Ford Reportedly Boosts Companywide Bonus On Solving Vehicle Quality Issues That Spurred 2025 Recall Streak

Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing four people familiar with the matter, that the company’s companywide bonuses would be set to 130%.

• As per the report, the higher payout is mainly due to improved initial vehicle quality which measures repairs in the first 90 days of ownership.
• Ford issued over 150 recalls in the U.S. in 2025, making it the automaker to issue the most recalls. 
• However, on Wednesday, Ford said that it has made “significant progress” in quality and costs.

Ford Motor Co (F) is reportedly boosting its companywide bonuses as it resolves challenges pertaining to the quality of its vehicles that spurred a streak of recalls in 2025.

Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing four people familiar with the matter, that the company’s companywide bonuses would be set to 130%. Companywide bonus refers to the baseline amount all salaried workers are eligible for though the amount could be lowered or hiked based on individual performance the report noted. Ford CEO Jim Farley reportedly announced the bonus boost in a towel hall on Wednesday.

As per the report, the higher payout is mainly due to improved initial vehicle quality which measures repairs in the first 90 days of ownership. The metric has reportedly touched the best levels in a decade, the report said, while adding that the companywide payout was set to 84% in 2023 and to 69% in 2024.

Ford’s Recall Streak

Ford issued over 150 recalls in the U.S. in 2025, making it the automaker to issue the most recalls, seconded by Stellantis.

The Dearborn-based automaker issued recalls to fix concerns over its electrical system, back over prevention, powertrain, exterior lighting, suspension and more.

During Ford’s second quarter earnings in July, chief operating officer Kumar Galhotra admitted that the company is “not satisfied with the current level of recalls or the number of vehicles impacted.”

In an earnings call in October, Galhotra said that the company has radically improved launch quality over the past two years in a bid to reduce recalls and is conducting rigorous engineering reviews to find and fix issues.

“It takes time for these improvements to improve our recall numbers, as older models have to work their way out of the system. We're already seeing our recall costs shift towards more aged vehicles. Since the peak recall period is in years three to five, we expect a meaningful improvement soon,” he said.

Ford 2026 Outlook

Earlier this week, Ford guided core profit for 2026 within Wall Street estimates despite its fourth-quarter (Q4) earnings trailing Wall Street expectations. The company now expects a full year 2026 adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) of $8.0 billion to $10.0 billion, in line with an analyst estimate of $9.07 billion, and above the $6.8 billion recorded last year.

The company said adjusted EBIT from its commercial vehicle segment is expected to be between $6.5 billion to $7.5 billion, while EBIT from the company’s hybrid and gas vehicle segment is estimated to be $4 billion to $4.5 billion.

Model e, however, is expected to incur losses of $4 billion to $4.5 billion in 2026.

However, the company also said on Tuesday that it has made “significant progress” in quality and costs.

How Did Stocktwits Users React?

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around Ford stock rose from ‘bullish’ to ‘extremely bullish’ territory over the past 24 hours, while message volume increased from ‘normal’ to ‘extremely high’ levels.

F stock has gained 50% over the past 12 months. 

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