Safety Program: 25S18: HV Battery Electrode Misalignment Discussion

[N87]

09/2023. No recalls, no CSP, according to Ford website.

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[loschopper]

Could this be a cause for battery modules failing? Maybe cross reference the battery module failure spreadsheet with these build dates...

 

[Old Aviator]

My blend date for my 2022 is 08/22 however my Ford account doesn't show a recall notice. Hopefully that means I'm in the clear

Based a better understanding as how to read the date my exact build date is 4/14/2022

 

[GoodSam]

cause for battery modules failing? Maybe cross reference the battery module failure spreadsheet with these build dates...

No correlation for me, no cell failures yet, only 0.33% cell Voltage variation.
But I have @lightspeed showing a replacement under another forum, if the same person.
@Old Aviator not on my cell (batt module replacement) spreadsheet.
Update 3-22-25:
@Wattsgas, @Hammick have the recall (see below) and did have a previous battery module replacement.
@JPro, @instantfob have the recall, but I am not showing any previous battery module replacement.

 

[lightspeed]

I don't know if there is another lightspeed, but I haven't had anything repaired on my battery.

 

[ddbrooke]

Based a better understanding as how to read the date my exact build date is 4/14/2022

If I go back to Taxmanhog's spreadsheet I see my build week was 8/22/2022, Blend day was on the 23rd, and In Production was the 26th.

 

[TaxmanHog]

https://fordauthority.com/2025/03/2022-2024-ford-f-150-lightning-recalled-over-battery-array-issue/

Ford Motor Company is recalling select 2022 through 2024 Ford F-150 Lightning pickups over an issue with the high voltage battery cells.

The defect: in affected vehicles, a manufacturing defect in the high voltage battery cells may result in an internal short circuit after repeated charge and discharge cycles. This is due to production process deviations at the supplier, which may result in the electrodes in the high voltage battery cells being misaligned.

The hazards: after repeated charge and discharge cycles, the vehicle could experience an internal short circuit in the battery which could result in a fire. Owners are advised to only charge their Ford F-150 Lightning to a maximum of 80 percent battery capacity until necessary repairs can be made.

Ford is not aware of any claims of crash related to this concern. However, Ford is aware of one claim of injury and five reports of vehicle fire that may be related to this concern and are under further investigation.

Components: high voltage battery cell array

Affected vehicles: select 2022 through 2024 Ford F-150 Lightning pickups built between March 16th, 2022, and August 14th, 2024.

Number of vehicles affected: 950

 

[loschopper]

Is this saying the modules become unbalanced and cause a short circuit? If so, what is best way to monitor the modules? I see people mentioning an OBD scanner but is there a good guide on what model and software to use?

Sounds like something that should be an option the Ford Pass app… or Ford should be monitoring remotely for their owners?

 

[FloridaMan655321]

I wanted to ask on this, but it looks that replies are no longer available https://www.f150lightningforum.com/forum/threads/safety-program-25s18-certain-2022-2024-f-150-lightning-–-supplier-manufacturing-defect-in-high-voltage-battery-cells.25351/


I see Ford says if you enter your VIN on the website, that you can see if your vehicle is impacted. My question is does this mean the website is updated right now with all the vehicles it thinks are impacted? Or is it that when they send out the letters, then the website will be updated? I’m assuming it’s up to day now, but I just want to verify.

 

[RocketGhost]

Web site is up to date. Others impacted by the recall said it showed up there.

 

[GoodSam]

Main thread for Safety Recall 25S18, is "HV Battery Electrode Misalignment" which should be re-titled with "25S18" added @TaxmanHog :

moderator:
Edited discussion thread with revised title and moved these posts into same.

 

[TaxmanHog]

Is this saying the modules become unbalanced and cause a short circuit?

The risk of a problem is greater when the charged SOC is above 80%, I don't know if there is a way to detect the potential to short using cell voltages, which IIRC can only be measured with shop equipment / software, OBD2 and apps can't see the specific detail.

 

[Hammick]

Our early build '22 Mannequin is on the recall list. We are on vacation for another couple weeks and it's sitting in our garage unplugged at 51%. I'll look to see if I have a photo of the blend date otherwise I'll update here in a couple of weeks. We had a module replaced in September of '23 and truck has been fine since. Lots of DCFC sometimes up to 95%. L2 charging to 100% the night before road trips.

 

[carys98]

There is more info on the NHTSA site now. The attached document is the most interesting since it describes the problem in more detail.

“On February 2, 2025, based on the teardown analysis on the returned array, Ford identified
evidence of misaligned electrodes in the high voltage battery cells. The supplier also identified
evidence of cathode shift on eight stacker machines between two production lines based on a
review of historical data for cells manufactured between January 3, 2022 and April 1, 2023. This
manufacturing concern resulted in overlap that did not meet the supplier’s design requirement.
Some of the cells in the vehicles that experienced fires were built in this timeframe.”


https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2023/...)%2520LIGHTNING%2520BEV/PU%252FCC/4WD#recalls

 

[Hammick]

So what exactly can they inspect? Are the electrodes able to be inspected or measured? I'm assuming they are part of the internal battery module or cells so no. Will Ford be sending dealers complete batteries including the tray and thermal components assembled in a controlled environment? Or will this be the same as my module replacement in 2023 where the service tech is responsible for applying new thermal paste and torquing bolts to appropriate specs.

If Ford isn't replacing the entire battery my truck will have modules that are three or four years older than the new ones. From my experience with Lithium batteries this doesn't seem like a good idea.

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