You shift into reverse, the screen goes black or freezes on the image it showed thirty seconds ago, and you are backing out of a parking space on faith. If that is happening in a recent Ford or Lincoln, it is not your imagination and it is not a one-off.
Ford recalled more than a million vehicles over backup camera screens that freeze or go black in reverse. Ford’s own recall documents put it plainly: “the center infotainment screen may freeze followed by a black screen and a system reboot. If this occurs during a backing event, the rear-view image may be frozen, missing, or delayed.” A software fault is behind the unexpected resets.
This is not one bad batch of cameras. Ford issued eleven separate backup camera-related recalls during 2025 alone, listed further down this page, and it did not stop there. In March 2026 Ford recalled roughly 1.74 million more vehicles for rearview camera failures under two further campaigns: NHTSA 26V123, Ford 26S09, for a module that can overheat so the camera image never appears on the Bronco and Edge, and NHTSA 26V124, Ford 26C11, for software that can display the center screen flipped or inverted on the Aviator, Corsair, Escape and Explorer. Those campaigns reach model years 2020 through 2026, and Ford said free software updates were being prepared and that owners would be notified when they were available.
The pattern is the reason this page exists. A rearview camera is required safety equipment, not a convenience feature, and a fix that has to be issued, reissued and then corrected again is exactly the situation where an owner runs out of patience before Ford runs out of software.
A Quick Overview of Ford’s Backup Camera Recall
- NHTSA ID: 25V315000
- Ford Recall: 25S49
- Size of Recall: 1,075,299
- Affected Models: Certain 2021 and newer Ford and Lincoln models.
- Problem: A software issue is causing the backup camera screen to freeze, delay or turn black while the vehicle is in REVERSE.
- Recall Remedy: The accessory protocol interface module (APIM) software will be updated free of charge, either through the dealer or an over-the-air update.
- Owner Notification: Interim notices began June 26, 2025. Ford has since released the APIM software update, performed at a dealership or delivered over the air, in phases by model and model year; some vehicles were still waiting for their phase in early 2026.
What Ford Vehicles Are Recalled?
Ford’s massive backup camera recall includes the following vehicles:
- 2021–2024 Ford Bronco
- 2021–2024 Ford F-150
- 2021–2024 Ford Edge
- 2023–2024 Ford Escape
- 2023–2024 Ford F-250
- 2023–2024 Ford F-350
- 2023–2024 Ford F-450
- 2023–2024 Ford F-550
- 2023–2024 Ford F-600
- 2022–2024 Ford Expedition
- 2022–2025 Ford Transit
- 2021–2023 Ford Mach-E
- 2024 Ford Ranger
- 2024 Ford Mustang
- 2021–2023 Lincoln Nautilus
- 2022–2024 Lincoln Navigator
- 2023–2024 Lincoln Corsair
Is My Ford or Lincoln Vehicle Included?
To find out if your Ford or Lincoln vehicle is affected by this recall:
- Check your Vehicle Identification Number (VIN): This number is located on the corner of the driver’s side dashboard where it meets the windshield. Alternatively, you can find it on the front driver’s side doorjamb.
- Use NHTSA’s Recall Lookup Tool to search by your VIN or State License Plate Number.
- Use Ford’s Recall Search or Lincoln’s Recall Search Tool to search your VIN.
How To Schedule A Repair Service
If your Ford or Lincoln is under recall, here is how you can schedule a repair service appointment:
- Contact Ford’s Customer Service (1-866-436-7332) to report your vehicle issues and schedule a repair service.
- Locate a Ford dealership or Lincoln dealership near you and call their provided phone number to schedule an appointment.
Ford’s Backup Camera Recalls, Largest to Smallest
Ford issued eleven backup camera recalls during 2025, listed below from largest to smallest, and added two more campaigns covering roughly 1.74 million vehicles in March 2026. These numerous recalls come after Ford had to pay a $165 million civil penalty for failing to comply with federal recall requirements regarding vehicles with faulty backup cameras.
Some of these recalls are repeat campaigns or expansions of previous efforts to correct lingering backup camera issues.
Recall 25S49: SYNC screens freezing on the Bronco, F-150 and Edge
- 1,075,299 vehicles affected
- Problem: Backup camera screen may freeze or go black due to APIM software error
- Models: 2021–2025 Ford & Lincoln vehicles
- Recall Remedy: APIM software will be updated by the dealer or through an over-the-air update.
- Date of Mailed Notice: Interim notices sent June 26, 2025. Updated notices will be sent when repairs are available.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25S72: blank rearview screen on SYNC 3 vehicles
- 200,061 vehicles affected
- Problem: Rearview camera screen may go blank, or image may remain on display after vehicle has shifted out of REVERSE.
