Owner-reported complaints naming the brake system, filed with NHTSA
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Reports naming service brakes, the antilock braking system, brake hoses, master cylinders or the parking brake. Every record below is an owner-reported complaint about the 2023 Ford Mustang Mach E submitted to NHTSA — not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. 23 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.
Shown in the owner’s own words, exactly as filed
In the event of a differential pinion shaft failure, the customer may experience a loss of motive power and/or unintended vehicle movement with Park requested if the parking brake is not applied. A loss of motive power or unintended vehicle movement increases the risk of a crash
While I was driving the brakes did not work. I had to slam on the brakes in order to stop the car. The back portion of the car then skid. The following warnings were sent to the phone and appeared on the dashboard as well. There were more on the dashboard but since I was driving I focused on trying to maneuver the car and not reading the dashboard. Not knowing what happened I continued to drive to duplicate the issue. The brakes were consistently only working when slamming on the brakes (and skidding). There was no traffic, allowing us to rely on driving slow speeds and letting the car to come to natural stops. We took it to the dealership immediately who were unable to duplicate. They diagnosed it as a network overload and attempted to release the car back to us. Currently working with a Ford Advocate as a Network Overload will shut our brakes off again. It's just a matter of when. Which is why they can't duplicate it. They can't predict when the Ford Network that communicates to the MachE braking mechanism will overload again. Powertrain malfunction/Reduced power Powertrain system fault Anti brake fault Anti lock brake system fault Brake system Fault Service brakes Electronic Parking Brake Hill start assist warning Hill start assist fault Pre collision assist not available Collision assist unavailable
Had a warning on my vehicle that said Electric Park Brake fault. Prior year vehicles had this issue that resulted in a recall. When the warning light came on the dealership was able to get the car in and fix it immediately.
The vehicle parking brake engaged as expected when parked, but would not disengage. Vehicle became inoperable and required a tow to the Ford Dealership. Ford confirmed the cause of the issue was related to a wiring fault, similar to the 2021 and 2022 model years which resulted in Ford issuing Customer Satisfaction Program 22P31. In addition, this failure caused the brake booster module to fail preventing the parking brake from engaging correctly after the wiring was repaired.
After parking the vehicle, when returning to the vehicle the parking brake would not disengage. The computer reported Parking Brake Fault Service Immediately. Vehicle was not able to be moved and required a tow to the shop as a result. The vehicle is currently being serviced, but speaking with the dealership this is somewhat of a known issue. There were no symptoms or warning signs prior to this. The only potential safety issue about this could have been if the vehicle was parked in an unsafe area and unable to be moved.
I was backing out of a parking spot in a strip mall, when I changed the gear to Drive, and moved forward by a foot. I felt a bump, as I appeared to have hit some obstruction on the left underside of the vehicle (likely a low curb/island). After that, I lost control of the vehicle - the car accelerated very hard, and I tried to stop the car, but it was not responding to my brake input. I crashed into a stationary vehicle, which deflected my car to a storefront wall. The total distance travelled from when the sudden acceleration started to the crash against the wall, was probably 20 - 30 feet (and not in a straight line). But the impact was severe enough to have deployed the air bags and the car is considered totalled. Besides the sudden acceleration which did not happen on my input, and the inability of the car to stop based on my brake input, neither did the Forward Collision Warning go off, nor did the Automatic Emergency Braking turn on, to prevent the crash.
Parking brake fault service required, release parking brake messages when brake is not engaged.
Electronic parking brake failure after Massachusetts snow storms and salt. Car is currently at dealership so yes it’s available for inspection at Sentry Ford Medford MA. Yes it’s been reproduced. I was lucky it did not fail engaged so I was able to drive it. Early production 2023 but ford did not recall this model year. Same problem as csp 22p31. Ford currently is not covering this repair even just 500 miles over factory warranty even though all model years around it have the recall. As for the automatic emergency braking it may stop you very short, and hitting the pedal does not override the braking system. Car jerks and seems confused in this situation. I keep turning it off, but the car keeps putting it back on against my wishes. Extremely concerning as it should stay off.
"Parking Brake Fault - Service Now" warning appeared. Parking brakes locked after stopping vehicle. Dealer diagnosed problem as corroded wiring connector to left rear wheel parking brake motor. Vehicle has 41,000 miles. Vehicle was stuck and could not be moved. If this had occurred in traffic situation a crash could have resulted. Charge to repair was $600 because dealer claimed brake parts are a "wear item".
