Owner-reported complaints naming the powertrain system, filed with NHTSA
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Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2013 Ford Fusion submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 271 reports on file name it.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
The 25 most recent of 271, in the owner's own words
Vehicle transmission shifts harshly from 2nd to 3rd gear and occasionally from 1st to 2nd gear I believe it’s a safety issue because it causes slower acceleration and jerkiness which causes vehicle instability The problem has been reproduced by the dealer but no solution was found yet The transmission hasn’t been fully inspected yet There are no warning lamps or codes present for this issue yet
Vehicle makes strange sounds from the fuel fill inlet and proceeds to stall shortly after while driving and most of the times fails to restart based on my own research it looks like purge valve issues My safety was put at risk by almost being rear ended multiple times from stalling on the expressway and red lights The problem has not been reproduced yet by the dealer it will be looked at on 07/15/26 The component has not been inspected yet The check engine light illuminated when the issue started
My transmission failed for the 2nd time, possibly due to the recall involving the bushings. My engine has oil leaking from the head gasket, I read it could be due to the coolant overheating and getting into the engine. My cruise control doesn't work, when i press lower speed it shifts higher and vice versa.
The car is experiencing jerks between gear shifts. Almost hit another car due to this car movement when it shifts between gears
Delayed/ rough up shift
The rear view camera will display a black screen or the image will be reversed causing confusion and dangerous reversal actions. Also the camera will go black in the middle of parking or not display at all. The transmission will slip without warning and the vehicle will have have to be shut down and restarted in order to drive correctly.
The transmission started smoking and I had it towed to a mechanic. They found a huge hole in the transmission and the bearing was gone .
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at various speeds in cold weather, and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle only responded as needed after excessive pressure was applied to the accelerator pedal. The contact stated that it was difficult shifting from first gear to second gear, and there was an abnormal grinding sound coming from the vehicle. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle jolted, shuddered, and jerked while accelerating, decelerating, and while shifting into gear. There was no warning light illuminated. The dealer was notified of the failure and advised the contact that a fee would be charged for a diagnostic test. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was filed. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 60,000.
My car started making a clicking grinding sound. The dealership says it's the flex plate. My fusion has an eco boost engine. I was quoted 8 to 10k to fix it. I was shocked to find oit this is a known issue with wxi boost but only later models have been recalled.
Car will stahl and lock steering wheel when yielding into traffic or driving. The advance trak light along with auto hill assist will pop up on dashboard stating to repair the issue.
The ability to stop quickly. Car jerked forward causing me to veer off the freeway. If I had not veered off, I would have ran into the back of the car in front of me. (Unaware of any problems with vehicle as the vehicle is stored more than driven) I brought the vehicle home and parked it because of the clucking noise. The recall repair on the vehicle did not fix the problem. Now the vehicle has a transmission failure just approximately 11,000.00 after the recall repair was closed out.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while her son was driving 45 MPH, the vehicle stalled with a whining sound coming from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where the vehicle was diagnosed with transmission failure. The vehicle was then towed to another independent mechanic for a second opinion and remained with the mechanic. A dealer was notified of the failure, and the contact was provided an estimate for a diagnostic test. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V413000 (Power Train), which was linked to the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the recall repair had already been performed on the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 135,000.
Automatic transmission issues. When putting car into reverse, the car pauses and then jumps into gear very hard. When driving down the road above 2k rpm, the car will drop into first gear, pegging the rpm gauge and throwing you forward. Only way to resolve is to pull over and cycle power. This happened multiple times with cars almost hitting me.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power train warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or the dealer. In addition, the contact stated that in October 2023, the power steering failed while driving on the highway. The contact stated that the failure occurred without warning. The rack and pinion were replaced by the dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 111,500.
Transmission slips hard shifting loses power wrench light comes on
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at approximately 65 MPH and exiting a ramp, the vehicle stalled and failed to restart. Additionally, while shifting gears the vehicle stalled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent who was unable to assist. The vehicle was towed to a transmission specialist, where it was determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where the transmission was serviced prior to the failure. The contact called the same local dealer and was informed that there was no recall coverage for the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 142,200.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at 45 MPH, he heard an abnormal sound emanating from underneath the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission shifter cable bushing. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V471000 (Power Train) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 200,000.