- Models: 2018–2022 Transit Connect, 2019–2020 MKZ, Edge, Continental, F-150, Nautilus, Fusion, 2019–2023 Ranger, Mustang, 2020–2021 EcoSport, Expedition, Navigator, 2020–2022 Escape, F-250 SD, Corsair, 2020–2023 Aviator, Transit, 2020–2024 Explorer, 2021–2024 Bronco Sport, and 2022–2024 Maverick vehicles
- Recall Remedy: An updated version of SYNC 3 software will be flashed into their Accessory Protocol Interface Module (APIM).
- Date of Expected Mailed Notice: July 28, 2025
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25S42: damaged camera circuit board on Super Duty and Expedition
- 160,729 vehicles affected
- Problem: Backup camera screens may be blank or distorted because the printed circuit board terminal header connector is damaged.
- Models: 2015 F-250, F-350, F-450, Expedition, Lincoln Navigator, and MKC vehicles
- Recall Remedy: Dealers will install a replacement backup camera, which has improved header tooling and solder pads.
- Date of Mailed Notice: Interim notices were sent May 6, 2025. Follow-up notices will be sent when the remedy is available.
- Note: This action expands Ford Recall 22S06/NHTSA 22V082000.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 23S48: corroded 360-degree camera connectors on the Bronco
- 128,889 vehicles affected
- Problem: The 360-degree view camera may not display a rearview image when the vehicle is shifted into REVERSE. This can happen when corrosion causes tin oxide to form on the internal camera connector or when connector misalignment causes contact deformation.
- Models: 2022–2023 Ford Bronco vehicles
- Recall Remedy: Dealers will replace the cameras. The replacement cameras have gold-plated internal connectors and improved connector alignment.
- Date of Mailed Notice: Interim notices were sent May 21, 2025. Follow-up notices will be sent when the remedy is available, likely in the final quarter of 2025.
- Note: This action expands Ford Recall 23S48/NHTSA 23V598000.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25S05: blank image on the Expedition, Super Duty and Corsair
- 91,580 vehicles affected
- Problem: The rearview camera may show a blank or distorted image.
- Models: 2021 Expedition, 2021–2022 Super Duty F–250, F-350, F-450, F-550, F-600, and 2020–2022 Lincoln Corsair vehicles
- Recall Remedy: Dealers will replace the rearview camera. Additionally, dealers will update the wire harness on Corsair vehicles.
- Date of Mailed Notice: Interim notices were mailed February 27, 2025. Another notice will be mailed when the remedy is available.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25S27: distorted image on the Explorer, Aviator and Corsair
- 49,399 vehicles affected
- Problem: The rearview camera may show a distorted image or a blank blue or black screen.
- Models: 2020–2023 Explorer, Lincoln Aviator, and 2020–2022 Lincoln Corsair
- Recall Remedy: Ford and Lincoln dealers will have the Image Processing Module – B software updated.
- Date of Mailed Notice: April 25, 2025
- Note: This action addresses incorrect repairs performed under Ford Recall 23S23/NHTSA 23V342000.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25C14: Bronco camera image still showing out of reverse
- 12,219 vehicles affected
- Problem: The rearview camera image may still be displayed after the vehicle is no longer in REVERSE.
- Models: 2021–2022 Ford Bronco with 8-inch SYNC infotainment screens.
- Recall Remedy: Dealers will update the SYNC module software.
- Date of Mailed Notice: June 18, 2025
- Note: This action addresses incorrect repairs performed under Ford Recall 22C27/NHTSA 22V825000.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25C08: inverted rearview image on the Ford Escape
- 4,721 vehicles affected
- Problem: The rearview camera may display an inverted image when the vehicle is in REVERSE.
- Models: 2025 Ford Escape
- Recall Remedy: Dealers will inspect and, if necessary, replace the Rear View Camera.
- Date of Mailed Notice: March 28, 2025.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25S38: no rearview image on the Ford Transit
- 4,625 vehicles affected
- Problem: The rearview camera or 360-degree view camera may not display a rearview image when the vehicle is placed in REVERSE.
- Models: 2022–2023 Ford Transit
- Recall Remedy: Ford and Lincoln dealers will update the software for Image Processing Module – B free of charge.
- Date of Mailed Notice: May 23, 2025
- Note: This action addresses incorrect repairs performed under Ford Recall 23S48/NHTSA 23V598000.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25S28: blank or distorted image on the Ford Edge
- 2,290 vehicles affected
- Problem: A software error may cause the rearview camera to display a blank or distorted image when the vehicle is in reverse.
