What 106 owners told NHTSA about the 2014 Ford Cmax Energi

While backing out of the driveway, the brakes failed. In an attempt to stop the car from continuing into on coming traffic, attempted to put the car in park. After moving the gearshift into park, the car continued to roll into on coming traffic. The C-Max struck another another car and continued to roll until it was stopped by a small retaining wall on the opposite side of the street.

NHTSA ODI 11469602

The inside door panels become loose. Doors affected are the driver's door and both rear passenger doors. When the panels come loose, it can make the doors impossible to open from the inside and outside door handles. Attempts have been made to correct this issue with new clips to attach the door panels with but the issue keeps happening. These door panels have been an issue since December 2017. It's a safety hazard if you have young children in the rear passenger seats who do not have the strength to push on the doors with either their feet or arms. In the case of an accident/fire they would be trapped.

NHTSA ODI 11469605

The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-MAX. The contact stated that while her vehicle was charging in her garage, the outlet and wires were burnt. The vehicle was driven to the dealer and was given a new charge cord .The contact stated that new cord had the same issue but a unknown warning light illuminated and melted the outlet again. The manufacture was notified. The failure mileage was 65,000.

NHTSA ODI 11455896

The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-Max. The contact said that she had received a recall letter from the manufacturer for door latches manufacturer's recall number was 20S30. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The first recall for the door latches was recall number 16S30 the contact is not sure if she received a recall letter for this recall. The contact stated that the local dealer had said the recall was taken care of. On the second recall, the contact stated that the dealer said that there was no open recall associated with the vehicle VIN. The dealer advised the contact that she would be responsible for the repairs. The vehicle was not repaired but was pending repairs. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The contact said that the dealer should honor the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 17,789.

NHTSA ODI 11451985

I noticed the car hasn’t honked upon locking it with the key fob for about the last 1,000 miles. Today is the first time I needed to use my horn to warn someone about pulling in front of me while I was also braking. I tried the next 3 miles to get the horn to honk and nothing happened. Once I got home & turned the car off, I could hear there was a clicking noise, but no horn honking sound was produced.

NHTSA ODI 11451456

Steering wheel locked up and could not control car. After taking car to repair shop I was informed that the entire power steering rack would have to be replaced. Upon internet research noticed numerous similar complaints of same problem in Ford Cmax and Ford Focus vehicles. Appears to have been a limited recall back in 2014 of several hundred Cmax and Focus cars but Ford gave assurance those were all the cars affected. Not sure if that problem was the same as current problem but there are many reports of power steering failures which can make the cars difficult or impossible to be driven. To repair the car will be approx. $2000 as the entire electronic power steering rack needs replacing. Please see attached PDF for additional information.

NHTSA ODI 11440958

The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-Max Hybrid. The contact stated while driving approximately 10 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated that the service power steering message was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was 177,842.

NHTSA ODI 11440652

The vehicle was entered while parked and locked with the security system active. A panel was removed from the lower left side of the housing beneath the steering wheel. All four windows had been lowered to the maximum extent possible, apparently without breaking them. Debris was strewn across front and rear seats. Spare floor mats stored in the trunk/hatch area (normally out of view due to a cover over the hatch and the rear seat backs) were deposited on the rear seat. Consumer would like to withdrawal the complaint, stated consumer's fault.*JB

NHTSA ODI 11440413

The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-MAX Energi. The contact stated the front driver’s seat power seat was stuck in the reclined position. The contact took the vehicle to a local dealer to be repaired. The vehicle was returned, and the contact became aware that the rear driver’s side door panel was loose, causing the door to not open properly. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer who diagnosed that the door panel was damaged and need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired due to the parts not being available. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 92,000.

NHTSA ODI 11440251

The issue is related to steering. My Ford C-Max steering system would become very stiff and gets locked. The warning "Service Power Steering" would pop up and the steering wheel would become inoperable. This has happened a couple instances and creating a huge panic. When this happens the steering cannot be moved. I have to stop the engine and restart after a couple mins. The issue is intermittent and does not give any warnings before this situation occurs creating anxiety and huge risk to drive. I took the car to Ford Dealership at Georgetown Texas. They investigated the issue and reverted that the problem is with Steering Gear and has to be replaced to fix the issue. Upon checking on internet I see Ford had reported out similar issue in Sep 2014 and had tried to address the issue. Details below. https://www.edmunds.com/car-news/2014-ford-focus-c-max-recalled-for-potential-steering-gear-problem.html https://repairpal.com/recall/14V514000 The issue I faced is consistent with the problems highlighted and pose huge risk if this were to happen while driving at high speeds in traffic.

