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.
Vehicle loses power steering intermittently upon vehicle startup as well as in motion. Vehicle is then extremely hard to control without power steering. Message " POWER STEERING ASSIST FAULT" prints to the instrument cluster above the steering wheel. Turning the vehicle off and back on may resolve problem but it returns within a couple key cycles.
Intermittent electrical failure of the advance trak traction control system causes the vehicle to unexpectedly pull to the left or to the right while under acceleration on vehicle speeds above 20 mph without indication from the tell-tale to the operator to indicate there is a problem or intermittent failure of the traction control system. This unexpected pull to the left or right is violent enough to cause the vehicle to veer across the centerline of a lane, potentially causing a risk to oncoming traffic and well as the operator of the vehicle to become involved in a crash. The failure will continue to occur intermittently without indication to the driver until the event occurs frequently enough during an ignition cycle to trigger the tell-tale to indicate a failure of the advance trak system, but this tell-tale on the dash only stays lit during the current ignition cycle and will not be present on the next ignition cycle, again failing to indicate the intermittent failure of the advance trak traction control system via the warning light tell-tale on the dashboard.
After starting the vehicle and while still stationary the vehicle displayed a 'power steering assist fault' and the power steering failed. The car is very had to steer after getting this error message. I was able to stop and re-start the car and the error message was not displayed again and I was able to drive the car. The error is now happening every 2-3 days depending on the frequency it is driven. If this happens while driving it is very dangerous.
The contact owns a 2010 Ford Flex. While driving 20- 30 mph the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact also stated that the steering wheel also pulled to the left and to the right. There were no warning lights illuminated. There was an abnormal rubbing sound detected in the steering wheel. The vehicle was taken to mel hambelton Ford 11771 w kellogg ave, wichita, ks 67209 (316) 462-3673 where it was diagnosed as the rack and pinion and power steering assist failed to operate as designed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed of the failure. The contact was referred to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 141,000.
The contact owns a 2010 Ford Flex. The contact stated that the power steering was faulty. While operating the vehicle, the contact noticed an abnormal burning odor and the steering wheel could not be moved. Another motorist helped the contact push the vehicle to the shoulder. On another occasion, while making a sharp turn, the vehicle made an abnormal moan/groan sound. The vehicle was taken to henderson Ford (2530 us-41, henderson, ky 42420, (270) 827-3566) where it was diagnosed that a new rack and pinion needed to be installed. The vehicle was repaired and a 'detroit axle rack and pinion' was installed. The contact stated that the vehicle was previously taken to three unknown dealers and the power steering was replaced four times and clocksprings were installed; however, none of the previous remedies repaired the vehicle. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and sent the technician who installed the 'detroit axle system'. the failure mileage was 150,000.
- Newberg, IN, USA
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The contact owns a 2010 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while driving at low speeds the steering wheel was hard and difficult to turn. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that the steering column needed to be lubed. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to NHTSA. The failure mileage was 113,000.
After starting the car, a message lit in the counsel stating power steering assist fault. I could not move the steering wheel and had to reset the system and restart the car. This happened once in my driveway and a second time in the wall-mart parking lot.feeling unsafe I drove my car directly to our mechanic and after diagnostic, it was determined a replacement of the power steering gear assembly. I have enclose the receipt for the work done.
2010 Ford Flex limited ecoboost AWD. Electrical power steering. Intermittent loss of power steering with no lights, notifications, or warning. Fixed short term by turning car off and back on again. Very dangerous at low speeds, especially with the weight of the vehicle and size of the tires, specifically for smaller people. Recall from Ford for 2011, will not help at all with a 2010 Flex. Has already caused one accident in a parking lot resulting in damage to rear driver side quarter panel after steering wheel became stuck while reversing. Fuel pump also not engaging, resulting in stalls and the car not starting (no ticks, humming, buzzing, lights and radio work). Overall, a very dangerous combination if they were to occur simultaneously, especially at speed. Car was purchased around 1 1/2- 2 months ago. Both issues are becoming more and more frequent.
4 months age my power steering pump fail while driving. We could not get a replacement (new) at my dealer. Had a Ford re-built pump installed at $450, and that failed immediately. Still no new pumps available thru Ford. I can't get Ford to talk to me or my mechanic. I'm having trouble driving my car in this condition. What can be done?
Vehicle was in motion at 75 mph when the electronic power assist failed. The car turned to the right unexpectedly. After that the car was extremely hard to steer. I was able to get the car home with no incident. The power steering rack was replaced
The power steering system failed in my 2010 Ford Flex with less than 80,000 miles. Thankfully the failure did not occur while we were driving. We had the car towed to our mechanic who said that the entire steering rack needed to be replaced. The part is $1600 and labor is over $500. There is an active recall of the 2011-2013 Ford Flex model years for the exact same problem. I called Ford and told them I believed there was a safety related defect in the 2010 Ford Flex that is the same as the problem in the 2011 my that caused the recall. The representative said that because there was not an active bulletin for the 2010 my, Ford would do nothing to fix the problem. Obviously this is the same problem that is present in later model years. Ford's refusal to recall and fix this problem is going to kill someone. If the power steering had gone out while we were driving, there surely would have been a wreck.