Diag and replace left rear parking brake actuator pigtail. Corrosion and breaking of the wire, causing the parking brake to be stuck. This was a recall on the earlier models (2022), and seems to be an ongoing issue. It is not covered under warranty over 36k miles.
Parking break fault message appeared on the vehicle and the parking break was stuck on, making it impossible to release the break and therefore move the car.
Dear NHTSA Team, I am writing to urgently raise concern and seek answers regarding what appears to be a systemic safety issue affecting vehicles equipped with Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) and self-driving technologies. I have personally experienced repeated and dangerous incidents of phantom braking, overcorrection, and loss of control while driving a 2019 Toyota Prius. The car suddenly brakes, swerves, or pulls sharply when it detects shadows, road inclinations, or mild curves — making it unsafe to drive, especially at highway speeds. These events occur without any driver error. To make things worse, this issue is not limited to one brand or vehicle. Over the past year, I have driven and rented multiple cars from different brands and models through rental companies, and many of them presented the exact same unsafe behavior — unpredictable braking, steering correction, and traction instability. This clearly indicates that the issue is industry-wide, not isolated to a single manufacturer. I have been a professional rideshare driver for over five years, completing more than 500,000 miles without a single accident or ticket. Since October 2023, these vehicle behaviors have made it nearly impossible for me to continue working safely. This situation has destroyed my livelihood — I am now three months behind on rent, my mental health has been severely impacted, and I am facing homelessness for the second time in two years. All of this has happened because of unsafe technology that drivers cannot fully disable, even when it is clearly malfunctioning. I respectfully ask NHTSA: Why are automakers allowed to release and maintain these unsafe systems on public roads? Why do drivers not have the right to safely disable malfunctioning ADAS or self-driving features, like any other electronic system that can be shut down in an emergency? When will NHTSA take meaningful action to stop these dangerous practices before more lives are affected?
I’m writing this message out of frustration, exhaustion, and genuine concern for public safety. Over the past months, I’ve been renting and driving multiple cars from different brands and models — Toyota, Subaru, Nissan, and now a 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E — and all of them show the same dangerous behavior: •sudden phantom braking for no reason, •traction control malfunctioning, throwing the car from side to side, •unstable handling, especially on highways or during light rain. This is not an isolated case — it’s happening across several brands and systems, which makes me question what is really going on. Why are drivers being forced to deal with unreliable technology that clearly isn’t ready for real-world conditions? Are these systems being tested using real drivers as data sources to “teach” self-driving cars how to handle special situations? Because that’s what it feels like — we are being used without consent, forced to correct constant software mistakes that could cost lives. This situation has destroyed my professional and financial stability. I work as a rideshare driver (Uber and Lyft), and passengers have reported me as “unsafe” because the car suddenly brakes or moves erratically — something completely out of my control. I’ve lost access to stable work, fell behind on my car payments, and ended up returning my own vehicle because of all the expenses and stress trying to fix something that was never broken in the first place. And I have to ask: Why did NHTSA approve a regulation that prevents drivers from fully turning off these driver assistance systems? In what world does it make sense for a safety-critical technology to have no emergency off switch? In any other context — like electricity — we have breakers to stop the system when it becomes unsafe. Cars should be no different. I’ve lost almost everything I worked for because of this. Please, take this seriously. People’s lives, jobs, and mental health are being destroyed by this technology.
The contact owns a 2023 Ford Mustang Mach E. The contact stated after driving 15 MPH and then attempting to reverse, there was a clunking sound coming from the vehicle while reversing out of the driveway. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact towed the vehicle to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the brake pads and rotors had delaminated. The dealer informed the contact that the brakes were not covered under warranty. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact the repair was not covered under warranty. The failure mileage was approximately 11,000.
The contact owns a 2023 Ford Mustang Mach-E. The contact stated while reversing out of the driveway, an abnormal sound was heard coming from the rear of the vehicle. Upon further inspection, the contact noticed that the rear passenger’s side brake pad material had separated and was stuck on the rotor. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was outside in the rain a week before the failure. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that the rear driver’s side and the rear passenger’s side rotors and brake pads needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 18,000.