NHTSA ODI 11435699

The passenger side rear door plastic panel keeps dislodging from its metal casing, then gets stuck on part of the interior frame, causing the door to not be operational. The plastic overlaps the frame once it is dislodged; the metal part of the door is opening, but the plastic panel holds it back from being able to go past an inch. The door is, essentially, stuck. One must reach in and manually push the plastic panel back into place (sticking fingers in to first dislodge from where it's stuck, then guide it back to where it's supposed to be, then bang on it to get it back in place). There are plastic pegs that are supposed to hold the door panels on, but they don't (and they fall out). There are many message boards, Consumer Reports, and other sites showing this is a common problem for 2013-2014 C Max Hybrid doors. Ford is making consumers pay to replace the panels. They need to change the plastic pegs so that they actually hold, or affix the whole panel is a much more secure way! This is extremely unsafe because we cannot exit the car sometimes, and in an accident that could be dangerous. More importantly, it affects us every day because my children cannot exit our vehicle on the sidewalk side; they must open the driver's side rear door and exit the car into the street, oftentimes into traffic! They need to be able to exit on the SAFE side of the car!! Ford issued a repair for 2013 model cars but not for ours. They know this is a problem. Here is a link to the repair order: https://fordcmaxhybridforum.com/topic/4807-tsb-14-0030-rear-door-trim-panels-loose-built-on-or-before-6282013/ I will put today's date as today was the most recent time my daughter walked into traffic outside school because her door was jammed. But this has happened many, many times over the course of our ownership, and has been getting worse over the last year (if we had driven more often -- like we did pre-pandemic -- I'm sure it would be even worse now).

NHTSA ODI 11434532

Sudden loss of power to steering....noted that many others have had this problem.

NHTSA ODI 11433871

The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-Max. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer for tire service and was informed they were unable to rotate the tire due to frozen lug nuts. The vehicle was not repaired but was pending repairs. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 43,000.

NHTSA ODI 11432782

The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-MAX. The contact stated that the transfer shaft assembly bearing had failed prematurely which caused an abnormal, grinding sound to come from the transmission while driving at various speeds without warning. The contact had taken the vehicle to a dealer and had the transmission replaced under warranty. Recently, the contact stated that the same failure recurred with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle back to the dealer where they had test driven the vehicle and confirmed that the same transmission defect had recurred. The contact was given an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was 160,000.

NHTSA ODI 11429321

During last trip with car, parked car while shopping. When leaving store car lost steering and warning light came on in dash indicating power steering assist fault. Car was extremely difficult to drive after that. Waiting for appointment with dealer. Had this happened while turning at a busy intersection it could have been a problem. Car has 100,000 miles so I expect some problems, but I think this could be a safety issue.

NHTSA ODI 11420372

THERE IS A GRINDING OR RUBBING SOUND EMANATING FROM THE TRANSMISSION WHILE DRIVING, AT ANY SPEED (GENERALLY NOT WHILE STATIONARY BUT SOMETIMES), AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TURNS ON. THE LOCAL FORD DEALERSHIP (METRO MOTORS, ST. CROIX, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS) FOUND "TRANSMISSION VARIATOR TO DRIVE CHAIN LOOSE CAUSING NOISE" AND "[N]O INTERNAL SERVICEABLE COMPONENTS" AND RECOMMENDED "[R]EPLACEMENT OF HYBRID CVT TRANSMISSION." THE DEALERSHIP SPECIFICALLY RECOMMENDS REPLACEMENT OF THE TRANSMISSION PART, JM5Z-7000-ARM, WHICH IS THE SAME PART INDICATED IN THE TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN 20-2219, PUBLISHED ON JUNE 29, 2020, ON THIS SAME ISSUE OF GRINDING/RUBBING NOISE EMANATING FROM TRANSMISSIONS IN 2014 FORD C-MAX (AMONG OTHER VEHICLES). THE TSB FURTHER PROVIDES THE PART IS "ELIGIBLE UNDER PROVISIONS OF NEW VEHICLE LIMITED WARRANTY," HOWEVER, THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP HAS STATED FORD MOTOR COMPANY DENIED THE CLAIM, AND THE FORD MOTOR COMPANY HAS SAID IT AGREES WITH THE DEALERSHIP THAT THE CLAIM SHOULD BE DENIED. HOWEVER, THE VEHICLE (MILEAGE: 86,225 MILES; YEARS: NOT YET 7) IS UNDER AN ACTIVE NEW VEHICLE LIMITED WARRANTY AS THE TERMS HAVE NOT EXPIRED. THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP IS WILLING TO REPLACE THE DEFECTIVE PART, HOWEVER, IT SAYS IT NEEDS WRITTEN CONFIRMATION FROM FORD MOTOR COMPANY, WHICH FORD MOTOR COMPANY HAS NOT PROVIDED, DESPITE TWO LETTERS OF NOTICE OF DEFECTIVE PART AND MULTIPLE PHONE CALLS WITH THE CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP CENTER.

