What 1,948 owners told NHTSA about the 2013 Ford Fusion Hev

UNKNOWN - I was driving the car on a highway, there were no alerts and my engine light was not on, and my car started smoking and within 5 minutes my car was completely on fire. After the fire was put out, the whole front of the car was gone and then engine looked melted.

NHTSA ODI 11715831

I had multiple electric power steering failures. the first in 2022, and the second in June of 2023. In 2023 we did a complete replacement that cost over $3000.

NHTSA ODI 11713742

Vehicle: 2013 Ford Fusion Mileage: ~165,000 miles Issue Type: Engine stalls / loss of power My 2013 Ford Fusion has experienced intermittent engine stalling and hesitation since early ownership. The vehicle will stall or “putter” when slowing down or coming to a stop, often without warning. When this occurs, the engine shuts off and the vehicle must be put into park and restarted. Restarting is sometimes delayed or hesitant. This issue occurs without any warning lights or diagnostic trouble codes appearing on the dashboard, making it difficult for dealerships and mechanics to diagnose. The problem has persisted for years and has occurred multiple times under normal driving conditions. This defect presents a serious safety risk, as the vehicle can lose power unexpectedly while in traffic, at intersections, or during braking. Loss of engine power in these situations creates a high risk of collision. The vehicle has been inspected multiple times, including by dealerships, but the issue could not be identified due to the absence of fault codes. This appears to be a design or component defect that does not reliably trigger diagnostic warnings. I am reporting this as a safety-related defect involving unexpected engine stalling and loss of power. The date I marked you asked below is the most current but as I stated it’s been happening since a month after purchasing the car brand new.

NHTSA ODI 11711766

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. While the contact's wife was driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the engine overheated. The contact was informed that there was a burning odor coming from the vehicle. The contact was called for help. The contact arrived at the location and inspected under the hood, and became aware that the coolant level was low. The coolant reservoir was refilled, and the contact became aware that coolant and oil were leaking onto the manifold. The vehicle was driven to the residence with the persistent burning odor. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The dealer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was advised to bring the vehicle to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The contact referenced an unknown recall with a similar failure; however, the VIN was not under recall. The contact stated that the oil and coolant leaking onto the manifold was a fire hazard. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 190,000.

NHTSA ODI 11711415

My transmission failed for the 2nd time, possibly due to the recall involving the bushings. My engine has oil leaking from the head gasket, I read it could be due to the coolant overheating and getting into the engine. My cruise control doesn't work, when i press lower speed it shifts higher and vice versa.

NHTSA ODI 11710818

The rear view camera intermittently stops working, giving a message “camera unavailable” in a black screen. This has happened many times during use and caused near misses during vehicle reversing.

NHTSA ODI 11710081

The car is experiencing jerks between gear shifts. Almost hit another car due to this car movement when it shifts between gears

NHTSA ODI 11708633

A couple of weeks ago My Steering wheel locked up and the codes were reset which unlocked the wheel so i was able to turn it. Mechanic said it was moisture getting to the part and then the power steering light came on & it became Hard to turn the steering wheel while driving. There was no indication of a issue before it started.

NHTSA ODI 11708456

Turn signal prematurely cancels intermittently, in middle of turn or prior to starting turn. This is after the signal stalk switch has been locked into the continuous on position, not the momentary position. The slightest movement of the steering wheel back away from the direction of turn will induce this. Not a full 1/8 of a turn back, but a very minute amount, as little as 1 or 2 degrees of steering movement. This is a known issue by the manufacturer, as they have service bulletin instructions for dealership technicians to reprogram the steering column signal switch, however, this repair is cost prohibitive at dealership rates. It is a safety concern, as the signal sometimes cancels without immediate driver awareness, as attention is being focused outside. This should be a recall repair covered by the manufacturer.

NHTSA ODI 11706583

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, there was abnormal white smoke coming out of the tailpipe. The contact stated that upon inspecting the oil dipstick, the contact noticed that there was coolant in the oil, and the contact also noticed that there was a small amount of oil in the coolant reservoir. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V209000 (Engine and Engine Cooling), for which the VIN was included. The dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the recall repair would be performed on the vehicle; however, the contact was concerned that the recall remedy would not correct the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 109,200.

NHTSA ODI 11698947

The contact owned a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while entering a parking lot, while depressing the accelerator pedal, another vehicle T-boned her vehicle on the front passenger side. No air bags deployed. The contact stated that she sustained a concussion to the head. Medical attention was required. The contact stated that a police report was filed.  The contact stated that the failure was not diagnosed by a dealer or independent mechanic. The vehicle was towed to Copart. The contact mentioned the vehicle was deemed a total loss by the insurance company. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and they informed her that the air bag may not have deployed because the other vehicle did not hit her on the driver's side. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ODI 11699033

Unknown and it's whole electrical system is failing and constantly keeps shutting the car off saying no key detected and strands me more places than I can count it's stalled out in the middle of the road and said no key detected and I had to wait for it to basically let me start the car back up after like being shut off for 20 mins or if I unhooked the battery and hooked it back up then it would start and only go for a day or so and the heat only works if it's raining outside

NHTSA ODI 11698539

The factory-installed rearview backup camera on my 2013 Ford Fusion fails intermittently. When shifting into reverse, the display screen frequently goes black, shows a distorted or flickering image with multicolored lines, or displays an error message stating the camera is unavailable. The failure is unpredictable but occurs more often in hot weather or after rain, suggesting a hardware defect. The component that has failed is the rearview camera system, likely the camera module itself, which is available for inspection. This malfunction creates a significant safety hazard by eliminating rear visibility, substantially increasing the risk of a back-over collision with pedestrians, children, or other objects. The failure to display a rearview image is a non-compliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 111. The problem has not been confirmed by a dealer due to its intermittent nature, making it difficult to reproduce on demand. The vehicle has not been inspected by the manufacturer or other parties regarding this issue. The symptoms first appeared several months ago and have become progressively more frequent. The primary warnings are the on-screen error messages and the loss of the video feed itself.

