SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Overview: Ford determined that certain MY 2024-2025 Ford Ranger motor vehicles do not fully comply with paragraphs S5.1.2 and S5.2.1 of FMVSS No. 101, Controls And Displays (49 CFR 571.101) and filed a noncompliance report on September 11, 2025, pursuant to 49 CFR part 573, Defect and Noncompliance Responsibility and Reports. Ford petitioned NHTSA on October 3, 2025, for an exemption from the notification and remedy requirements of 49 U.S.C. Chapter 301 on the basis that this noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety, pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h) and 49 CFR part 556, Exemption for Inconsequential Defect or Noncompliance.

This notice of receipt of Ford's petition is published under 49 U.S.C. 30118 and 30120 and does not represent any agency decision or another exercise of judgment concerning the merits of the petition. ( printed page 59834)

II. Vehicles Involved: Approximately 76,125 MY 2024-2025 Ford Ranger motor vehicles, manufactured between December 9, 2022, and August 29, 2025, were reported by the manufacturer.

III. Noncompliance: Ford explains that the subject vehicles are equipped with an instrument panel cluster (IPC) that temporarily does not display the speedometer unit of measurement (MPH or km/h) under certain conditions and therefore does not comply with paragraphs S5.1.2 and S5.2.1 of FMVSS No. 101. Specifically, IPC does not display the speedometer unit of measurement for approximately four seconds while an animation displays after the driver changes the vehicle's drive mode.

IV. Rule Requirements: Paragraphs S5.1.2 and S5.2.1 of FMVSS No. 101 include the requirements relevant to this petition. Paragraph S5.1.2 requires that the telltales and indicators specified in Table 1 and Table 2, including their identifications, must be located to ensure visibility to a driver under the specified conditions of paragraphs S5.6.1 and S5.6.2 of FMVSS No. 101 when activated. Paragraph S5.2.1 further requires, in relevant part, that every control, telltale and indicator listed in column 1 of Table 1 or Table 2, with the exception of the Low Tire Pressure Telltale, must be identified by either the symbol in column 2 or the word or abbreviation in column 3 of the respective table.

V. Summary of Ford's Petition: The following views and arguments presented in this section, “V. Summary of Ford's Petition,” are the views and arguments provided by Ford. They have not been evaluated by the Agency and do not reflect the views of the Agency. Ford describes the subject noncompliance and contends that the noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety.

Ford explains that the subject vehicles are equipped with selectable drive modes, which are controlled by a rotary dial or a button on the center console and allow the driver to change the vehicle's handling and suspension dynamics. Ford notes that mode selection will not change the speed and can be performed in most instances while the vehicle is in motion or while it is in Park.

Ford explains that when the driver changes drive modes, an animation appears on the IPC that covers the speedometer's unit of measurement ( e.g., MPH or km/h) for approximately four seconds. However, the numerical speed display ( e.g., “60”) remains continuously visible during this animation. To correct this, Ford has implemented a software update for new production Ranger vehicles to continuously display the speed units during the animation sequence. The petition includes images illustrating the affected display and the corrected display and is available to view on the docket. Ford states that it is not aware of any field occurrences, accidents, or injuries related to this condition. Ford also notes that it has reviewed connected vehicle data from 8,800 MY 2024 Ranger vehicles, and found that drivers change out of the default Normal drive mode on less than five percent of all key cycles.

Ford believes that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential to motor vehicle safety for three primary reasons:

First, the primary speedometer's numerical speed remains continuously and accurately displayed, ensuring no incorrect information is presented. Ford explains that the subject noncompliance is limited solely to the temporary disappearance (up to four seconds) of the unit of measurement (MPH or km/h), an interval initiated by the driver's intentional action of changing drive modes.

Second, Ford states that it is unaware of any customer complaints, crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to this condition. Ford acknowledges that the absence of complaints is not dispositive but contends that this is further evidence that the drivers of the subject vehicle are not confused by the disappearance of the speedometer unit.

Third, Ford cites prior NHTSA grants of petitions for decisions of inconsequential noncompliances concerning similar noncompliances where required information was temporarily unavailable or incorrect. These include a 2022 FCA US LLC ^[1] petition concerning speedometers that could be intentionally switched to display only km/h, and a 2016 General Motors LLC ^[2] petition regarding a momentary instrument cluster reset after a series of driver actions. Ford contends that the subject noncompliance is similar to these grants.

NHTSA notes that the statutory provisions (49 U.S.C. 30118(d) and 30120(h)) that permit manufacturers to file petitions for a determination of inconsequentiality allow NHTSA to exempt manufacturers only from the duties found in sections 30118 and 30120, respectively, to notify owners, purchasers, and dealers of a defect or noncompliance and to remedy the defect or noncompliance. Therefore, any decision on this petition only applies to the subject vehicles that Ford no longer controlled at the time it determined that the noncompliance existed. However, any decision on this petition does not relieve vehicles distributors and dealers of the prohibitions on the sale, offer for sale, or introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate commerce of the noncompliant vehicles under their control after Ford notified them that the subject noncompliance existed.

(Authority: 49 U.S.C. 30118, 30120: delegations of authority at 49 CFR 1.95 and 501.8)

91 FR 59833