2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid problems

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a petition on December 22, 2025, requesting a defect investigation into the hydraulic control unit (HCU) for the Anti-lock Braking System (ABS) on the MY 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid. The petition alleges that an illuminated ABS MIL is associated with a failure of the ABS HCU, resulting in ABS malfunction, loss of traction and electronic stability control functions, and reduced braking performance, particularly on slippery road surfaces. ODI conducted an analysis of complaints submitted to ODI for the subject vehicle population along with data submitted by Ford. The Petitioner alleged that the condition in the subject vehicles was comparable to the defect addressed by the federal safety agency recall No. 19V904, which covered certain MY 2006-2010 Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan, and Lincoln MKZ vehicles. The population of this recall consisted of the non-hybrid variants of these models. The recall addressed a defect where the ABS valves in the HCU could remain stuck open due to a chemical reaction with aged DOT 3 brake fluid, potentially causing extended brake pedal travel and increasing the risk of a crash.  DOT 3 brake fluid is a conventional, glycol-ether-based hydraulic fluid used to transfer force from the brake pedal to a vehicle's brakes. No visual or audible warning was presented to the driver in this scenario. The MY 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid is equipped with a different brake apply system in which the traditional hydraulic (friction) brakes are blended with the hybrid regenerative brake system. In this system, the brake master cylinder is electrically activated and provides force feedback through the brake pedal to the driver. Unlike the recalled models, Petitioner’s 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid would not experience the same defect, as a stuck-open normally closed valve within its ABS HCU does not result in increased brake pedal travel. This condition is further supported by the relative complaint rates in the two populations: ODI found the complaint rate of the recalled MY 2010 Fusion vehicles was six times higher than that of the subject MY 2010 Fusion Hybrid vehicles, which supports a significant difference in the design and performance of the brake system and components. As the Petitioner stated, most of the subject hybrid vehicle VOQs cited an illuminated ABS MIL. The vehicles in 19V904 did not present the driver with an illuminated MIL or associated diagnostic trouble code (DTC). Since the MY 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid presented with a brake MIL, the failure mode differs from that of the non-hybrid population, which did not trigger an illuminated warning light. Additionally, given the age of the subject vehicles (MY 2010), the low complaint volume is consistent with expected wear and tear rather than an actionable safety defect trend. For the above reasons, ODI is denying this Defect Petition as it has not found an unreasonable risk to highway safety. The Agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. To review the reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to

DP26004

the federal safety agency received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, the federal safety agency opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified the federal safety agency he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by the federal safety agency regarding the subject matter of the petition.

DP22005

On September 28, 2016, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a Preliminary Evaluation (PE16-011) to investigate claims of power steering assist loss on model year (MY) 2010 Ford Fusion vehicles. During the PE, ODI received 718 unique claims related to the alleged problem with 598 reports indicating the power steering assist failed while driving at various speeds with no warning. Ford Motor Company (Ford) provided 1,851 unique reports and 1,720 warranty claims related to the alleged problem. It should be noted that as the result of investigation PE14-030, Ford conducted a safety recall (15V‑340) ofMY 2011-2012 Ford Fusion and other vehicles using the same electric power assist steering unit to rectify incidents of loss of power steering assist. On November 20, 2017, PE16-011 was upgraded to this Engineering Analysis (EA17-004) to further assess the scope, frequency, and consequence of this failure. This was based on an analysis of the subject vehicle complaint data that had indicated an increased likelihood of failure as the vehicles age. At the time, the rate of occurrence of this failure was comparable to previous investigations involving loss of power steering assist including the previously mentioned PE14-030. During the EA, ODI’s analysis of the alleged defect in the subject vehicles identified the following: testing showed minor steering effort changes between “assist” and “no assist”, no root cause identified, a declining failure trend, the ramp-down or reduced assist provided when a DTC is set, a lower failure rate than the recalled Fusion vehicles, and the high age of the vehicles. A safety-related defect trend has not been identified. Accordingly, this Engineering Analysis is closed. See the attached Engineering Analysis Closing Report for details. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety defect does not exist, and ODI will take further actions if warranted by future circumstances. To review the reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to

EA17004

On September 28th, 2016, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Preliminary Evaluation PE16-011 to investigate claims of power steering assist loss on model year 2010 Ford Fusion vehicles.ODI has received 718 unique claims related to the alleged problem with 598 reports indicating the power steering assist failed while driving at speed with no warning.During the PE16-011 investigation, Ford Motor Company (Ford) provided 1851 unique reports and 1720 warranty claims related to the alleged problem.As the result of investigation PE14-030, Ford previously conducted a recall (15V‑340) of the 2011-2012 Ford Fusion and other vehicles using the same electric power assist steering unit to rectify incidents of loss of power steering assist.An analysis of the subject vehicle complaint data indicates an increased likelihood of failure as the vehicles age.The rate of occurrence of this failure is comparable to previous investigations involving loss of power steering assist including the previously mentioned PE14-030.Therefore, the Preliminary Evaluation (PE16-011) has been upgraded to an Engineering Analysis to further assess the scope, frequency and consequence of this failure. ODI reports cited above can be reviewed at under the identification (the federal safety agency ID) numbers found in the attached list.

