NHTSA recalls, safety ratings, and consumer complaints for the 2011 Ford Flex.
| Overall Rating | Not Rated |
| Frontal Crash | Not Rated |
| Side Crash | Not Rated |
| Rollover |
| Overall Rating | Not Rated |
| Frontal Crash | Not Rated |
| Side Crash | Not Rated |
| Rollover |
Component: STEERING:ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Ford Fusion vehicles without a 3.5L engine and Lincoln MKZ hybrid electric vehicles, 2011 Mercury Milan vehicles, 2011-2012 Ford Taurus, Ford Flex, Lincoln MKS, and Lincoln MKT vehicles equipped with a 3.5L GTDI engine and 2013 Ford Taurus, Ford Flex, Lincoln MKS, and Lincoln MKT vehicles equipped with any available engine. The affected vehicles have electric power steering assist systems that may shut down as a result of a steering motor sensor fault.
Consequence: If the vehicle experiences a loss of power steering assist, extra steering effort will be required at lower speeds, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will check the Power Steering Control Module (PSCM) for Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTC). If dealers find any loss of steering assist DTCs, the steering gear will be replaced, free of charge. If, no codes are found during the PSCM inspection, the PSCM software will be updated, free of charge. The recall began on July 21, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15S18.
Component: AIR BAGS:FRONTAL
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 Ford Flex, 2008 and 2010-2012 Ford Taurus, 2008-2009 Ford Taurus X, 2008 Mercury Sable, 2009 and 2011 Lincoln MKS vehicles. The driver frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
Consequence: An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Went to put car in reverse and it kept driving forward- no weird sound or anything. Proceeded to put the car in park and it was still moving forward. Transmission was stuck on drive.The shifter is disconnected from the transmission with no warning .Just looked and the transmission shifter bushing is disconnected. Also saw that this part is a recall on other ford vehicles. Had this been recalled on all vehicles with this part, I would have known to have it fixed. Luckily I was somewhere safe when this happened but it would have put myself as well as others in danger.
I had changed all my bulbs and fuses to my car for my brake lights several times and they still don’t work. My car almost got hit with me and my kids in it due to my break lights not working. Also my car keeps saying service advance trac and keeps saying it every time I drive. My car also keeps running out of power steering fluid every two week I have to add more to keep it from making that loud noise while driving.
My brakes locked up suddenly on the rear end causing me to get stuck in the middle of the road and unable to move it, even to tow it. I had to take 2 days almost to fix it in the middle of the road, since yesterday morning. They also began locking up suddenly on the front end, the wheel bearing, CV Joint, Tie Rods, CV Axles, CV Boots, and sway bars began failing out of nowhere as well. The brakes may or may not be able to be replicated, as they are partially fixed and yes my entire front end can be replicated. The danger is my brakes locked up as I was driving, in the middle of the road at that. I have not been able to get the front end fixed as it is expensive, however the danger of this is the tires falling off or the front end failing all together. ALL of the other people who drive these that I have talked to and met have had the same problem and yes they are factory parts! Even the people who have only 30 to 60000 miles on their 2011 Ford Flex Titaniums have these issues! Not only this but also the sensors go bad almost immediately off the lot, which can cause the car to brake without warning, stop running out of nowhere, make the power steering module fail, make your vehicle stutter because ALL of the sensors are bad. These vehicles need to be recalled and fixed, or recalled and replaced with better vehicles (from $60,000 up to $95,000) with any mileage any year. Please recall these and please help! I just got mine, this isn't right!
The 2011 Ford Flex has 2 NHTSA recalls and 143 consumer complaints on file. It received an overall safety rating of Not Rated out of 5 stars in NHTSA crash testing. The high number of complaints suggests potential reliability concerns — review the complaint details above before purchasing. For the most detailed information about a specific vehicle, decode its VIN using our free decoder above.
Enter a specific VIN to get the full report — specs, recalls, safety ratings, complaints, investigations, and technical service bulletins.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the driver's frontal air bag module, as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on June 13, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16C06.
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Flex. The contact stated that on several occasions while attempting to start the vehicle, the power steering assist warning light illuminated, and the steering wheel became firm. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the electronic power steering module link needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The contact believed that the failure was associated with NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering). The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 170,000.
