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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
73,017 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2012 Ford F-150 steering problems

steering problem

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2012 Ford F-150 Owner Comments (Page 3 of 10)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #152

Jan 172020

F-150

  • 128,990 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

As I was pulling out of a driveway the steering wheel locked, and the dash read "service advtraction". once traction control was turned off the steering wheel unlocked.

- Fort Hood, TX, USA

problem #151

Nov 152019

F-150

  • 139,770 miles
The contact owns a 2012 Ford F-150. While driving 45 mph, the steering wheel seized without warning. The contact veered to the shoulder and inspected the steering wheel belt, but no leaks were found. The contact waited ten minutes, but the steering failed to return to normal. Bondy's Ford Lincoln (3615 ross clark cir, dothan, al 36303, (334) 230-5941) was contacted, but the contact was unable to speak with anyone. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 139,770.

- Newton, AL, USA

problem #150

Oct 282019

F-150

  • 114,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 Ford F-150. While driving approximately 40 mph and attempting to make a turn, the steering lost power and the service advancetrac warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to fairfield Ford of williamsport (570-567-5020, located at 3600 w 4th St, williamsport, pa 17701) where it was diagnosed that the electric power steering unit needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and stated that there was no recall. The contact was informed that the failure would be investigated. The contact was not called back. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 114,000.

- Portland, MI, USA

problem #149

Nov 082019

F-150

  • 141,400 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While driving my 2012 F-150 I received a power steering warning light on the dashboard computer and the steering went out almost cause me to swerve into oncoming traffic. This happened without warning while my vehicle was in motion. The steering went out and I had to muscle the wheel to turn the vehicle.

- Tallahassee, FL, USA

problem #148

Sep 282019

F-150 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 120,000 miles
The contact called on behalf of [xxx] who owns a 2012 Ford F-150. While the vehicle was reversing out of a parking lot, the steering seized and the service advancetrac warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to harrison Ford (820 N main St, wellington, oh 44090, (888) 684-4989) where it was diagnosed that the power steering gear was faulty and needed to be replaced. Vehicle was repaired. The contact referenced NHTSA campaign number: 14V316000(steering), but the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and did not assist. The failure mileage was 120,000. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- New London, OH, USA

problem #147

Sep 222019

F-150

  • 99,500 miles
Three days ago while driving on a city street in heavy traffic, I suddenly got an advance track warning on my dash display afterva right turn. That warning was immediately followed by a power steering fault warning. I lost power steering and pulled over at the first opportunity. About an hour after pulling over I started the vehicle and got the same warnings but the power steering worked as normal and shortly after driving the faults cleared. This issue has occured on my 10 minute commute to work and back for the past two days along with an intermittent binding sensation and subtle jerking of the steering wheel.

- Billings, MT, USA

problem #146

Sep 232019

F-150

  • 93,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

There is common issue with year models around 2012 concerning the power steering going out while driving. There are numerous complaints online about it and the parts were recalled in the 2014 F-150 and SUV models for a couple of years. Ford needs to perform a recall on F-150S for the years before 2014. Vehicle was in motion on a city street when the power steering failed. Wheel was incredibly hard to turn and almost caused an accident as I was navigating to a safe area.

- Plano, TX, USA

problem #145

Sep 122019

F-150

  • 114,800 miles
Power steering suddenly failed and the service advancetrac light came on while accelerating from a stop sign and turning left. Maneuvered the car down the street and couldn't navigate the driveway so I backed up and the power steering began working but the advancetrac light remained on. This light came on before but with no effect to the steering only the blinkers, which would not stay on. Disconnected the battery and light and problem went away. Spoke with the dealer and was told that it was also connected to the ABS braking system and to schedule an appointment if these happens again. 114800 miles.

- Portland, MI, USA

problem #144

Sep 092019

F-150

  • 93,000 miles
I was driving slowly through a parking lot and a fault appeared in the dash 'power steering assist fault' and just like that the power steering went out. I stopped the truck and removed the keys. The system rebooted and when I started it up it worked fine for about 30 minutes when I stopped to get gas. Upon restart the same issue occurred. I rebooted it, and it took 3 rebooted this time to get the steering back. I stopped one more time and it happened again. Same issue, same temporary resolution. This time I was able to drive 45 minutes. Upon researching this issues I see many complaints on this same issue within the last 30 days on the same model. That's a bit more than a coincidence. Given that the only solution for this costs $1800 and so many people are having the same issue within the same short time frame, this deserves investigation.

- Mount Charleston, NV, USA

problem #143

Aug 232019

F-150

  • 630,000 miles
Rack & pinion I've got a 2012 Ford F-150 that we have always taken to the dealer it's only got 63K miles on it. So when the steering system fail fault code popped up on the screen we were shocked. We never had any indication of a problem. It was Friday August 23 2019 evening we we're just going to grab some dinner my husband pulled the truck back out of the drive way and immediately noticed the power steering was not working that's when we noticed the screen. We researched and found out it was very possibly the rack and pinion because the power steering is electrical and it's in the rack and pinion. We took the truck to the dealer and prayed it wasn't what we thought. Unfortunately it was. So here we are $1846 later. I'm just glad my husband was driving. If it had been me driving in traffic I dont know what would have happened. All the complaints we found all over the internet we had hoped it was a recall but no such luck. Hope this helps anyone else that has this problem.good luck

- Tucson, AZ, USA

problem #142

Aug 232019

F-150

  • 100,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Electric power steering and traction control went out

- Brazoria, TX, USA

problem #141

Aug 092019

F-150

  • 137,000 miles
Power assist light came on in sparks nv. While pulling into a park full of people, steering was hard and blinkers will not stay on. Pulled over and cycled the key with no responce, dissconnectd the battery and this had no affect either, at a 137343 mi on this truck has had no major problems. This truck has pulled a livstock trailor most of these miles. I drove 80 miles home in this conditon with no other computer errors. Lets get it fixed Ford!

