The power steering began going out in October. I took it to the dealership, where they determined that a leak in the seal of the windshield had caused water to drip on a sensor, causing the power steering to go out randomly. It was "fixed". 6 weeks ago, it began doing the same thing again. I took back to the dealer and they said this time it was the power steering needing replacement, at a cost of approximately $2k. Not having that money, I continued to drive it, and it did fine until last week. Now it has begun going out randomly again. When I stop, put the vehicle in park, turn it off and remove the key, then restart, it fixes its self. Reading all about the horror stories about Ford power steering, and having had this "fixed" in October, I am not willing to spend $2k to have it go out again in another few months. I have had this car for 2 years, and when the problem began, I was less than 6 months out of my warranty period, as it was purchased as a certified pre-owned vehicle. I still have 3 years of payments to make on this piece of crap. Help!!!

On Tuesday April 9th I had went to my local gym. I attempted to park my car and adjust the wheels. Suddenly my car made a grinding sound, the steering wheel was physically wrenched/torqued in the opposite direction. On my dash. 'Traction Control' and 'Park Hill Assist' both illuminated. My vehicle was inoperable, Power steering failed.

I had my vehicle towed to my mechanic. Upon inspection, he noted that the Steering Motor which is held in place by 3 bolts, was literally fallen/separated from where it is housed. There are 3 bolts that hold it in place, 2 were corroded completely and missing, the last was EASILY removed by HAND.

Due to this problem, the belt which connects to this and the Rack and Pinion, snapped - the Rack and Pinion sustained damage and the steering motor had to be replaced.

While researching this issue on my vehicle I had come across the website Carcomplaints.com, where I saw numerous issues of the same nature.

Initially I had been ready to sign up through my VIN number and to acquire that (my car was in shop at the time ) I had to log into MyFord Account. Upon doing so, I saw there was a recall listed:

FSA Title: EPS MOTOR BOLTS - REGIONAL

Field Service Action Number: 15R01

A synapse of that recall includes:

"...Steering gear motor attachment bolts may fracture due to corrosion cracking," Ford said. "If the steering gear motor bolts fracture, the steering system may default to manual steering mode, making the vehicle more difficult to steer, especially at lower speeds. This would not result in a loss of steering, but could result in an increased risk of a crash..."

That recall was noted from July of 2015. I've owned my vehicle since 2015 and was NEVER notified of such a recall.

(Also to note, I've had my vehicle serviced twice; 4 different recalls, in August of 2018 and December 2018).

Upon reviewing the information with my mechanic, he noted this was 100% the reason behind the steering failing, and subsequent damage. He also noted the bolts (bolt) remaining in the motor were original and never changed.

I was livid.

First of all my car has had so many issues since I received it (another story) but to know that this entire situation could have been avoided with proper notice is inexcusable. I commute numerous time of the week down the highway and back, that's averaging 80KM of highway driving a day. Had this issue happened driving at 100km/h versus in a parking lot, I could have been killed, or killed someone.

I brought this matter to Ford on April 12, 2019 by calling1-800-392-3673.

I spoke to a representative and inquired about the recall, given there was one prior owner to my 2014 fusion and I wanted to clarify if that recall had been done. He stated according to their records it had not, and when I asked why I was never notified they skirted the question and stated that they generally only send one recall letter out, and stated that it was initially not a safety recall ...in that it was a consumer recall and it was up to the owner and their honess to report any issues on steering.

I call bullshit, basically what they're saying is you have to have an issue, put your life in danger in order for anything to be rectified or taken seriously. I also reiterated the fact that I had my vehicle service twice in the span of a few months for other recalls, and I was never, once notified or given the option to change the bolts on my vehicle, given if they had actually done that they would have noticed the corrosion earlier and prevented all this mishap.

Currently where I sit is my vehicle is at a Ford dealership, where they are assessing my vehicle and I am waiting their response.

The current bill for my vehicle repair is hitting a 1200 alone for the motor replacement, the necessary alignments, reconfigurations, shop labor etc.

I was quoted new rack and pinion to start at approximately $1,700, a recycled version would be less but at this point I want Ford to own up because I believe this to be their error, nothing to do with the owner my vehicle just blatant negligence and disregard for human life in my opinion.

I will update as soon as I can.

(Note: I have attached photos of the current steering motor which was corroded, there was one Bolt left remaining in one of the photos, and my mechanics written information / opinion based on the repair)

Update from Apr 17, 2019: Update: Today April 17, 2019 after fighting with my dealership they decided to remedy the issue by fixing the steering motor (again), replacing all necessary parts (Rack and Pinion) etc. No cost to me.

That being said, I still have a pending invoice to pay my mechanic for the initial Steering Motor Replacement/attempt to install a recycled Rack and Pinion (units sensor was faulty, so he had to use the new /recycled motor and re install the damaged R&P) .

Ford is currently not honoring a reimbursement of $1,200 shop, labour and part costs. I will be heading from them tomorrow as I fight this. It is in my belief that NOTHING should be out of pocket for me. This is a massive liability and I believe Ford should own up entirely.

Please do not sit back and take this as 'human error' through manufacture processing. I believe we all have something to stand for here and we should not be told other wise or placated just by a repair alone. Our lives are worth more than that.

Update from Jul 6, 2019: Well it was a long battle, from April 2019 to today's July 5th, 2019 I finally had heard back from Ford. After fighting for an appeal on the initial denial, Ford Canada had agreed to reimburse me for the initial Steering Motor Repair and Diagnosis.