Electric Power Steering lights up and steering wheel locks up, can hardly make it move at it. We turn the car off and turn it back on. Sometimes the power steering returns, sometimes it doesn't and we can't drive the car. We called the dealer after this happened and they said it was an ECOBOOST Flex and wasn't included in the Safety Recall 15S18 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (.gov) Jul 1, 2015 — If any "loss of steering assist" DTCs are present, replace the power steering gear assembly. It seems that this is the exact problem as noted in the recall but Ford dealership will not fix it for free. Ford gave me a PDF that explains they are not responsible for this safety issue and cannot provide free repairs because my car is OVER 150,000 miles. My car now has 200,000 miles and I have had the car serviced at this same dealer for oil changes/tire rotation and they never told me about this recall. The purpose of this repair is to update the PSCM to prevent loss of steering assist while driving due to a motor position sensor fault or replace the steering gear if the PSCM has certain Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs).Jul 1, 2015
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, he became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly, requiring increased effort to maneuver the vehicle. The service power steering warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the Power Steering Control Module (PSCM). The vehicle was repaired, but the failure reoccurred 4-months later. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and was diagnosed with Power Steering Control Module failure. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 118,000.
This accident didn’t involve myself. It involved my father who borrowed my 2011 Ford Flex for the evening. This was a one vehicle accident. It is unknown what happened to cause him to Swerve and hit a hit. The air bags didn’t deploy in the Vehicle. My father was wearing his seatbelt. An electric fire started and the car burnt along with my father he wasn’t able to be pulled from the vehicle before it caught fire. According to the witnesses, the airbags did not go off. My father had blunt trauma to the chest and to his frontal lobe and broken ribs. In addition to lots of other injuries that would’ve been avoided if the airbags would have went off. My father could’ve been alive if the airbags went off. But instead, he is dead. The pain and suffering and Trauma that I live through every day of my life of missing my father has been unbearable this past year. I 100% believe the fire started from the air bags not going off and it was faulty wiring in this vehicle. I believe this whole Heartedly. My father Didn’t deserve to die this way. I have a flash drive of the scene with pictures taken by the Missouri State Highway patrol that has been certified. I can send as Evidence as well. I have not viewed this flash drive as it would be too traumatic for me to view them of my father. I do not want to picture him like that. But I feel this case needs to be investigated. I no longer can be OK with this situation. The insurance company never inspected it. My insurance company was the General- Full Coverage- also the vehicle had a lean on it with Car Mart. Not sure if anyone inspected the vehicle after the accident. I know the Missouri house patrol did a full investigation. It set at at tow yard for months in Columbia, Mo. There were multiple people on the scene. Macon Co. ambulance, Macon Co. fire and rescue Macon Co. corners office which they called wrong time of death Which letters to believe my father wasn’t dead yet From the accident. The air bags could have saved HIM!!!!!!
Loss of power steering driving down interstate. Service power steering and service advance Trac lights came on. Had to call for tow
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled and lost motive power. The contact coasted to the side of the roadway and had the vehicle towed. The failure occurred intermittently. The contact would make several attempts to start the vehicle to regain normal functionality; however, the failure would recur within several hours or several days. The contact stated while driving at approximately 25 MPH in a School Zone from a stop, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The contact stated that the traction control, engine, battery, and ABS warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the power steering box had failed and needed to be replaced. The mechanic had not repaired the vehicle. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in a recall. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and it was confirmed the VIN was not under recall, nor were the repairs covered under warranty. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was 125,436.
When we turned car on a continuous dinging occurred and “power steering assist failure - notice came on - completely impossible to drive - husband drove it home it was extremely difficult - he’s a very big and strong man - it is my main vehicle and I can’t steer it at all - then on line found the recall info that matches the year our vehicle was made - our ford dealership is claiming there’s issues - there should be no issue as it’s a clear admit from ford re: our vehicle - please email or call me at [XXX] . Mahalo from Maui - [XXX] please help. Aloha INFORMATIONREDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Gas tank is leaking gas while parked and running
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Flex. The contact stated when he first entered the vehicle and started the vehicle, the power steering assist fault message was displayed. The contact turned the steering wheel to the left and right and the steering wheel was very difficult to turn. The contact stated he contacted an independent mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the power steering assist had failed. The mechanic informed the contact that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering) but the VIN was not included. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 133,827.
While on a trip in the local area to a state park, a warning came on whilst driving to "service power steering now". Driving was normal and we got to our destination 5-10 miles or so later. On returning to the car after parking and starting up the car the steering wheel was "bricked" and didn't want to turn. At first we thought it might be a flat tire. It took lots of effort to turn the wheel. As we were far from any service in the area I managed to drive the vehicle home albeit with much effort. If my wife had been driving and the steering had gone out there is a high likelihood of an accident. After doing some research when we got home this has all the signs of the electronic power assist steering (EPAS) going out. I have looked on Ford's website for recall and there is not one according to my VIN. The vehicle in question is a 2011 Ford Flex 3.5 Ecoboost AWD.
Power steering went out while backing out of a parking spot and warning popped up on dash with power steering fault and making the wheel super stiff and hard to turn
The contact's grandmother owns a 2011 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 45 MPH, the steering wheel seized. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who replaced the rack and pinion, and power steering pump. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 176,000.
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