This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
My 2023 Ford Bronco has these "Advanced" wipers that automatically stop wiping when they think the windshield is dry or think the wiper motor may be damaged. When driving in heavy rain and you put the wipers on High (or even Low), they automatically switch to Intermittent after about 1 minute. They actually stop wiping at a high speed and pause between wipes for several seconds. In order to keep the wipers going in heavy, blinding rain you have to keep switching the wipers from Low to High to keep them moving. This is a safety hazard since you honestly cannot see though the windshield during heavy rain. I have spoken to many Bronco owners and seen thread on online message boards that everyone has the same issue. After reading the Manual it appears this is a "feature" of the new Ford Bronco. This is a major safety issue and Ford should be required to fix the wiper motor on these vehicles. The issue happens on all of the model years - 2021 - 2023.
What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request" Windshield wipers. Yes, it's available, but since it is environmentally dependent, it may be harder to capture. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk" Per Ford: "The vehicle is equipped with protection features to prevent damage to the wiper motor in case of overheating, usage on dry windshields or obstructions to the wiper blade due to snow or ice accumulation on the windshield. In such conditions, the wiper motor may restrict its speed, reduce area of cleaning or completely stop operation. System returns back to normal operation mode once conditions are resolved." The current "safety" measures put in place by Ford are actually causing a safety hazard when driving. When driving in rain so heavy that I couldn't see, in 37-degree weather, the wipers slowed down to once every 3-7 seconds, which means I was virtually blind that long on a freeway, going 70mph, and surrounded by vehicles. I haven't seen the issue when the wipers run slower (light-mid rain). At the most recent time of occurrence: * The temperatures were near, or below freezing, which should've helped keep the motors cool (I was driving through the mountains at the time). * There was so much rain that my windshield was completely obfuscated by a layer of water within about 1 second. It was not dry, at all. * There was no debris or build-up on the windshield, impeding the blades. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center" No. Other Bronco owners that have reported it were told "this is normal." Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? No. Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear" Nothing indicated why it was happening. It just would happen.
On many occasions, when we have excessive rain, the windshield wipers on the Bronco will go from the high speed settings to much lower speed. Ford says this is by design to prevent overheating of the windshield wiper motors. In my opinion, it poses a severe safety risk, as the windshield wipers you cant count on when you need them the most. As of now Ford isn't acknowledging it as a problem, and claims its normal... but normal or not its a problem. As a side note, I've owned about 20 diff vehicles of all makes, shapes and sizes... and never had one that I couldnt leave windshield wipers on high without the motors burning up. Ford needs to do something about this.
While driving on the highway during a rainstorm I had my wipers set to the highest setting. After about 1 minute they began to slow down on their own until they were only working intermittently. I was unable to see as soon as the wipers began to slow down. I had to toggle the wiper switch in order to get the wipers back to the high setting. They once again began to slow after 1 minute and my visibility became next to nothing. It was very dangerous traveling down the highway at 70 mph and being unable to see, as well as having to continuously toggle the wiper switch while trying to focus on the road.
The wipers will turn slow way down or turn off completely even though it is still raining very hard. You have to constantly turn them off and back on. We live in the Portland, Oregon area where it rains frequently!! This is becoming very problematic.
- Tigard, OR, USA
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Windshield wipers, on multiple settings will slow and then stop on their own. During many string rain events I have set the wipes to higher speeds to only have them slow down on their own or stop completely. This has been reported to Ford directly. At the time of operation the rain is heavy and once the wipers slow or stop it because very difficult to see and the person driving must react quickly to reengage the wipers. Continually having the wipers slow or stop and having to reengage them creates a very high risk of accident. Ford refuses to acknowledge the issue and instead indicates they are made this way to protect the wiper motor. I do not use my wipers when it is not raining, nor do I use higher speed on the wipers unless the rain is heavy. This is a reoccurring and ongoing issue every time I drive in the rain.
When I put the windshield wipers on standard speed, they will stay there for about 60 seconds and then drop down to a very slow intermittent speed. It happens in very hard rain so I don-??t believe it is the rain sensor. If I turn it to fast speed and then back down to normal. It will continue again for 60 seconds and then drop back to intermittent speed.
Wipers will not stay in continuous setting (low) for more than 20 seconds before slowing down to extra slow for another 20 seconds, then stopping continuous and becoming intermittent. Have to keep changing the wiper speed control manually to keep them going continuously. It appears that the factory windshield is extra high friction even when clean and since new, which may be causing the issue of wiper motor slowing itself down to protect itself.