NHTSA ODI 11696672

My rear camera will go out while in reverse. Sometimes boxes appear on the screen or it will be completely black.

NHTSA ODI 11696209

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that the back-over prevention camera image was blank. While reversing, the camera suddenly became inoperable. There was no alert or beeping to warn the driver of an approaching pedestrian when the camera became inoperable. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention). The contact called the local dealer and was informed about a diagnostic test. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

NHTSA ODI 11695285

Vehicle ran very well, however engine caught fire while exiting highway. Insurance adjuster states common issue with Ford EcoBoost engines. Reported to Ford whom dismissed issue of engine fire

NHTSA ODI 11694903

Car stopped driving correctly and the transmission now needs replaced

NHTSA ODI 11695150

My car was parked in my driveway. I realized that I didn't have my key on me. So I quickly ran in the house to get my key. I went outside to find my car rolling down my driveway into my neighbor's brick house. My 11 year old was messing with the gear shift from the back seat and was able to change the gear to neutral with no brake engaged and no key in the ignition. When I went to the dealership, an employee was able to tell me that it was a bad shifter cable bushing. I checked to see if there is a recall and there was for our year, make, and model; unfortunately, our VIN is now registered under the recall.

NHTSA ODI 11694166

I have replaced my struts and shocks three times and I am still having trouble with my stability trac

NHTSA ODI 11691101

I was on the highway and a car came in front of me, When I tried to stop the brake was hard and wouldn’t stop! It veered me into the wall and totaled my car. My brakes stiffed up and didn’t stop which cause me to crash.

NHTSA ODI 11688782

1. After vehicle is given gas it won’t crank. 2. Tire sensors won’t turn off. Even with brand new tires and mounts. 3. Random electrical malfunctions. (Flickering dash lights, delayed engine start after turning the key, light bouncing back and forth between gears, etc.)

NHTSA ODI 11682758

Engine coolant leaking into cylinder 2. This is a known common issue on eco boost engines. Engine repair was quoted as replacement needed for 8000$. This is dangerous because the car will stop and potentially leave you stranded in the middle of the road with traffic. Additionally, this may result in fires due to water pump running dry and water being burned off in the cylinder which results in blue smoke on cold starts. Ford has been knowing of the engine defect and continued to place the engines in their cars as late as 2019.

NHTSA ODI 11682146

The contact owned a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 75 MPH, there was smoke coming from the engine compartment. The contact stated that the message "Coolant Over Temperature" was displayed. The contact pulled over to the side of the road and turned off the vehicle. The contact then exited the vehicle and raised the hood and there was black smoke coming from the engine compartment. The contact backed away from the vehicle and approximately 3 minutes later the vehicle caught on fire. The Fire Department was contacted and arrived at the scene and extinguished the fire. A Fire report was filed however, the contact had not received a Fire report number. The Police also arrived on scene and collected information from the contact; however, the contact was unaware of a Police report being filed. There was no injury sustained. The vehicle was towed to an impound lot. The contact was made aware that the VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V209000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The contact stated that the vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a complaint was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 155,000.

NHTSA ODI 11678263

I believe my car was missed in the steering rack recall. There’s a decent amount of side to side play that just moves the steering wheel not the wheels. The car will be all over the road. Also when I’m accelerating with my foot on the gas the steering stiffness up & goes back to feeling like normal under load. As soon as there’s no driving load it loosens back up. Today it randomly almost felt like the steering got stuck for a second while going straight then quickly jerked itself to the right then went back to feeling loose. I’ve replaced controls arms, ball joints, tie rods.I do not want to crash because fords negligence on not including my car in the recall. I’m still making payments on the car and can not afford money out of pocket to fix fords mistakes. Please help! My car needs this recall! I have videos upon being needed, it will only let me upload pictures.

NHTSA ODI 11677238

In 2019, my car suddenly began to leak engine coolant. A low engine coolant signal alarmed, the car started to smoke, and then was un-usable. I took it to a Ford dealership, they ran some diagnostics, and determined that the issue was related to a known recall. They repaired the issue and for 5 years, things seemed ok. This April, the engine coolant warning came back on and the car shut down. I inspected the engine coolant revisor and it was extremely low and the check engine light came on. I took the car in to be inspected and it was noted that the hoses and gaskets were corroded. The hoses and gaskets were replaced and that seemed to resolve all of the alarms and check engine light, but weeks later, the low engine coolant light came back on. This week the same Ford dealership determined that there was an issue with the water pump and that it needed to be replaced. I wondered if anyone else with a Ford Fusion experienced water pump issues and there seem to be two class action lawsuits against Ford siting several vehicle models with faulty water pumps. I can submit my water pump replacement receipt when I receive it from the Ford dealership on Monday.

NHTSA ODI 11676275