PE16011

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened a preliminary evaluation to investigate complaints of the loss of power steering while driving. The subject vehicles are equipped with a rack mounted Electric Power Assisted Steering (EPAS) unit.Some of the complaints alleged that the steering assist failed and resulted in increased steering efforts that contributed to a loss of control and in some cases a crash.The EPAS system was manufactured by TRW Automotive for Ford and was designated as Generation I.These units were first produced and put into vehicle production in July 2008 beginning with the model year (MY) 2010 Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan.The system is comprised of a mechanical steering rack-and-pinion gear with torque sensor, electric assist motor, motor position sensor and a power steering control module (PSCM). The PSCM is self-monitoring and designed to detect faults within the system and can store diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) if a problem is detected.There are 29 potential DTCs the system can detect.Many of these allow the system to go into reduced-assist steering mode by using the default vehicle speed signal should the live speed signal be lost, if voltage to EPAS system falls below 10.7 or goes above 17 volts, the temperature at the PSCM goes above 105C (221F), or if high friction is detected.Some DTCs will cause the system to go into manual steering mode (no assist). On July 1, 2015, Ford filed a Defect Information Report (DIR) identifying a safety related defect in TRW GEN I EPAS systems installed in some of the subject vehicles (the federal safety agency Recall 15V‑340, Ford No. 15S18).The DIR indicated that intermittent electrical connections caused by quality issues associated with conformal coat contamination and ribbon cable pin misalignment within the steering gear motor may lead to a loss of the motor position sensor signal, resulting in a sudden loss of power assist while driving.The recall covers approximately 393,623 vehicles built from September 2010 through February 2012:2011-12 Fusion built SEP 2010 - FEB 2012; 2011-12 Lincoln MKZ built SEP 2010 - FEB 2012; 2011 Milan built SEP 2010 - DEC 2010; 2011-13 Taurus built SEP 2010 - FEB 2012; 2011-13 Flex with 3.5L GTDI engine built SEP 2010 - FEB 2012; and 2011-13 MKS, MKT with 3.5L GTDI engine built SEP 2010 - FEB 2012.The repair consists of updating the PSCM software to prevent a loss of steering assist while driving. The revised software will provide audible and visual warnings to the driver. If one or more of the following DTCs are stored, C1B00-62, C200B-2F, C200B-61, C200B-62, C200C-2F, C200D-49, U0300-00, U2011-49, U2011-61, U3000-46, U3000-49, U3000-61, U3000-72, U3000-96, P07AE-09, the dealer will replace the EPAS system at no charge to the owner.ODI's analysis of failure data for this PE identified a total of 2,584 complaints to ODI and Ford and 9,967 Ford warranty claims related to the alleged defect.The recalled vehicles account for 1,634 of the complaints and 7,311 of the warranty claims.ODI's analysis identified 40 complaints alleging crashes that may be related to loss of steering assist while driving, 20 of which involved vehicles included in Ford's recall.The information available for the alleged crashes were not sufficient to assess specific causes of the incidents or to verify EPAS malfunctions in each case.Most of the crashes were low-speed impacts with curbs or roadside objects resulting in wheel or minor body damage.None of the injury claims indicated medical attention was required.In addition, statistical modeling of the failure data by the federal safety agency's National Center for Statistics and Analysis projected 10-year failur

PE14030

On May 27, 2014, Ford Motor Company submitted recall 14E-028 (Ford recall #14S07) to correct a safety-related problem with certain driver's side Ford optional all-weather floor mats sold for use in model year 2006 through 2011 model year Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan, Lincoln Zephyr, and Lincoln MKZ vehicles built at Hermosillo Assembly Plant (HAP) from November 9, 2007, to October 31 ,2010.the federal safety agency testing determined that the original accessory all-weather mat with a single retention clip (Figure 1), may interfere with accelerator pedal return to idle with the mat retained by the clip and rotated clockwise.Both the single- and double-clip (Figure 2) all-weather floor mats may interfere with the accelerator pedal return to idle when the mats are not secured by the retention clip(s).Testing showed that this can occur if the mats are moved forward from the clipped position approximately two inches into a position in which the rear edge of the mats will abut the retention clip(s) when installed singly and align with the clip(s) when stacked on another floor mat.The pedal interference incidents reviewed by the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) include 1 crash and 9 incidents with allegations of brake friction materials smoking and/or requiring repair for heat related damage.The crash incident occurred after the parking brake was applied at speed, resulting in loss-of-control vehicle yaw event caused by lock-up of the rear tires.The spin-out resulted in a side impact collision with an oncoming vehicle in an opposing lane of traffic. For the 29 incidents with sufficient information available to make an assessment; 23 (79%) were controlled by the driver either shifting to neutral, turning the engine off, or both; 4 (14%) were ended by the driver either kicking the pedal free (2) or pulling the mat away from the pedal (2); and 2 (7%) were ended by the pedal freeing itself from the mat with no apparent driver action.None of the drivers who reacted to the incident by shifting to neutral or turning the engine off reported any difficulties with either action.The subject mats were sold by Ford and Lincoln dealers directly to customers as an optional accessory equipment item or, beginning in November 2007, the mats were also available as a factory installed accessory if ordered with a new vehicle.Ford estimates that approximately 82,579 affected driver's side all weather floor mats were sold worldwide; either over the counter through Ford dealerships or as original equipment.Owners that purchased the subject all-weather floor mats as a factory installed accessory with their new vehicle will be notified to return their all weather floor mats to their Ford or Lincoln Dealership in exchange for replacement mats.Owners of all other potentially affected vehicles will be notified that, if they have an affected Ford driver's side all weather floor mat, they should return their mats to the dealership in exchange for replacement mats.The VOQs associated with the closing of this investigation are: 10327597, 10332233, 10334211, 10335336, 10339330, 10348772 (and duplicate 10342572), 10372674, 10379562, 10415911, 10426255, 10434107, 10521053, 10554966.This investigation is hereby closed.

EA12009