Power steering assist and advancetrac both failed at the same time. It is showing on the driver information screen. There are no codes with a code reader.
Purchased a pre-certified 2010 Ford Flex at Vermont dealership 3.07.2014 with a premium extended warranty plan. Travel between Vermont and New York. Approximately April /May 2017 noticed powerful smell of gasoline after filling vehicle, couldn't close garage due to smell and parked away from others. Garage replaced rotted fill neck yoke 5.12.2017. Problem seemed to abate but persisted, now in garage and extensive work to drop gas tank where the metal flange connecting fuel line and pump to the tank is totally corroded. There is a recall on other Ford vehicles for salt corrosion from road salt to the fuel tank causing dangerous leaks. I could have blown up and my home from this !! that recall targets northern states such as the one I purchased my car including Vermont and New York recall number 15S3. No fire as a) I was very lucky B) it's in the garage with a huge bill.
Vehicle equipped with epas steering system that has been part of a recall for 2011-2013 Ford Flex vehicles with the exact same steering system but for some reason does not include 2010 models. Vehicle began having power steering failure upon cold start up in the last few weeks. It would resolve itself in a few seconds. This morning, 8/29/2017, the power steering would not recover and I received a "power steering assist fault" error on my message center screen. After a few minutes, I turned off the car and back on again and the steering worked fine. I turned it off and on yet again and the failure returned. I tried several times and got the failure more times than not. I called Ford and was told recall #15S18 did not apply to my vehicle, even though it is the exact same issue with the exact same part as the 2011-2013 vehicles. The vehicle is unsafe to drive.
I turned my car on to back out of my driveway and had no power steering and on my dash it said power steering fault. This is a Ford limited 2010 with ecoboost engine and parking assist. This part has been recalled on every other Ford but my year. It is undrivable because the powersteering could gonout at anytime. The part from Ford is 2643 plus labor. I only had 119,000 miles on my Ford.
Approximately 5 months ago I went to go start my 2010 Ford Flex and I had no power steering. I could not steer my car at all, after sitting for about 20 minutes I re-started my vehicle and the steering was back to normal. Since then I have had intermittent problems with my power steering. Occasionally when I start my vehicle I have no power steering, if I turn the steering wheel slightly left or right it will come back on. I have no warning lights on my dashboard for this, but I have had on occasion the traction control light come on but only for a couple of minutes, then it goes away. I have taken it to Ford and they claimed I had a fault code for the power steering, but could not send me any info on it. Luckily this has not happened while the vehicle is being driven, it's usually upon starting. It seems based on the recall of 2011-2014 that Ford would have included the 2010 vehicles. If this happens while I'm driving it could have serious consequences.
The electric power steering assist systems intermittently fails resulting in the loss of steering. This happens mostly at startup and most of the time requires turning the engine off and then restarting the engine to get the electric power steering assist systems to function. I have had the vehicle to a Ford dealer for this problem but they refuse to do anything about it unless they see it happen, which would be very difficult to do since it is a known intermittent problem. My understanding is that there is a recall for this exact problem for 2011 - 2013 Ford Flex's. for some reason the 2010 Flex is not included in the recall. This has been happening for about six weeks now but again the problem is very intermittent. At this point I am afraid for the safety of myself and my family.
While driving home the service power steering/service advancetrak warning came on. I was able to drive the additional 5 miles or so to get home without having any major steering issues. The steering felt different, but was still controllable. Upon arriving home, I turned the vehicle off and back on. I was seeing if the warning disappeared, but now it said service power steering now. At this point the steering wheel was almost immovable. I was able to get the vehicle down to the street, where I had it towed to the closest Ford dealership. I received a call stating that the rack and pinion steering gear was in need of replacement. We purchased the vehicle in the fall 2015 with about 78000 miles on it. Currently we have about 94000 miles on it. I have noticed that the newer model years with the same engine have had a similar defect prompting a recall. I find it hard to believe that a similar problem could have occurred with the exact same scenario. The dealership has responded with an estimate for $2200+. with the vehicle having less than 100000 miles and now requiring such a major repair, I personally feel as though Ford has some responsibilty. Luckily I was able to make it home with my vehicle, but if I had to have driven any further away what could have happened? please help not just me but other owners of the same MY2010 vehicles.
When starting the car the power steering would not work with a "power steering system fault" and"adv trac fault" warning on the dash.for a few days we could try restarting the car and have power steering until it had a complete failure. Had the whole power steering rack replaced at Ford dealership at a cost of $1975
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Rochester, NY, USA