Electronic steer assist fault warning came on while son driving vehicle and power steer when out and he lost control and almost crashed

- Asheboro, NC, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while her nephew was driving at approximate 60 mph, the vehicle lost power steering functionality and drifted to the right of the road with no warning lights illuminated. The contact's nephew was able to power off the vehicle however it took several attempts to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic for a diagnosis or repairs. A dealer was notified and informed the contact the repairs to replace the electronic power steering would be $2,000. The contact referenced the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 15V34000 (steering). The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 159,000.

- Greensboro, NC, USA

Power steering assist falt fault notice displayed intermittently at startup normally clearing with 2nd start. This eventually resulted in total failure of the power steering.

- Safety Harbor, FL, USA

I started my car up and the warning came on saying power steering assist default.I can not turn the wheel it is very hard to steer.I brought this car used from the Ford dealership on 09/24/18.my car was stationary but it could have happen on the highway I am glad it did not at 70 years old I thank god.it is the electric power steering assist in these Ford cars and they are dangerous I want my car fixed by Ford.

- Gary, IN, USA

Last night while driving thru the city, a dashboard light came in indicating there was a problem with my power steering and it became very difficult to steer my car. When I turned the car off and then restarted it, the steering was normal, but a few minutes later, the steering stiffened again and the warning light came back on. Luckily, I got home safely, with a lot of effort. But, thus is a very dangerous malfunction. I understand that there is a recall on this issue, but my VIN isn't included. Why?

- Baltimore, MD, USA

Service power steering light came on while driving on the street and it was hard to steer the car.

- Columbus, GA, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at about 30 mph, the steering assist warning light illuminated. The driver pulled into the parking lot and the vehicle experienced the power steering failure. The contact called the charlie henderson Ford, Inc. Located at 105 U S 90, waveland, ms 395760 and was informed that the vehicle was over the mileage and therefore not covered by a warranty program. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and stated that the vehicle was not covered. The failure mileage was approximately 192,000.

- Kiln, MS, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle the power steering assist fault warning light displayed on the instrument panel and the steering wheel became difficult to turn in either direction. The failure occurred on multiple occasions. The cause of the failure was not determined. The local dealer and manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 125,000.

- Ormond Beack, FL, USA

While pulling out of a parking spot my power steering failed -with no power assist. I shut the car off briefly and restarted it and the steering was normal. The next stop was30 minutes later and the same thing happened except this time the power steering did not return. Warning messages, "power steering assist fault" and "service advance track" appeared. Looking up recall information, my vehicle's problem exactly matched recall # 15V340000 issued in 2015. However, my local Ford dealer stated my car was not included in the recall because of where it was manufactured. The recall seems to be a scam with an "easy out" for Ford on this dangerous condition. It should be expanded to cover the real-world Ford owners who are stuck with an unsafe vehicle while being told their vehicle was made in the wrong factory to be covered. Unless there is an action taken on this scam, we are stuck with an unwarranted $2000 repair bill. And we have no choice other than to try to find user-friendly manufacturers and hope that the NHTSA does its job.

- Dover, DE, USA

On this Saturday on my way to the store I got a alert in the notification panel to service my power steering. I parked in the family dollar parking lot and went in the store and got some power steering fluid but there was no where to put it so I returned it. When I got in the car and tried to pull off the steering wheel wouldn't move. It still wont move now.

- Raleigh, NC, USA

Oil, ABS, and traction control lights came on. "service advancedtrac" code on dash. No power steering.

- Attleboro, MA, USA

I was drivin when my car started flashing service power steering and sevice power trac. The steering got a little stiffer, when I started the car back after putting gas in the power steering was completely out. There is a recall on them from 2010 to 2015, but I have not recieved anything about it and when I search VIN it shows there is no recalls. I dont understand why my Fusion is not recalled but does have the problem.

