Quick News About Ford Problems

We try to boil down the news about Ford to the most important bits and pieces -- recalls, service bulletins, and lawsuits that can help you solve you car problems. Oh, and the occasional interesting story as well. If you're interested in getting these quick story summaries as an email, signup for free over at CarComplaints.com.

  1. 'Tis the season for holiday cookies, silent nights, a dashboard that stays lit like a Christmas tree, and frantically stepping on the gas pedal wondering why your SUV is no longer accelerating.

    OK, those last two are special "treats" for 2016 Ford Explorer owners. Owners complain about vehicles that lose power while driving, leaving drivers urgently pressing the gas pedals to no avail. Symptoms typically include seeing a "wrench light" illuminated with the words, "See Manual," all while the SUV loses speed as it enters "limp home mode."

    If this has happened to you than you'll be happy to hear an investigation has been opened to determine if a lawsuit is needed. It's not as helpful as a recall, but it's a step in the right direction. The investigation is focusing on the throttle body – a part, which many owners have told us, is not readily available.

    keep reading article "Possible Lawsuit for 2016 Explorer 'Limp Home' Mode"

  2. Each car has an EVAP system that traps fuel vapors before they escape the gas tank.

    Those vapors are stored in a charcoal canister and then, in certain situations, a purge valve opens and allows some of the vapors out to be burned off by the engine. But what happens when the purge valve sticks open?

    According to a proposed class-action lawsuit, a stuck purge valve is causing the 2012-15 Ford Focus engine to run rough and sometimes even stall. Additionally, the valve is causing problems with the gas gauge.…

    keep reading article "Focus Purge Valve Causing Engine Stalls?"

  3. 2012–13 Ford Focus owners made enough noise about their unreliable doors to spark an investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) back in January.

    The owners were tired of their doors flying open while driving, the "door ajar" light never turning off, and whatnot. The investigation found that the problem ran much deeper and it eventually led to a recall of 2.3 million vehicles spread out across 6 Ford and Lincoln models, including the Focus.

    Now that the investigation is closing, we'd like to raise a glass of eggnog – the spiked variety – to the owners who filed their complaints online and got the problem fixed.

    More details about the recall→

    keep reading article "Focus Door Latch Investigation Closed Following Recall"

  5. Ford is doing its best to steer clear of an EPAS lawsuit

    , saying the plaintiff's claims don't merit class-action certification because the steering problems are too widespread to prove any "common defect." Nothing says confidence in your product like saying there's too many defects to prove one, singular defect.

    "In addition to denying the electromechanical relays are defective, Ford says the claims should be dismissed because the alleged defects, if they exist, occurred during manufacturing at different times and with different models. Due to this, the plaintiffs cannot claim a "common defect" is associated with the Focus and Fusion cars."…

    keep reading article "Ford Tries to Steer Around EPAS Lawsuit"

  6. The 2015–16 Edge has been recalled because Ford gave 58 of you the wrong ABS software.

    Ford says the recalled 2015-16 Ford Edge SUVs were brought in for service repairs and were loaded with the wrong anti-lock braking system (ABS) software.

    So how much harm could a little mistake like that do? Well, for starters it can disable the vehicle's electronic stability control, engine torque control, and traction control. Oh, also – also! – the electronic parking brake light and the ability to release the parking brake entirely.

    It's like the Beach Boys said in that song, "and we'll have fun, fun, fun, until Ford gives me the wrong software and my car loses all control". Or something like that

    (I'm not good with lyrics).

    keep reading article "Ford Edge Has Wrong ABS Software"

  7. Ford owners sure do love their trucks and they just can't seem to stop talking about them.

    It also turns out some of them just can't stop thanks to widespread brake issues. Federal safety regulators are investigating 2015-2016 Ford F-150 trucks after reports of brake pedals going to the floorboards, a complete loss of brakes and dealerships diagnosing the problems as caused by faulty master cylinders.

    We've all heard about putting the pedal to metal, you just never want that to happen with the pedal on the left.

    If all this master cylinder / brake talk sounds familiar, it's because the 2013 and 2014 model years were recalled for the same issue earlier this year. I guess that's one box still unchecked on the Ford engineer's to-do list.

    keep reading article "2015-2016 F-150 Brakes Under Investigation"

  9. Ford has once again expanded a door handle recall, this time affecting 2.3 million vehicles.

    It's likely NHTSA asked Ford to expand the recall because all affected vehicles weren't included in the August recall. That recall was for only certain areas of the country which Ford said had higher ambient temperatures. Vehicles outside those specific areas weren't included in the recall, but Ford said they could be included in a "customer satisfaction program.

    So much for the "solar loading" defense.

    keep reading article "Goodbye Regional, Hello Nationwide Recall of Ford Door Handles"

  10. A settlement has been reached. This all went down shortly before the trial was set to begin.

    If the court finalizes the settlement, the plaintiffs will include anyone who purchased or leased a 2011-2015 Ford Explorer from Florida Ford dealerships.

    Well, that’s great for Florida residents but it stinks for everyone else. And Explorer owners know all about what stinks.

    Hopefully this settlement will lay the groundwork for future action nationwide.

    keep reading article "The Explorer Exhaust Smells Lawsuit Has Been Settled. But it Doesn’t Settle the Issue For Everyone."

  11. The 2017 Escape has barely even rolled off dealer lots.

    Well, you better roll it back because the popular CUV has been recalled with windows that close with too much gusto. The automaker provided very limited information but did say the power window system can exceed the "regulatory requirement for remote actuation closing force."

    That's a really fancy way of saying the windows slam. Ford hasn't announced when the recall will begin.

    keep reading article "The 2017 Escape's Windows Close with Too Much Force"

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