The Service Manager Assistant had called to notify me that a cheque for $930.00 was sitting there waiting for my pick up. I had to provide the initial invoice with reciept as proof for payment and I was on my way.

Moral of this story is do not give up! You should not be subjected to pay for the mistake by a manufacturer that could result in serious injury or death!

Drove my car to work today (one hour commute) it was fine. Got back into it after 4 hours. Started the ignition to find 3 messages on my message center.

1-Service Advance Trac 2-Steering Assist Fault Service Required 3-Hill Start Assist Not available

I tried to put it in drive and drive off but I had no power steering therefore I could not operate the vehicle. Having it towed. Called my dealer and they looked up the VIN to inform me there are no recalls.

NOT HAPPY!! My transmission just went in June!!!!!!

Update from Feb 6, 2019: Got an update from my mechanic today. The electronic power steering is defective (rack & pinion). My mechanic priced it with the Ford dealership-$1000.00 cost, back ordered for 3 weeks (due to demand for the part). He was able to find me a re-manufactured part for $485.00. The work will cost me $1050 CSD.

When I started the car multiple alarms sounded and the display showed the following errors: Steering assist fault service required, service advancetrac, pre-collision assist not available, hill start assist not available. The car has 13514.1 miles on the odometer at the time of this occurrence. The car had been driven less than 10 miles earlier in the day but had been parked with the engine off for nearly 8 hours. I did not attempt to drive the vehicle due to the difficult, if not impossible, chore of turning the steering wheel. I shut the vehicle off and restarted it several times attempting to see if the faults would clear on their own. Having it serviced today, will update later but am not hopeful after reading other posts.

Took my Fusion in for 4 recalls....2 weeks later, while car was at a red light, I get the 3 notifications: Steering Assist Fault Service Required, Service AdvanceTrac, and Hill Star Assist Not Available. After nearly crashing into a fence because my steering wheel locked and I couldn’t turn the wheel, we called back the service place, had it towed, for them to say it had no relation to the recalls, and I had to pay $2100 to have it fixed! They said I had to replace the Power Steering Gear Assembly. I had never had any issues with my car until they worked on the recalls. I’m still making payments on my car, but now I have to save up to have it fixed! They said that there have been no recalls on this in Texas yet, but when it does, they would reimburse us back, I tried trading it in, but my credit is not great, and I still owe on it. So for now I have no car! It’s so frustrating!

While sitting in my car, engine idling, a/c running, I noticed the power steering failure message appear with subsequent service stability trac message as well. An attempt to turn the steering wheel revealed no power steering assist at all. A review of the owners manual, or I think I searched the internet with my phone to discover you could turn the vehicle off, wait 10 seconds, then restart, with return of power steering. Drove back home, approx. 55 mile with no issue. Took vehicle to a Ford dealer for it's 80,000 mile maintenance schedule. I did mention this issue with the service tech, but afterwards he stated the vehicle was fine, but I would need to bring it back so they could troubleshoot the issue.

I was checking my mail while after backing out of my driveway. I drove up on the edge of the curb to reach the mailbox. As I began to pull away I turned off of the curb and stopped suddenly when a vehicle was approaching. Suddenly alarm bells go off & 2 warning lights come on. The system says the AdvanceTrac has failed and that the Hill Assist system has stopped. Suddenly there is no power steering at all.

I looked for obvious signs of failure. No liquid, no hanging parts, etc. I tested the vehicle in the neighborhood and found no problem other than the lack of power steering. I am forced to drive the vehicle because I cannot afford a repair and warranty has long since expired.

I read that the Ford Fusion has been known for issues within the power steering so I decided to look into it a bit. That is how I discovered this site to report issues.

Well, where to start, this is my parents' car. The first time this happened to me I almost wrecked the car. First the turning signals stop working, then the lights come on. The power steering will then fail, and sometimes it will come back on and fail again at random times. When the latter happens this thing is dangerous on the road. The whole thing starts about once a week.

It's been back and forth between two different dealerships several times. Neither of them can figure out the issue and both of them are among the best Ford service centers in the area. And because "they cannot replicate the issue" apparently they can't fix it. After it's been happening for a while we got Ford Customer Service involved.

What a joke that was... The Regional Customer Service Manager actually worsened our overall customer experience, wasn't willing to help us out at all, and guilted us into "not purchasing the extended warranty." How useless is the regular warranty, and it doesn't really confide my confidence that the extended warranty will be much better.

While sitting in my vehicle idling, with the a/c running, after about an hour of interstate driving w/o any issues, I get the same power steering failure message with the accompanied service stability trac. Once again, any attempts to turn the steering wheel is met with no power steering assist. Again, I turn the vehicle off, wait about 10 sec, then restart the vehicle with normal power steering. I plan on taking it to the Ford dealer for diagnosis, but after reading all the other complaints with the same issue, I wonder if it's worth my time! I just may trade it in for a Toyota product.

Electronic Steering went out, first time they could not figure out what code it was, the car was "reset" and worked fine for a week. then driving at 80MPH, the steering went out again. Very very scary and difficult to control.

I have read that there is a class-action lawsuit filed in San Jose, California, in June alleging that electronic power steering systems on the 2010 through 2014 Fusion and 2012 through 2014 Focus compact cars are defective.

They are asking me to pay my deductible for my extended warranty to fix it. I feel, that is a serious issue that has not been properly addressed, and should not be subject to my extended warranty that I had to purchase on my own.