- Dillsboro, IN, USA

I began getting power steering failure error messages about a year ago on my 2011 Ford Fusion. They would only occur when I started my car, but I would cut the engine off and open the door and the error would go away. A week ago, the error came on and has stayed. I have no power steering and Ford is telling me my vehicle is not under recall based on the VIN. It will cost approximately $2,000 to repair. I don't understand how there is a recall for this problem on 2011 Ford Fusion, but my car doesn't qualify. How can Ford refuse to repair a known issue with this vehicle when they know this is a problem they created when manufacturing this vehicle. If I have to buy a new car, it won't be with Ford which is frustrating because I love my car.

- Converse, TX, USA

Driving home from work. Interstate highway. Service advance trac light came on. Shortly afterwards, service power steering came on. Lights on dash showing yellow car swerving. Slowed down to make sense of it and steering wheel would not turn without great effort. 1 week before this, service engine light was on and local garage told me the code said problem with fuel cap(which it does not have). Now I have looked at recalls and Ford says my car was built in August,2010, but VIN covered on this recall starts in September, 2010.so now car is disabled and have to pay tow charges to get it home, then to dealership where it lacks being covered by a few days, then almost $2000 in repairs that I can't afford. Lucky no one was injured or killed.

- Kansas City, MO, USA

I drove my car to the next town over running errands and my Fusion makes an alarm similar to a low fuel but more urgent sounding. The cluster reads servivlce power steering now and service advance trac. I lost power steering/ assistance and with advance trac off I know I have no stability control or traction control. Luckily I was driving because I can say with confidence my wife could not have turned the car off the road to safety with it being front wheel drive. We arrived at out destination and my arms were burning from fighting it into a tight parking spot. I left it off for a while and tried again and the service power steering now warning was back. I built up the strength to make the drive back home. Entering the road at 10 mph the service advance trac now warning goes off. We made it home safely and I don't want my 3 year old daughter to get back in it until it's repaired. I called Ford and they said there was no recall and I did my research before talking to them and I said "how is this not a safety recall, I've read on forums this is a $2000 repair" and he agreed like he knew exactly what my issue was.

- Florence, AL, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Fusion. While driving at 20 mph, the steering wheel jerked to the left. As a result, the vehicle veered off the road and crashed into the curb. The service power steering now and advance track warning messages were displayed. The passenger sustained injuries to the neck and medical attention was provided. There was no police report filed. The air bags did not deploy. The contact called dutro Ford-Lincoln located at 132 S 5th St, zanesville, oh 43701; phone number (740) 452-6334 but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted who referred contact to NHTSA. The failure mileage was 166,000.

- Zanesville, OH, USA

On January 13, 2020 at approximately 5:30 am I, [xxx]., was driving East bound on interstate 40 located in North Carolina. I was traveling from exit 47 to exit 123 for work. I was traveling at a speed of approximately 71 mph (posted speed of 70 mph). While driving along interstate 40, just West of exit 86, my 2011 Ford Fusion hybrid's steering system locked up. At the moment the steering system locked up it forced me off the highway. I was able to prevent the vehicle from receiving any damage by easing on the brakes. It was hard to correct the direction in which the vehicle had began traveling once the steering system locked but I did manage to get it safely stopped. I then got the vehicle turned around and drove it straight to asheville Ford. They performed a multi-point inspection in which they determined that the steering system would have to be replaced. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

- Asheville, NC, USA

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel ceased with the power assist warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to mike raisor Ford 2051 sagamore pkwy S, lafayette, in 47905 (765) 447-9444, where it was determined that the power steering control module software needed to be updated. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred intermittently. The contact mentioned NHTSA campaign number: 15V340000 ( steering) as a possible solution to the failure however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 150,000.

- Frankford, IN, USA

The power steering just went out saying that it needed to be check and it had just been at a mechanic for another problem with the breaks

- Romulus, MI, USA

I was driving on the highway and then a indicator appeared saying 'service power steering now.' I then realized that my steering wheel had become stiff and it had locked up. Luckily I was close to home however, it became very difficult to make turns once I got off of the highway. There is currently no recall on my 2011 Ford Fusion regarding this matter. This is obviously a safety issue and it needs to be dealt with.

- Paterson, NJ, USA