- Models: 2021–2022 Ford Edge
- Recall Remedy: The SYNC 4 software will be updated free of charge.
- Date of Mailed Notice: April 25, 2025
- Note: This action addresses incorrect repairs performed under Ford Recall 22S14/NHTSA 22V151000.
- NHTSA Recall Page
Recall 25S17: Super Duty image missing with Pro Trailer Hitch Assist
- 355 vehicles affected
- Problem: The default rearview camera image may not be displayed when using the Pro Trailer Hitch Assist feature.
- Models: 2023 F-Super Duty F-250, F-350, and F-450
- Recall Remedy: Dealers will update the Advanced Drive Assistance System (ADAS) module software for free.
- Date of Mailed Notice: April 4, 2025
- Note: This action addresses incorrect repairs performed under Ford Recall 23S46/NHTSA 23V573000.
- NHTSA Recall Page
These 11 recalls underscore ongoing issues with Ford’s camera systems across its vehicle lineup. If you have had multiple repairs or continue to experience backup camera issues, it may be time to explore legal compensation.
If Your Camera Still Doesn’t Work After Repairs
Plenty of Ford and Lincoln owners have had the update applied and never thought about it again. Others are on their third visit for the same black screen, or had one recall performed only for Ford to issue another recall correcting that repair, which has happened repeatedly in this family of campaigns.
If your camera is still freezing, blanking or showing a distorted image after the recall work, California gives you a remedy the recall system does not. Under the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, the statute behind what most people call the lemon law, a manufacturer that cannot repair a defect substantially affecting the use, value or safety of your vehicle after a reasonable number of attempts, while the vehicle is still under warranty, has to repurchase or replace it. A rearview camera is federally required safety equipment, so a camera that does not display is not a cosmetic complaint.
There is no fixed number of visits, and this defect builds a record in an unusual way: the repair itself is a software flash, so the file often shows the same module reprogramd two or three times for the same symptom, sometimes under different recall numbers. That is a strong record. Keep every repair order, including the visits where nothing was found and the ones performed under an earlier campaign. California also treats a cumulative 30 days out of service for warranty repair as a signal on its own, and those days do not have to run back to back.
A successful claim ends in a repurchase at close to what you paid, including taxes, registration and finance charges, less a mileage offset for the trouble-free miles before the defect appeared, or a replacement vehicle. Our buyback calculation page shows how the number is built, and the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act puts the attorney fees on the manufacturer, so the case costs you nothing up front.
One eligibility note: we practice California lemon law only, for vehicles bought or leased from a licensed California dealership, and our current intake focuses on recent model years, which is where most of these camera campaigns sit. If your vehicle falls outside that, the recall repair is still free to you and our lemon law FAQ explains what the law does and does not require of a manufacturer. To talk it through, call a Ford or Lincoln lemon law attorney at our firm on 833-208-8181 or see the defects we track on our Ford page.
Ford Backup Camera Recall Questions Answered
Is there a Ford backup camera recall? Yes, and more than one. Ford issued eleven backup camera recalls during 2025, the largest being 25S49 with 1,075,299 vehicles, and added two further campaigns covering roughly 1.74 million vehicles in March 2026. Search your VIN rather than assuming which one applies to you.
What is Ford recall 25S49? It is the largest of them: 1,075,299 model year 2021 and newer Ford and Lincoln vehicles whose accessory protocol interface module software can freeze or blank the center screen, taking the rearview image with it. The remedy is a free APIM software update at a dealership or over the air.
How long has my vehicle been in the shop for 25S49? If the answer is weeks, write the dates down. The repair is a software flash, so an extended stay usually means a parts or phase delay, and California treats a cumulative 30 days out of service for warranty repair as strong evidence in a lemon law claim.
Is the backup camera update free? Yes. Every remedy in these campaigns is provided at no charge, whether it is delivered over the air or performed at a dealership. If you already paid for a related repair before the recall was announced, ask Ford customer service about reimbursement and keep the invoice.
Why did Ford pay a $165 million penalty over backup cameras? NHTSA issued that civil penalty, the second largest in the agency’s history, for Ford’s failure to comply with federal recall requirements on vehicles with faulty backup cameras. It is the context for why so many of these campaigns are corrections of earlier ones.
Can I bring a lemon law claim if the recall was already performed on my vehicle? Yes. A recall repair is free and separate from your warranty rights. If the camera still fails afterwards, the repair history is precisely what a claim runs on.
Reviewed by Roger Kirnos, Managing Attorney, California State Bar No. 283163