NHTSA ODI 11404102

WHILE STOPPED FOR GAS IDIOT LIGHT FOR POWER STEERING FAILURE CAME ON. COULDN'T STEER CAR. TOOK TO FORD DEALER AND THEY SAID POWER ASSIST WAS BROKEN AND NEED TO BE REPLACED, AND THIS WOULD COST $2800. THIS HAS BEEN RECALLED PREVIOUSLY ON FORD TAURUS AND FUSION, BUT WAS NOT EXTENDED TO C-MAX. IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN.

NHTSA ODI 11385461

WARNING LIGHT WITH AN ENGINE AND WRENCH APPEARED FOR 24 HOURS. WRENCH DISAPPEARED AND THEN THE ENGINE. DEALER INSISTED THE CAR FIXED IT SELF AND LATER CLAIMED THEIR TESTER SHOW NO PROBLEM. DEALER WAS USING A GENERIC TESTER WHICH IS NOT DESIGNED FOR HIGH VOLTAGE BATTERY SYSTEM. 'HYBRID/EV BATTERY BALANCING CIRCUIT STUCK' REFLECTED ON A PERSONAL NEWER MODEL ENGINE TESTER. THIS BATTERY IS WARRANTED FOR 100,000 MILES. DEALER NOT USING THE CORRECT TYPE OF ENGINE TESTER BASED ON THE TYPE OF BATTERY.

NHTSA ODI 11351379

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FORD C-MAX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS, A LOUD HIGH PITCH WINING SOUND WAS PRESENT COMING FROM THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WOULD REMAIN ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE LOCAL DEALER RACE FORD LOCATED AT 436 W 250 N WARSAW IN. WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS FAULTY AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 107,000.

NHTSA ODI 11351080

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FORD C-MAX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT 65 MPH, THE VEHICLE LOSS MOTIVE POWER WHILE DEPRESSING THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL. THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT PULLED OVER AND THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED. THE FAILURE RECURRED FIVE TIMES. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO SUNBURY MOTORS FORD (945 N 4TH ST, SUNBURY, PA 17801) AND AN APPOINTMENT WAS MADE TO HAVE THE VEHICLE REPAIRED WHICH WAS STILL PENDING. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 15,000.

NHTSA ODI 11343463

TRUNK RANDOMLY OPENING BY ITSELF EVEN WHEN KEYS ARE NOT CLOSE BY. SO FAR HAS ONLY HAPPENED WHEN IT IS STATIONARY

NHTSA ODI 11340658

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FORD C-MAX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE REVERSING OUT OF A PARKING SPACE, THE PASSENGER'S SIDE DOOR UNLATCHED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT CLOSED THE DOOR HOWEVER, THE DOOR FAILED TO REMAIN SECURELY LATCHED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THE DOOR LATCH MECHANISM NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CONTACT REFERENCED NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 16V643000 (LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES) HOWEVER, THE VIN WAS INCLUDED. GRIECO FORD OF DELRAY BEACH (3000 S FEDERAL HWY, DELRAY BEACH, FL 33483, (561) 908-5708), WAS CONTACTED AND INFORMED OF THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 53,787. *LN CONSUMER STATED VEHICLE GOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL.*JB

NHTSA ODI 11326145

THE BATTERY DOES NOT CHARGE UP MORE THAN 15 MILES, IF I AM LUCKY. UNACCEPTABLE. *TR

NHTSA ODI 11324622

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 FORD C-MAX. THE CONTACT STATED THAT UPON DEPRESSING THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL, AN ABNORMAL ROARING SOUND CAME FROM THE ENGINE. NO WARNING LIGHTS WERE ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC TO BE DIAGNOSED. THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS A DEFECTIVE BEARING WITHIN THE TRANSMISSION THAT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CONTACT CALLED GREEN FORD (3800 W WENDOVER AVE, GREENSBORO, NC 27407, (336) 292-8310) WHERE HE WAS INFORMED THAT HIS VEHICLE WAS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY AND WAS THEN GIVEN AN ESTIMATE FOR THE REPAIR. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER HAD NOT BEEN NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 91,000.

NHTSA ODI 11324645

2014 FORD C-MAX ENERGI. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO DEFECTIVE CHARGING CORD FOR VEHICLE. *LD THE CONSUMER STATED THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME COMPLETING THE RECALL REPAIR. *JS *JS

NHTSA ODI 11290553