Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 05-18-2021, 06:23 PM   #1
Senior Member
 
RVwino's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 327
Ford Recall on 2021 FR3

I've discovered that our 2021 FR3 34DS has a recall notice from Ford. It has to do with possible replacement of the bearings for the rear axle on the 2020 F53 chassis. My local Ford truck service manager said they'd want the rig for three days in case parts have to be ordered.

You can check whether you are affected by entering your VIN at https://owner.ford.com/tools/account...e/recalls.html


Here's the text:

INADEQUATE REAR AXLE OIL FILL VOLUME
NHTSA Recall Number: 21V202 NHTSA Date: MAR 24, 2021 Ford Recall number: 21S17

Status:11 - RECALL INCOMPLETE

Recall Description: INADEQUATE REAR AXLE OIL FILL VOLUME

Risk to Safety: IN THE EVENT OF REAR AXLE OR DRIVESHAFT FAILURE, CUSTOMERS MAY EXPERIENCE LOSS OF VEHICLE MOTIVE POWER, LOSS OF TRANSMISSION PARK FUNCTION, AND LOSS OF PARKING BRAKE FUNCTION, INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.

Remedy Program: OWNERS WILL BE NOTIFIED BY MAIL AND INSTRUCTED TO TAKE THEIR VEHICLE TO A FORD OR LINCOLN DEALER. ALL VEHICLES WILL BE INSPECTED FOR LUBRICANT LEVEL AND EVALUATED TO DETERMINE IF BEARING REPLACEMENT IS NECESSARY. THERE WILL BE NO CHARGE FOR THIS SERVICE. FORD IS EXCLUDING REIMBURSEMENT FOR COSTS BECAUSE THE ORIGINAL WARRANTY PROGRAM WOULD PROVIDE FOR A FREE REPAIR FOR THIS CONCERN. FORD WILL FORWARD A COPY OF THE NOTIFICATION LETTERS TO DEALERS TO THE AGENCY WHEN AVAILABLE.
__________________
Cliff Smith
Jackson, CA
2021 FR3 34DS (V8)
2011 Honda CRV toad
RVwino is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-06-2021, 11:12 AM   #2
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Nov 2020
Posts: 17
Mine is going in next week for the service. Takes about a day for them to do it.
jbender is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-06-2021, 11:35 AM   #3
Senior Member
 
RVwino's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 327
Quote:
Originally Posted by jbender View Post
Mine is going in next week for the service. Takes about a day for them to do it.
Best of luck! I’m being told it could take as long as three. One dealer said that their service bulletin tells them that replacing the bearings is optional (which is not what our letter said).
__________________
Cliff Smith
Jackson, CA
2021 FR3 34DS (V8)
2011 Honda CRV toad
RVwino is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 06-06-2021, 03:01 PM   #4
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2021
Location: Wentzville, MO
Posts: 261
I set up an account here. Let them keep an eye on my VIN and tell me if anything else comes up. I think I barely squeezed under the build dates on this one though.

https://owner.ford.com/index.html#/
fuzzball is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-31-2021, 01:31 PM   #5
Senior Member
 
RVwino's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 327
The recall work was done at the end of August. Unfortunately, the "tone ring", which is part of the sensor for the ABS, was damaged. Of course, those parts are on back-order and the Ford dealer is unable to get a commit date from Ford as to when it will order. As a result, we can drive the RV, but we're without ABS, traction control, and cruise control.

This isn't an FR3-specific issue. Reading other manufacturer forums, quite a number of people people who had the recall work done had issues with the tone rings after the fact.
__________________
Cliff Smith
Jackson, CA
2021 FR3 34DS (V8)
2011 Honda CRV toad
RVwino is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-31-2021, 01:32 PM   #6
Senior Member
 
RVwino's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 327
The recall work was done at the end of August. Unfortunately, the "tone ring", which is part of the sensor for the ABS, was damaged. Of course, those parts are on back-order and the Ford dealer is unable to get a commit date from Ford as to when it will order. As a result, we can drive the RV, but we're without ABS, traction control, and cruise control.