Windshield wiper blade action slows down or comes to a stop, no matter low speed high speed or intermittent. Driving at 55 mph at early morning darkness during a heavy rain the windshield wipers come to a complete stop. Oncoming traffic headlights glaring through the rain soaked windshield provided almost zero visibility. Quick action had me reaching for the wiper control to fiddle with it upon which the wipe motor started up again, no matter the position the blade continually stopped, unless I constantly flipped the wiper stalk from high to low to keep the blades functioning. I have a manual transmission, imagine trying to shift gears with one hand, flipping the wiper stalk with another all while maintaining control of the vehicle. This not only endangers me, but others on the road should I lose control and hit them head on! What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request" WINDSHIELD WIPERS How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? TOTAL LOSS OF VISION OUT THE WINDSHIELD Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? NO HOWEVER OTHERS HAVE REPORTED THE SAME ISSUES. VISIT THE FOLLOWING FORUMS - BRONCO6G - https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/wiper-control-speed-issues-urgent-safety.31809/ - BRONCO NATION - https://thebronconation.com/issues-repair-and-warranty-n.154/bronco-2-door-windshield-wipers-weird-%E2%80%9Cfeature%E2%80%9D-when-on-high-or-low-speed-t.16155/page-1 Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives or others? AS OF NOW SEVERAL NEW CAR DEALERSHIPS HAVE BEEN CONFRONTED WITH CUSTOMERS PROBLEMS, SOME HAVE REPLACED THE WIPER MOTORS Were there any warning lamps, messages or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear" NO PRIOR WARING, JUST COMPLETE STOPPAGE
When windshield wipers are on high speed during a storm they will slow down after 30 seconds to a speed of wiping the window maybe every 5 seconds causing a significant reduction in visibility.
The contact owns a 2023 Ford Bronco. The contact stated that while driving approximately 70 MPH in inclement weather, the windshield wipers were activated on high-speed but failed to operate at the highest setting. The contact stated that the windshield wiper defaulted to intermediate speed and deactivated and turned off independently on other occasions. The contact stated that there was a safety feature to deactivate the windshield wipers if the windshield was dry however, it was raining and snowing so the feature should not have been activated. The contact stated that his vision was affected by the failure. The contact toggled with the settings, causing his attention to be diverted from the road which could have caused a crash. The contact stated that the windshield wipers then activated independently. The vehicle was driven and parked at the residence. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 2,200.
Wiper control issue - when the wipers are set to the standard slow or fast speed the wipers start to slow down after about 30 seconds and eventually go into intermittent. We have experienced this in the pouring rain, while traveling with children and it makes it impossible to see. We have contacted 2 dealerships, and both were able to replicate the problem and acknowledged it. However, Ford will not acknowledge that there is a problem, and we are told that there is nothing that they can do. We also called Ford Customer Service and were told to read page 100 of our owner's manual and if we still had problems to seek out dealerships until we got a resolution.
During moderate rain the wipers were turned on and switched between the top 2 speeds. After a short period of time it automatically goes into a very slow intermittent mode causing loss of visibility. From my understanding this is part of fords -??smart wiper-?? system to save the motor from burning out. This is extremely dangerous and almost caused an accident. I have video of this condition.
When wipers are used on higher settings during moderate rain it will maintain speed for a short period of time then automatically go to a very slow intermediate speed on its own. This caused zero visibility without warning. My understanding is they do this to protect the wiper motor and do not value lives by causing obstructions in my vision. I have video of the issue.
When driving at any speed from local roads to highways in inclement weather from light rain to sleet to heavy rain, the wipers revert from high speed to intermittent (slow) speed after a period of 30 seconds to 2 minutes and do not revert back to the necessary speed for safe vehicle operation. During sleet and heavy rainfall it became difficult to see out of windshield and I had to keep adjusting the speed of the wipers every 30 seconds to 2 minutes in order for them to operate correctly. Vehicle was brought into the service department at a Ford dealership and I was told it is a -??feature of the Smart Wiper Motor Operation-?? and to pick up the vehicle with no repair available. According to service department it is Ford Special Service Message #51377. I have also found the statement referred to as -??SSM 50692-?? in my own research.
While driving in the rain the windshield wipers will randomly slow down to a very unsafe level, making it very difficult to see out of the front windshield. I talked with the dealership and they said there is no known fix for this issue. Ford does not seem to have an answer either. This happens every time the wipers are on. And happens frequently, like every 30 secs the wipers will slow way down. They are not rain sensing wipers.
Windshield wipers operate for a limited time before slowing & then stopping completely. Multiple adjustments are required of the wiper control to reactivate the wipers. However, after a few minutes, the wipers will again slow & stop functioning completely. This situation creates a safety hazard, due to limited visibility & obscured driving conditions, during wet conditions.
When driving in rainy conditions, the windshield wipers cease to function at the selected setting. This happens at any setting. Specifically, after approximately 30 seconds, the windshield wipers slow to a greatly reduced and intermittent speed. This causes extreme issues with visibility, which in turn, creates a major safety issue, especially at highway speeds. This is not one incident. It happens every time the windshield wipers need to be turned on due to visibility.
This is the same complaint as #11509166. I couldn't find a way to add more documentation to the already filed complaint so here is the original information plus more complaints and examples of the safety issue..... https://www.bronco6g.com/forum/threads/wiper-control-speed-issues-urgent-safety.31809/.... https://youtu.be/9F8Gc2Huejo.... After less than a minute of running, the wipers suddenly slow down to the lowest wiper delay setting. You notice because, if you're in a storm or rain, you suddenly can't see out of the windshield. It does this on all of the wiper settings. If you're in a bad storm and you have the wipers running on maximum, they suddenly stop and go to like a once every 30 second wipe. you have to constantly turn the wiper control back and forth the whole time you're driving to keep the wipers working.
I was driving in rain and the wipers were initially working fine. Then for no reason they just started slowing down. The rain was still heavy and the vehicle does not have rain sensing wipers so there is no reason they should have slowed down. I had to keep changing the wiper speed from high to low to high to get it back to the necessary speed. This is a major safety issue that the wipers do not work consistently.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Carrollton , GA, USA