TSB SSM-54738 — Ford Service bulletin

SSM-54738 is a service bulletin on file with NHTSA for 4 Ford models, 2023–2025 model years. A TSB is factory repair guidance, not a recall — the repair is not automatically free.

What the bulletin says. Some 2023-2025 Escape 1.5L/F-Super Duty/Transit vehicles may exhibit a lack of cooling from the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, which may be accompanied by abnormal rattling, grinding and/or squealing noises from the engine compartment. This may be due…

NHTSA's own summary of the document, quoted from the public manufacturer-communications file.

1Document filed
4Vehicles named
3Model years

Vehicles and model years SSM-54738 names

VehicleModel years
Ford Escape 2023, 2024, 2025
Ford F-250 2023, 2024, 2025
Ford F-350 2023, 2024, 2025
Ford Transit 2023, 2024, 2025

Every document filed under SSM-54738

Document IDFiledType
SSM 54738 April 13, 2026 Service bulletin

What SSM-54738 covers

Transmission & drivetrain, Engine — the component vocabulary NHTSA files this communication under.

← All Ford Escape TSB years TSB lookup by model

Questions buyers ask

What is TSB SSM-54738?

SSM-54738 is a service bulletin filed with NHTSA by Ford, covering 4 Ford models across the 2023–2025 model years. NHTSA's summary reads: Some 2023-2025 Escape 1.5L/F-Super Duty/Transit vehicles may exhibit a lack of cooling from the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system, which may be accompanied by abnormal rattling, grinding and/or squealing noises from the engine compartment. This may be due…

Which vehicles does SSM-54738 cover?

NHTSA's file names Ford Escape (2023–2025); Ford F-250 (2023–2025); Ford F-350 (2023–2025); Ford Transit (2023–2025). A bulletin number can be re-issued against more vehicles later, so check the model-year list on this page against your own.

Is TSB SSM-54738 a recall, and is the repair free?

No. SSM-54738 is repair guidance the manufacturer sent its dealers, not a safety defect finding. You pay for the work unless the vehicle is still under warranty. Recall repairs, by contrast, are always free.

How do I get the full text of SSM-54738?

Take the document ID to a dealer's service desk, or search NHTSA's manufacturer-communications records. This page carries every document ID filed under SSM-54738, its date, and NHTSA's own summary from the public file.

Data updated 2026-08-20 from NHTSA's public records

Every number on this page is a count of records in the federal complaint, recall, and investigation files published by NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. This page lists only what NHTSA's manufacturer-communications file records under SSM-54738. Check any specific vehicle's open recalls by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.