This isn't an FR3-specific issue. Reading other manufacturer forums, quite a number of people people who had the recall work done had issues with the tone rings after the fact.
__________________
Cliff Smith
Jackson, CA
2021 FR3 34DS (V8)
2011 Honda CRV toad
RVwino is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-15-2021, 08:55 AM   #7
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: Weimar, TX
Posts: 14
FR3 recall

My local Ford dealer sent me home with instructions to not drive the RV. They are ordering parts and will notify me when they arrive. Between the generator issues and now this my FR3 has gone from weeks out of service to months.
__________________
Stan
2021 FR3 34DS
Whistling Duck Winery
Weimar, TX
Duckwine is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-15-2021, 12:00 PM   #8
Senior Member
 
RVwino's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 327
Quote:
Originally Posted by Duckwine View Post
My local Ford dealer sent me home with instructions to not drive the RV. They are ordering parts and will notify me when they arrive. Between the generator issues and now this my FR3 has gone from weeks out of service to months.
Ugh! Interestingly, my local Ford service manager told me it should be OK to drive.
__________________
Cliff Smith
Jackson, CA
2021 FR3 34DS (V8)
2011 Honda CRV toad
RVwino is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-16-2021, 01:29 PM   #9
Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2021
Posts: 78
Quote:
Originally Posted by RVwino View Post
Ugh! Interestingly, my local Ford service manager told me it should be OK to drive.


My dealer told me to drive it until the parts came in ( which they did this week). I explained that I was taking it on a 5,000 mile adventure and he still said to drive it. We returned without any issues with the axle. It’s currently in for correction.
__________________
FR3
Pushed by a Red Rubicon
OHIOFR3 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-16-2021, 05:45 PM   #10
Senior Member
 
RVwino's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 327
Quote:
Originally Posted by OHIOFR3 View Post
My dealer told me to drive it until the parts came in ( which they did this week). I explained that I was taking it on a 5,000 mile adventure and he still said to drive it. We returned without any issues with the axle. It’s currently in for correction.
Best of luck! If the Ford truck place is a fair drive from your home, you may want to ask the service manager to drive it for five miles before telling you that it is ready for you to pick it up. It is anywhere between 0-5 miles when the tone ring problem disables my ABS, traction-control, hill-start, and cruise-control.
__________________
Cliff Smith
Jackson, CA
2021 FR3 34DS (V8)
2011 Honda CRV toad
RVwino is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-16-2021, 07:48 PM   #11
Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2021
Posts: 78
Quote:
Originally Posted by RVwino View Post
Best of luck! If the Ford truck place is a fair drive from your home, you may want to ask the service manager to drive it for five miles before telling you that it is ready for you to pick it up. It is anywhere between 0-5 miles when the tone ring problem disables my ABS, traction-control, hill-start, and cruise-control.


They called and it will be ready tomorrow for pick up. I counted 5 other new Class A MH on their service lot getting the recall performed. Hopefully all will go well.
__________________
FR3
Pushed by a Red Rubicon
OHIOFR3 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-18-2021, 03:51 PM   #12
Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2021
Posts: 78
Quote:
Originally Posted by OHIOFR3 View Post
They called and it will be ready tomorrow for pick up. I counted 5 other new Class A MH on their service lot getting the recall performed. Hopefully all will go well.


Got mine back today from the dealer (Ricart Ford, Columbus) and all is great after driving it 35 miles. I mentioned the tone ring issue that some are having and the service manager admitted that they too have had a few problems but mine didn’t present any problems.
__________________
FR3
Pushed by a Red Rubicon
OHIOFR3 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-18-2021, 04:09 PM   #13
Senior Member
 
RVwino's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 327
Quote:
Originally Posted by OHIOFR3 View Post
Got mine back today from the dealer (Ricart Ford, Columbus) and all is great after driving it 35 miles. I mentioned the tone ring issue that some are having and the service manager admitted that they too have had a few problems but mine didn’t present any problems.
That is awesome news!
__________________
Cliff Smith
Jackson, CA
2021 FR3 34DS (V8)
2011 Honda CRV toad
RVwino is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2021, 12:02 PM   #14
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: Weimar, TX
Posts: 14
After reading everyone’s posts I decided to go ahead and drive my rig. Topped off the fluid, still waiting on parts delivery at Ford.
__________________
Stan
2021 FR3 34DS
Whistling Duck Winery
Weimar, TX
Duckwine is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-21-2021, 12:59 PM   #15
Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2021
Posts: 78
Quote:
Originally Posted by Duckwine View Post
After reading everyone’s posts I decided to go ahead and drive my rig. Topped off the fluid, still waiting on parts delivery at Ford.


