What 58 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Ford Fusion Hev

Bad bearings in hybrid transmission

NHTSA ODI 11641439

1. What component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request? - The transmission has failed twice. The first time it was replaced by a licensed dealer. The second time is current. It is available for inspection upon request. 2. How was your safety or the safety of others put at risk? -We were stranded on the highway in Missouri. The second time the car failed was during winter weather with two small children, putting us at significant risk due to exposure to extreme cold and the dangers of being stuck on the side of the highway. 3. Has the problem been reproduced or confirmed by a dealer or independent service center? - Yes, the problem was confirmed by a dealer/service center after the first failure, and it has occurred again. 4. Has the vehicle or component been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representatives, or others? - Yes, it has been inspected by a dealer, but not by the manufacturer, police, or insurance representatives. 5. Were there any warning lamps, messages, or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure, and when did they first appear? - Yes, the first time it failed we got an engine overheating error. The second time it failed we got the "wrench" error code. These warning signs occurred as the problem occurred and did not give us any time to get the car to safety.

NHTSA ODI 11628870

The contact's mother owns a 2018 Ford Fusion Hybrid. The contact stated while his mother was pulling into a parking space, the vehicle abruptly stopped independently. The driver noticed that the vehicle had shifted to park(P) independently, and the gear shifter was stuck in park(P). An unknown warning light was illuminated. The driver turned off and restarted the vehicle; however, the gear shifter remained stuck in park(P). An independent mechanic arrived on the scene but was unable to correct the failure. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not yet diagnosed or repaired. The dealer was notified of the failure and advised the contact to schedule an appointment for diagnostic testing. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

NHTSA ODI 11618124

In Mid-August I was sitting at a stop light about to turn left. I was about the 3rd car in line. The light turned, and the first car turned left, and we inched up the car in front of me was able to turn, and the traffic was clear enough for me to also make the turn. However, in the middle of the turn my car didn’t stall out but lost all acceleration. I was pushing the gas, but while the car coasted forward it didn’t begin the drive. However, I never lost power. It was like the car jumped from “Drive” into “Neutral” and I coasted through the turn. I hesitated slightly and then pushed on the gas. The engine made sound but no movement other than coasting. Finally, I felt a small jolt and the car started moving forward. I was able to clear the intersection and was back in Drive mode. At that time the “Engine Warning” light came up on the dash. The car was able to move, nothing else seemed to have a problem, breaks still worked, I pulled into a parking lot. I pulled over, parked, but did not turn the car off immediately. I was able to drive forward and back-up while in the parking lot, as well as make turns. After about a minute I turned the car off to see if the car would automatically “fix itself”. I waited about three minutes and then started the car again, and it started without any problem, but the Warning light was still on. I left the parking lot and was able to drive with the Engine Warning light was still on, but no problem with anything else. I drove about five miles toward home when the Warning light turned OFF. I drove to Oxmoor Ford for service, but the service department was closed. I then drove to AutoZone where they did an initial plug into see if they could find what caused the problem. They were not able to determine anything. I returned home and made the appointment for the Oxmoor Ford service center. The car service cost me $7371.17.

NHTSA ODI 11617145

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted with the transmission warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the NHSTA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 48,000.

NHTSA ODI 11615241

Driving down the road and suddenly all the lights came on and lost power steering there was no warning. Nothing. It stopped working. I then see something today in regards to this being an issue and when I contact ford about it was nothing we can do. Ford did not make this very public and I bet if you people expanded this to other newer models and made it public you might find more people that have had the same issue and thought it was just their car.

NHTSA ODI 11571624

My car has to replace the TRANSMISSION with 54.275 miles . The reason for chance was , when accerating car maked a loud ratlling/screeching noise, from internal noise from transmission. Santa Monica Ford Lincoln Dealer did the job. Then after about driving 35.000 miles, againg The same noise. I tool The car back to SANTA MONICA FORD LINCOLN DEALER, and they (Car had 96000 miles, that time) and they refused to fix it again. They Cheked it, and found the same problema with this transmission. My car is Parking for over a year. FORD never help.

