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CarComplaints.com Notes: Power steering problems started rearing their ugly head in the 2010 Fusion, so you'd think Ford had plenty of time to make sure those problems didn't creep into the 2012. But here we are.

The Electronic Power Assist Steering (EPAS) is a mess. It fails at an alarming rate. Don’t believe us? Take a look at NHTSA’s data on the subject.

And much like the power steering, we’re still seeing the same throttle body failures that started in 2010 continue in 2012.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
7 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
79,128 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

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.

2012 Ford Fusion brakes problems

brakes problem

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2012 Ford Fusion Owner Comments (Page 4 of 4)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #18

May 142015

Fusion

  • 57,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. While driving approximately 60 mph, the stabilitrac warning light illuminated and the steering wheel became very difficult to turn. The vehicle was restarted and operated as normal. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 57,000.

- Glen Cove, NY, USA

problem #17

Mar 152015

Fusion 4-cyl

  • 91,000 miles
While driving on highway the dash screen showed advance trac light came on then the computer screen flashed up power steering unit failure. Steering of the vehicle became dangerous and I left the highway to travel at a slower rate of speed. I was instructed to turn off the car and that when restarted it would reset but it did not reset nor fix this. The car is extremely hard to steer and should not be driven. I contacted the dealer I bought it from and they stated there was no recall on it and I would need to bring it to them and they would run tests and see what is wrong. But I would have to pay for this service and any parts and labor needed to fix it.

- Belle, WV, USA

problem #16

Feb 262015

Fusion 6-cyl

  • 95,000 miles
I own a Ford Fusion 2012 with about 95,000 miles on it. No other issues since its purchase in November 2014. Weeks ago I started the car, and the powersteering assist message came on, could not move car. Steering locked. Read the manual for car. Turned car off and back on. Problem went away. I thought it might be the cold weather or ice blocking a sensor. However intermittently this has happened again and again and sometimes takes several tries of on/off to get the car to become drivable. Also now it sometimes says advancetrac service and the drivers side door will not open so I, a tall person, need to try to climb over the seat and get out on the passenger side into traffic. Having ones car not start up in a city such as mine is dangerous for single women at night who might be alone. So far this power steering lock hasn't happened while driving like many of the other hundreds of posts about the advancetrac problems, but I am scared that this will happen to me and that I could get into an accident. I am a student and do not have thousands of dollars to repair this vehicle if the issue will just keep happening again and cost me more thousands of dollars. The closet Ford dealer to me is in latham, NY and they do not answer their phone. I feel very unsafe in this vehicle that I need to drive on a daily basis. I believe that Ford should have a recall of these unsafe cars.

- Troy, NY, USA

problem #15

Dec 112014

Fusion

  • 77,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

First incident was in 2013, driving down freeway and advance trac light came on then the power steering went out on car. Took in for repairs and cost me $2054 for repairs, was told not under warranty. Paid for repair and here it is less than on year later and I have same failures on my vehicle as my husband, son and grandson were coming back from a trip. Thank god no one was hurt. First advance trac light came on followed by power steering fault light came on and they lost the power steering to the car. Tried to turn car off and restart car again and still no power steering available. This is becoming quite common for this model car because my daughter has the same car and had the exact same issue. Something has to be done, before someone gets killed. Always after the issue happens when driving car the engine shifts really hard, RPM's go up and then slams into gear!!!!

- Shreveport, LA, USA

problem #14

Nov 202014

Fusion 4-cyl

  • 35,300 miles
I was driving about 30mph and all of a sudden the "service advancetrac" warning popped up in the cars dash along with "service power steering now". I lost my power steering and this was very odd and dangerous because it left me with no power steering in the middle of driving. Considering the car is only 2 years old and having only 35000 miles this should be a problem that has to be taken care from Ford.

- Livonia, MI, USA

problem #13

Oct 232014

Fusion

  • 100,000 miles
Ford Fusion 2012 power steering went out. Car is near impossible to operate. Took it to shop, is going to cost upwards of $1,900 to fix, car is no longer under warranty. Power steering light came on, issue was not corrected upon re-start.

- Louisville, KY, USA

problem #12

Oct 062014

Fusion

  • 44,500 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

This has happened to my 2012 Ford Fusion twice. I just got my car back from the Ford dealership repair center and a week later the power steering goes out while I am driving. The rod and pinion was replaced the first time my 2012 Ford Fusion was put in the shop. The service power steering light came on, and the advance track light came on both times.

- Grove City, PA, USA

problem #11

Sep 222014

Fusion 4-cyl

  • 25,925 miles
I bought the car used from carmax on April 5, 2014 with less than 15,000 miles on it. Apparently it passed their comprehensive 125 pt inspection. Since I had to be back at work later this week, was driving back to sacramento, California in Oregon on my way back from seattle, wa after dropping my daughter off at college. Made a lane change at 60 mph and noticed the stability control light on and the messages "service advancetrac now" and "service powersteering now" come on (I am deaf so I can't hear the chimes). Steering became a increasingly difficult, especially on the I-5 on the mountain passes in Oregon. I slowed down and was able to pull over to the nearest rest stop. Turned the car off to let it rest and turn it back on. Stability control light was off but service powersteering now message still came on at slower speeds. Stability control light came back on again with the "service advancetrac now" message displaying. Did this a few times with the same results and steering became increasingly difficult. Was able to get the car to my aunt's who lives nearby in Oregon. Since the car is still under warranty, my aunt called Ford who then sent out a tow truck to have it towed to the nearest Ford dealership in roseburg, or. Where it's being looked at. Did some research and came across all these recent complaints for the same year and model of my car. Never had anything like that happened to me before and it was a scary experience. I or someone else could've been killed from this issue. It seriously needs to be addressed and dealt with.

