NHTSA Complaint #11677673 — 2024 FORD MUSTANG

The shift knob in this car has an issue where the silver ABS plastic piece with the gear numbers and the shift pattern detaches from the rest of the shift knob. This issue has been confirmed and repaired by a Ford dealer twice already in the 9 months I have owned the car. The first time this issue occurred, the silver piece was loose. Before it completely detached, I was able to get it repaired at a Ford dealer. The issue was confirmed by the dealer in the receipt they gave me: "Verified customer concern, shifter knob loose, the aluminum to the leather, replaced shifter knob. No other concerns at this time." The second time this issue occurred, the silver piece suddenly detached when shifting gears during normal city driving. When this happened, the silver piece flew off the shift knob and fell into a gap next to the passenger seat. I was able to get it repaired at a Ford dealer again. They again confirmed the issue on the service receipt: "Verified customer concern, Replaced gear shifter knob". This is a safety issue since it is hard to tell what gear I am shifting into if the plastic piece with the shift patterns breaks off. Once the piece breaks off, it is not easy to grip the shift knob normally, requiring the driver contort their arm in a different direction to grip the shift knob, making it harder and slower to shift. As someone who is experienced with the car, I can get around these issues. However, if someone who just started driving this car experiences this issue, they may not be able to shift gears or shift into reverse, since they may not be familiar with the shift pattern. During the second occurrence of the issue, it caused a lot of confusion and momentarily reduced my attention to the road and the surroundings as I was shocked by the shift knob suddenly breaking and the piece flying off. I attached pictures of the second occurrence of the issue and receipts from the two service visits to a Ford dealer.