NHTSA ODI 11531691

2 weeks ago I went to drive my car and an error code popped up on my screen stating Shift SYS Fault Service Required. I took my car to a mechanic I have been using and he checked the codes to diaganose it. He stated that it needs a Range Control Module, Range Sensor. According to the mechanic this is located inside the transmission and will require quite a bit of time to replace. This sensor controls what gear the car is in. On top of this the mechanic called the ford dealer for the part and I was told the part was on back order with no date yet on when it will come in. Since this happened I have received an update on the part, they were saying possible 08/09 but now as of today has been backed up to 08/19. From my understanding this car has had a recall for the model years 2013 to 2016 for this same error code coming up, but in the past this has dealt with the actual shifting mechanism not the module inside. So at any rate this is definitely a safety issue since I can't drive my car due to it possibly popping out of gear or not staying in park. While it still functions currently I am hesitant to drive it anywhere due to the possiblity of not being able to get it into or out of drive.

NHTSA ODI 11478536

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2018 FORD FUSION. THE CONTACT STATED UPON STARTING THE VEHICLE, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO SHIFT OUT OF PARK. NO WARNING LIGHTS WERE ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AUTO GIANT FORD (4600 BRANCH AVE, TEMPLE HILLS, MD 20748, (240) 685-2274) WHERE A DIAGNOSTIC TEST COULD NOT DETERMINE THE CAUSE FOR THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 68,326.

NHTSA ODI 11408047

WHILE DRIVING, THE CAR'S DASHBOARD INDICATES A POWERTRAIN FAULT (VIA AMBER WRENCH SYMBOL). CAR SEEMS TO GO INTO A LIMP HOME MODE THAT HAS SYMPTOMS OF GRABBY BRAKES AND LOWER FUEL ECONOMY. CAR HAS ALSO STALLED OUT WHILE DRIVING, LOSING ALL POWER, AND REQUIRES THE OPERATOR TO FULLY STOP, SHIFT THE CAR INTO PARK, TURN OFF THE CAR, TURN THE CAR BACK ON, AND THEN SHIFT BACK INTO DRIVE BEFORE THE OPERATOR CAN CONTINUE DRIVING. EXTREMELY UNSAFE BECAUSE THE VEHICLE RAPIDLY DECELERATES AND THERE IS NO WARNING PRIOR TO THE CAR STALLING. THE POWERTRAIN WARNING LIGHT ORIGINALLY OCCURRED ON 15JUN2018 WHILE LEAVING WORK AND TRAVELLING AT ABOUT 25 MPH WHEN THE LIGHT TURNED ON. IT STAYED LIT THE ENTIRE DRIVE HOME (ABOUT 50 MILES) AND WAS STEADY FOR SPEEDS RANGING FROM STOPPED TO ABOUT 70 MPH. DURING THIS EPISODE, THE CAR DID NOT STALL. ON 18JUN2018, WHILE LEAVING WORK, THE CAR ONCE AGAIN ILLUMINATED THE POWERTRAIN WARNING, BUT THEN IMMEDIATELY STALLED AND I DRIFTED TO THE EDGE OF THE ROAD. I STOPPED THE CAR, PUT IT IN PARK, TURNED THE CAR OFF AND BACK ON, AND THEN PUT IT BACK INTO DRIVE, WHERE IT FUNCTIONED, BUT WITH THE POWERTRAIN WARNING ILLUMINATED. I DROVE HOME AT SPEEDS RANGING FROM STOPPED TO 70 MPH, BUT WHEN I EXITED THE HIGHWAY AT MY CITY, ON THE SURFACE STREETS THE CAR STALLED OUT 2 MORE TIMES WITH NO WARNING, LEAVING ME TO PUT ON MY HAZARDS AND QUICKLY TRY TO RESTART THE MOTOR. CAR HAD JUST UNDER 5000 MILES ON THE ODOMETER WHEN THIS FIRST OCCURRED. CAR IS A FORD FUSION HYBRID 2018.

NHTSA ODI 11102676