- Antelope, CA, USA

problem #10

Sep 102014

Fusion

  • 54,800 miles
I was driving downhill at a steady 60 mph with no turns and got a error message on the dashboard to "service power steering now" and "service advancetrac now". the tow was covered under roadside assistance, however the estimate for this fix has not yet been received. For a brand new vehicle purchased with 0 miles, this sort of problem has been common among other vehicles and deserves a recall. Had I not known what to do given the situation, there could have been a very bad accident.

- Westminster, CO, USA

problem #9

Jul 032014

Fusion

  • 50,300 miles
The advance trac power steering on my 2012 Ford Fusion cut out in the middle of a left hand turn leaving a traffic light. It had done this once before, a year prior at around 34000 miles while it was still under warranty, and the dealership sent me away telling me it was an isolated incident as the steering recovered when I turned the vehicle on and off. This time, when I reset it, it cut out again driving through the parking lot at the shopping center I was at less than 500 yards traveled later. This time when I took the vehicle in for repair they acknowledged the issue was real and claim the entire steering column needs replaced or this will continue to happen. They will not cover it under warranty despite the fact I had made a claim related to this exact issue while it was under warranty previously. The steering has thankfully only cut out for me at low speeds and in places I was able to quickly and easily pull over even without power steering. If this were to occur at higher speeds or in places I was less able to pull over I am not sure I could have maneuvered the vehicle safely for any extended amount of time.

- Elkridge, MD, USA

problem #8

Jun 292014

Fusion

  • 46,087 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I got off the highway and when coming off the ramp I got an error message stating advancetrac power steering failure. There was also a chime and the dashboard light came on. I read that turning off your engine will reset it and it did but I am afraid to drive the car.

- Reisterstown , MD, USA

problem #7

Apr 172014

Fusion

  • 59,000 miles
Total loss of power steering while car was in motion, thankfully at low speed. Dash warning read as follows: Service advancetrack power steering assist fault system reset itself after car was turned off then back on, but failed again (same error message) upon arrival at my home.

- Nashville, TN, USA

problem #6

Apr 022014

Fusion 4-cyl

  • 15,742 miles
Driving straight and steady 45mph on surface street, no traffic, no braking or lane change. Suddenly chimes sounded, "service advanced trac" in message center and yellow advance trac idiot light on. In about 20 seconds chimes, message and light go off and message text returns to real time mpg reading. Continued driving home without shutting engine off or any further warnings/incident. Took to dealer 7am next morning (4/3/2014) at 15753 miles. At end of day service advisor said test code showed bad "torque sensor" which is in the steering column and measures turning effort on the steering wheel and that they needed to keep vehicle overnight. 1130am next morning (4/4/2014) spoke to service advisor. He said car fixed by changing the rack and pinion gear assembly w/electric steering motor (Ford part number: Ae5Z-3504-ce). Before and during incident I never noticed anything wrong with steering or braking--just the warnings. Vehicle repaired under warranty.

- Rancho Cordova, CA, USA

problem #5

Dec 242013

Fusion 4-cyl

  • 46,000 miles
I was turning onto the street at about 25 mph and as I approached my home, the advance trac system light came on and then the service power steering now light came on. Steering wheel locked up as I tried to turn into the driveway and I ran over the cable box on the curb because it was hard to turn at that point. Prior to this incident, there were problems with air pressure in the tires at least three times. Light continually came on indicating low tire pressure. Car was purchased on November 2, 2013. Dealership offered the extended warranty, we signed papers for it. When it came time to use it, the warranty was not there. We didn't sign any cancellation papers for it. Now we have to deal with a bogus dealership/finance company and pay for a part that may or may not be needed.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #4

Sep 102013

Fusion 4-cyl

  • 40,000 miles
Service advance track light came on, power steering disabled and traction control disabled. Making turn onto side street incident occurred. No accident involved. First time a simple turn of the key fixed the problem now it is completely disabled. Took to dealer they confirmed it as the power steering gear assembly on the advance track system. Part cost from Ford $900. Outrageous for a well maintained 2012 with 40,000 miles. Please research dealer said they had numerous issues with this... thank you

- Corbin, KY, USA

problem #3

Oct 042013

Fusion

  • miles
I took a hard turn to avoid a collision and hit a curb. The steering got hard, the advanced track light came on, and the problem wont go away.

- Homestead, FL, USA

problem #2

Aug 312013

Fusion 6-cyl

  • 28,000 miles
For several months, my 2012 Ford Fusion would occasionally have a power steering failure. Restarting the vehicle would solve this. However, today, the power steering failure is not going away. My hud reads "power steering assist fault" and "service advancetrac" I will be taking it to get serviced at my first opportunity. Searching the internet implies that this is a nearly ubiquitous problem.

- Warner Robins, GA, USA

problem #1

Aug 142013

Fusion 4-cyl

  • 39,500 miles
I was traveling on interstate10 westbound at 65-70mph and my car slowly descended speed as I accelerated! cars behind me became dangerously close to my bumper! I then turned on my hazard lights and pulled over to the right shoulder and called roadside assistance. Thank god I was not hit by an 18 wheeler! the Ford dealership, where I purchased the car in March of 2013, said it was due to a bad 'throttle body unit.' I asked how long was it bad bc I just bought the car 5 months ago! the rep said he didn't know but now the throttle body is out! I had to pay the daily 'taxes' on the rental car the dealership gave me although I didn't think that was fair bc it was their fault that part went bad and it was covered under my certified pre-owned warranty! I had a $100 deductible warranty/policy.

- Katy, TX, USA

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