- Standish, CA, USA

problem #140

Aug 082019

F-150 8-cyl

  • 82,000 miles
My 2012 F150 with 82K, miles on it 08/08/2019 got in my vehicle starter vehicle it made a strange noise from engine compartment proceeded to back out of driveway and had no power steering. What scares me is what if I had been on the freeway at 50 miles an hour or better and the power steering went out" also my door lock on driver side would not work paid $400 to have it fixed now the passenger side has failed. My question is what if I could not get out if my trucks power steering went out while driving and crashed I couldn't get out. I feel this is not a coincident, I feel this is factory defective parts! there's too many of the same reported incidents, does someone have to die before we get a fix? my next step is social media and a 20 20 investigation into why no one has made an attempt to save human lives as opposed to bribery and fat bank accounts. I believe it is a power steering modular/factory defect. Also I don't know what is making the door locks fail except for factory defective equipment, I'm not a mechanic just a hard working american citizen, made in America used to mean something! I've made copies of this report for future use. For future correspondence; [xxx] to whomever receives this report I hope doesn't put it in the dead file. Thank you, I think" information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Denair, CA, USA

problem #139

Jul 102019

F-150

  • 74,174 miles
The epas (electronic power assisted steering) system went out in my vehicle causing the wheels to lock in the direction that they were in. The system once it fails will not allow the wheels to be turned at all. Ford has been aware of this system failure and refuses to issue a recall on the trucks that have this system, but they issued a recall on the SUV's that have this system. This system is over 2000 dollars. I have read through multiple forums of this same issue in by hundreds of different people many of which were unfortunate to have been involved in a crash because of this system. I fortunate enough that I was pulling into a shop to get my oil change when this system went out completely.

- Midlothian, VA, USA

problem #138

Jul 262019

F-150

  • 155,000 miles
Steering was very stiff this morning turning around in the driveway. Was more like manual steering than power steering. After driving around throughout the day the steering eventually loosened up and felt like power steering again. I learned that my truck has electric power steering.

- Hudson, OH, USA

problem #137

Jul 122019

F-150

  • 115,000 miles
While driving my 2012 F-150 I received a power steering warning light on the dashboard computer and the steering went out almost cause me to swerve into oncoming traffic. This happened without warning while my vehicle was in motion. The steering went out and I had to muscle the wheel to turn the vehicle.

- Jurupa Valley, CA, USA

problem #136

Mar 012019

F-150

  • 65,000 miles
Power steering locks up when driving. It started (03/01/2019) with the advance trac-control light turning on and the steering wheel would become very difficult to turn. Now (07/03/2019) the power steering cuts out and locks up all the time. Did I mention that it is my steering wheel that is affected by this issue- the device that allows me to maneuver the vehicle and helps to keep the vehicle from getting in an accident and possibly severely injuring or killing myself or someone else? Ford knows about this problem (as evident from the many other complaints and testimonies submitted to date) - and I have even taken it to the dealer but to no avail. With so many complaints regarding this issue, I cannot believe that Ford has not issued a recall to fix the issue of the """"power steering cutting out""""" which in turn makes the steering wheel very difficult to turn, which in turn makes the vehicle very, very, very difficult to control. This occurs at speeds from 5 mph to 70 mph with no warning and happens in the middle of a left turn, in the middle of a right turn, while driving straight, while driving up a hill, while driving down a hill!!!!! are you kidding me - a company that puts not only the lives of people who purchase their products at risk but all of the general public's lives at risk due to a problem that they are aware of is appalling, at best!!!!! I have read statement after statement after statement on this issue """"power steering cuts out"""" and all I can say is that if Ford does not step up and take care of this issue, but continues to turn away from it, then I too shall turn away from Ford!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- Shoreline, WA, USA

problem #135

Jun 222019

F-150

  • 159,000 miles
Advance trac light came on and blinkers stopped working. Dealer charged 105 to diagnose, came back and said steering rack need ed to be replaced. At almost $2000. Turns out steering is all electronic! I did not have $2000 to fix so I had to pick it up. Was told steering could go out at any time. After searches, found out this is a very common issue on 2012 to 2014 trucks. It is also a very dnagerous issue. Why has this not been recalled? when are these car companies going to learn, stop putting all of the electronic components in a vehicle, they do not last.

- Piedmont, AL, USA

problem #134

Jun 122019

F-150

  • 160,000 miles
The contact owns a 2012 Ford F-150. While driving 30 mph and making a left turn into the driveway, the power steering assist warning indicator illuminated, the contact stated that the steering wheel became very difficult to steer. The contact called alan jay Ford Lincoln (located at 3201 us hwy 27 S, sebeing, fl, 33870, (863) 385-0144) and was informed that there was no recall on the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer and was not repaired. The manufacturer informed the contact that the vehicle was not included in a recall and referred the contact to NHTSA. The approximate failure mileage was 160,000.

- Sebring, FL, USA

problem #133

May 152019

F-150 8-cyl

  • miles
The contact owns a 2012 Ford F-150. While driving at an unknown speed and making a left turn, the contact heard a loud noise for about a week. There was an intermittent internal electrical failure and the steering wheel seized. Eckenrod Ford Lincoln (5255 al-157, cullman, al 35058, (800) 944-1389) indicated that the vehicle would need to be diagnosed to determine the cause of the failure. An independent mechanic diagnosed the vehicle and informed the dealer that two sensors and the steering column needed to be replaced. The dealer stated that the failures were a known issue. The vehicle was to be repaired by the independent mechanic. The manufacturer was notified of the failures. The failure mileage was not available.

- Cullman, AL, USA

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