assembly.
This pattern also complicates the repair logistics. Dealers will need to inspect and, where necessary, replace the left-hand engine camshaft sprocket across a wide population of vehicles that may be spread across private owners, commercial fleets, and rental companies. Vehicles from 2022 have already accumulated years of driving, meaning some sprockets may have already experienced stress cycles that bring them closer to fracture. Newer 2025 models, meanwhile, may still be sitting on dealer lots or in early ownership, requiring proactive outreach before the vehicles see heavy use.
The recall notice does not provide detail on how the issue was identified or how long it may have been under review before the recall was published. No official statements from Ford on the root cause timeline or the specific preventive measures being taken are available in the current public record. Until more detail emerges, affected owners are left to infer that the underlying issue is serious enough to warrant immediate inspection but not yet fully explained in terms of how it escaped earlier detection.
What Affected Owners Should Do Now
Owners of 2022 through 2025 Ford Ranger and Everest vehicles should check whether their vehicle identification number falls within the recall population listed under REC-006341. The easiest way to do this is to have the VIN ready and contact a Ford dealer or consult the online recall lookup tools referenced in the government notice. The recall remedy will be carried out by authorized Ford dealers at no cost to the owner, which typically includes both the inspection and any necessary replacement parts and labour associated with the left-hand engine camshaft sprocket.
Given the severity of the hazard, delaying the inspection is a gamble that carries real physical risk, particularly for drivers who regularly use their vehicles for highway commuting, towing, or off-road work where a sudden stall could be especially dangerous. The recall notice does not list specific warning signs that would reliably appear before a fracture. If an affected vehicle shows abnormal engine behaviour or stalls, owners should contact a Ford dealer promptly and follow the instructions in the recall notice. The difference between a precautionary inspection and a roadside engine failure could be the difference between an inconvenience and a catastrophe.
Pressure on Automakers to Catch Defects Earlier
This recall adds to a growing body of cases in which safety-critical engine and drivetrain defects have gone undetected across multiple production cycles. The auto industry has invested heavily in automated inspection and supplier quality programs over the past decade, yet component-level failures like a fractured camshaft sprocket continue to slip through. The challenge is partly structural: modern vehicles rely on vast global supply chains where a single part may be manufactured thousands of kilometres from the final assembly plant, making end-to-end quality visibility difficult. When a small but critical component fails, the consequences can cascade into large-scale recalls that are costly for manufacturers and unsettling for consumers.
Some industry analysts have pointed to the potential for predictive manufacturing analytics, driven by machine learning models trained on metallurgical and stress-test data, to catch fracture-prone components before they leave the factory floor. However, no publicly available evidence ties Ford’s current recall to the absence or presence of such technology, and the official notice focuses solely on the defect description, affected models, and remedy. The more immediate takeaway is simpler: when a defect carries the explicit risk of death, the window between detection and public notification needs to be as narrow as possible. For the thousands of Ranger and Everest owners now checking their VINs and booking dealer appointments, that window has already felt too long, and the expectation will be that both Ford and regulators tighten oversight to prevent similar multi-year defects from reaching Australian roads in the future.
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*This article was researched with the help of AI, with human editors creating the final content.