I bought my car in 2020 and immediately when I got home my car had died and I had to have it towed back to the dealership. Since then I have had 2 new batteries, 1 new lithium battery, and a new transmission. Issues with my vehicle include but are not limited to: 1. sporadically when I am driving all my dash lights come on and my power steering goes out and my car becomes difficult to steer safely. 2. my car has rolled back twice while I am in park. 3. Passenger airbag randomly will fault when I am driving. 4. My e-brake will randomly fault while I am driving. All of these issues happen very often and are happening more and more often. I have brought my car in a few times but I am told it needs to replicate the issues in order to be diagnosed but these issues happen sporadically and I cannot demonstrate them at will.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the flywheel was cracked. The dealer determined that the flywheel needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 107,000.
Transmission had internal mechanical failure. Transmission has been jerky and stalled shifting from 2nd gear to 3rd on the 6 speed auto Transmission since 2014 when taken into the dealer I was told there are no recalls or issues but problem has existed since purchased from Ford.
The engine makes a very loud ticking and whirring sound, there are also quite a few electrical components that will not communicate with the PCM causing errors on the vehicle code such as a switch component failure U2002-96 Battery voltage circuit below and above threshold U3003-16 and U3003-17, electric park break enable - Deactivated B1111-53. Lost communication with restraints control module U0151-00 Lost communication with pscm U0131-00 invalid data received from pscm - alive/sequence counter incorrect/not updated and right rear tone wheel - mechanical failures C0039-07 even though there have not been any accidents and all maintenance has been done on proper time frame. The car shifts very hard and sometimes hangs on rpm before a shift causing an even harder gear change. The emergency breaking system does not work at all and there is no warning when you come close to any object wall or person. The reverse parking sensors also came loose and recessed into the back bumper by themselves with no tampering or touching.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V413000 (Power Train), and later contacted the local dealer to schedule a recall repair appointment. The local dealer informed the contact that the recall had already been completed; however, the contact stated that she had not taken the vehicle to a dealer for recall repair. The contact was referred to the manufacturer for assistance. The manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact that the vehicle recall history indicated that the recall was performed at Feyer Ford of Ahoskie (711 E Memorial Dr, Ahoskie, NC 27910) in October 2022. The contact was advised to contact Feyer Ford of Ahoskie for further assistance. The dealer was contacted and informed the contact that they had made a mistake while transferring the VIN for vehicles repaired under completed recalls. The dealer informed the contact that they would contact the manufacturer to have the information corrected; however, the issue remained. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
I bought from a dealer in live oak and told there was no recalls I only had car 2 months and the car transmission is acting crazy it smells like burnt oil or brake fluid leaking the radio has a major electrical problem it turns off and resets if I use the Bluetooth to talk through radio. This car all in all has been nothing but huge problems and here I am paying a car note on a car that's barely drivable.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle lost significant motive power and struggled to attain speeds of over 30 MPH. The contact also stated that there was an excessive amount of smoke coming from the exhaust that contained the odor of oil. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the Eco-Boost system. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 183,000.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that the air bag warning light was illuminated. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V597000 (Air Bags, Seat Belts). Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start on two occasions. The vehicle was towed to the dealer on both occasions, and the dealer determined that rodents had consumed the electrical wiring, causing an electrical failure. The electrical wiring was replaced. The contact also stated that the transmission was slipping while driving. The contact stated that two engine cylinders had misfired, and the ignition coils and spark plugs were replaced. Additionally, the contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, messages indicating that the coolant level was low, and that the vehicle was overheating were displayed, and the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. The contact was able to restart the vehicle; however, the vehicle shuddered and lost motive power. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where an unknown hose and the thermostat were replaced; however, the failure recurred while driving. The vehicle was towed to the independent mechanic, who referred the contact to the dealer for assistance. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that coolant was leaking into the engine, causing the engine to overheat. The dealer determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V551000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Categories with enough reports to have a page of their own
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