While driving the 2023 Ford MachE in 1 Peddle mode Friday 12 July 2024. I had to suddenly brake due to a car cutting of the car in front of me to make an illegal turn. I applied the brakes (HARD) and my car came to a complete stop. Just as I was breathing a sigh of relief, and waiting for the still parked car in front of me to move. On I released my foot of the brake (the car should have held in place). However, warning lights sensors started beeping going crazy as the car lunged forward. It caused me to hit the car in front of me. The lunge was so forceful that for a moment I thought another car had rear-ended me and pushed me into the stopped car in front of me. I did not have time to see all of the alerts flashing on the dash as they were flashing as the car was propelled forward. The other car did not sustain any damage. However my car car did. While waiting on the Police to come make a report I did use the in car engineer feedback and recorded a message notifying Ford that my car had lunged forward. On Monday 15 July I called the Ford BEV team to tell them what happened. Was advised to take it to a dealership to be checked out. The dealership ran diagnostics and updated the car via a technical service bulletin. 24-2187 issued on 07 June 2024. Prior to me taking my car to the dealership I also came to your website and there were no active recalls and no mention of this bulletin. The bulletin address the 1 pedal drive fault. I was not aware of this TSB. I have documented over 50 posts related to this error and fail.
Whenever it rains the brakes on the ford Mac-E get stuck to the rotor. The car will not move unless you apply pressure to the pedal and accelerate. The car makes a clicking noise and it’s visible damage to the rotor and stoping isn’t smooth.
This vehicle has a one-pedal drive mode that uses regenerative braking to slow / stop the vehicle when you remove your foot from the accelerator pedal. On several occasions, this system has suddenly turned off with an error message displayed on the screen. This means that the braking that I was experiencing at the moment suddenly ceased. This is a dangerous situation that could result in an accident. Ford indicates it is a known issue, but currently does not have a fix for it.
Brakes: The brakes grab hard when coming to a stop and cause a slight jerk. I have reported this issue to the original dealership of purchase; Angela Krause Ford in Alpharetta, GA. It’s been two weeks since I purchased this vehicle brand new and I still have not been able to get it in for repair. Charge Port Door: The charge port door cover came off while I was trying to close it and the clip part that connects the door to the car and locks came off (very cheaply made and other Mach E owners have suffered this same thing shortly after purchase). I can’t drive the vehicle because of the brakes issue and also because with the slightest wing going down the highway the charge port door pops open. I have it secured with a piece of tape currently but that’s still not safe or secure and the door could still fly open.
Brakes grind when coming to a stop at low speed or may not disengage from a stop at low accelerator input. Note auto hold/parking brake feature disabled. Appears to be oxidation and rough surfaces on brake rotors. Car has approximately 2700 miles and has done this since new.
After a few days in garage attempted to drive out where first upon engaging drive selection, releasing brake pedal, and slight throttle, a clunk and jerk launch occurred. With each subsequent wheel rotation there was a scraping sound synchronized with a torque dip in the propulsion. drove 1-2 blocks up street up to ~5 MPH and this symptom followed exact with speed. Stopped car, tried reverse a block, same thing, surging like propulsion with apparent torque dips in sync with speed. Repeated in drive, then reverse a few times, then parked back in garage to be towed into dealer. I put masking tape on steering wheel AND on Windshield saying not to drive over 2MPH to witness the symptoms. Upon receipt at dealer, was told symptom was then repeated, therefore car would be held for a while as it would need to be torn down and analyzed to find the cause. After 3 weeks, told not yet finding the cause, we discussed possibility of brakes where they agreed and was to pull them apart to inspect. Never did. Now 4 weeks later, still at dealer, telling me they cannot repeat the effect but that drove it around. I told speed may have wiped it away, this 2nd time it was towed in for this. I consider this a safety / drivability issue and want it noted, (And fixed of course).
On Saturday July 15, 2023 my family and I were in the car going grocery shopping. By time I reached the grocery store a warning came up on the screen that stated brake fluid low. When I arrived home I did not have any brakes. The vehicle was towed the dealer where it was purchased. I was told that the brake caliper were faulty and their is only one mechanic that is allowed to work on electric vehicles.
The contact owns a 2023 Ford Mustang Mach E. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake fluid warning light illuminated. Additionally, the contact stated that the brake pedal floored while depressed, and the vehicle failed to stop immediately. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who informed the contact that the calipers had failed. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 237.
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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