When I drove mine on the 5,000 mile, 6 week adventure before correction, I was flat towing my Rubicon (4,850 lbs.) out west through Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Colorado climbing 5, 6, and 8% grades with no issues. If the differential fluid is at the proper level you should be good.
__________________
FR3
Pushed by a Red Rubicon
OHIOFR3 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-07-2021, 05:14 PM   #16
Commercial Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Posts: 24
You can always enter your vin# at "www.safercar.gov" to determine if your coach has any outstanding recalls.

Tone rings, which are not necessarily related to the recall, are in a major shortage at the current time. If you're going to "drop your unit off" at a Ford dealer for tone rings I would make sure that they have them in stock or at least an anticipated delivery date. I know that there are units out there from August that are still waiting on tone rings and Ford isn't giving dealers an ETA on when they will receive them.

As far as the actual recall goes relating to the rear axle and the possibility of insufficient axle lubricant- Ford has stated that if your vehicle is effected by the recall to take your unit to a Ford dealership to have it checked. If your local dealership has bearings in stock they will replace them and re-fill the axle. If they don't have them in stock, they will at least refill the rear axle until they can get the bearings. When they do get the bearings they will drain the system, install new bearings and fill with fresh axle lubricant. Ford says that if you at least have your fluid checked at an authorized dealership, and filled if necessary, that the coach is safe to drive until you can have the bearing replaced. They've found that only a small percentage of units with low axle fluid actually had any bearing damage, but the longer a coach is driven in that state the higher the probability that it will occur.
CMcDonough is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-16-2021, 11:59 PM   #17
Senior Member
 
RVwino's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Posts: 327
Quote:
Originally Posted by RVwino View Post
The recall work was done at the end of August. Unfortunately, the "tone ring", which is part of the sensor for the ABS, was damaged. Of course, those parts are on back-order and the Ford dealer is unable to get a commit date from Ford as to when it will order. As a result, we can drive the RV, but we're without ABS, traction control, and cruise control.
I went to a lemon law firm, they notified Ford, and a week later the local service center notified us that the tone rings had arrived. It could be coincidental…

The tech drove it for 5 miles before turning it over to me. I drove it another 15 miles with no issues. Hopefully, this problem is now in the rear view mirror.
__________________
Cliff Smith
Jackson, CA
2021 FR3 34DS (V8)
2011 Honda CRV toad
RVwino is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 12-17-2021, 03:56 PM   #18
Senior Member
 
USAFE7Ret's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2020
Location: Saint Cloud, FL
Posts: 103
Thanks for sharing this recall info. I entered my VIN and no recall was found. I checked with local Ford dealer where I get my oil changed and he informed me that the chassis is actually a 2019 model regardless of the 2020 listing which is for the coach, not the chassis. Learn something new each day. Wish you safe travels.
__________________
2020 FR3 34DS, Blue Ox Avail, SMI Stay-In-Play DUO Braking System, Tire Minder TPMS-i10-10, Lippert Friction Door Hinges, GPS Rand McNally OverDryve 7RV, Safe-T-Plus, Sumo Springs Front & Rear, Sway Bar Front & Rear, Roadmaster Stabilizer, Soft Start both AC's, WACO AC Silencer, Frig Defender ARP Control v5.11 + 2 Fans. 2012 Cadillac SRX Luxury
USAFE7Ret is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-29-2022, 11:02 AM   #19
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Jan 2022
Posts: 0
ford recall

We had our recall repair scheduled for early December, they cancelled and pushed back to March 29 because they can't get the parts. First I was told it was the seals now it's the bearings. I called Ford Motor Company and they were nice but really didn't know anything either. We got the recall notice in September bought Georgetown in June, but the original recall on the Ford site is March 24, 2021. Our RV dealer should have known about that and never sold it until it was repaired.
TN52 is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Tags
2021, f53, ford, fr3, recall

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Disclaimer:

This website is not affiliated with or endorsed by Forest River, Inc. or any of its affiliates. This is an independent, unofficial site.



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 12:50 AM.