The vehicle experiences reduced brake pedal pressure when the anti-lock brake (ABS) pump engages. It usually happens coming to a stop and one wheel hits a small bump and slips, more often when the road is wet. While the car can still be sufficiently stopped under this circumstance, pedal pressure is reduced and does not regenerate fully, and it takes 20-30 minutes to recover the lost pressure, and only after several instances of hard braking are performed without the ABS pump engaging. Shutting off and restarting the engine does not regenerate the lost pressure. This is not the first instance of this as it has happened at least a few times before.
2008 Ford Fusion brakes complaints
Page 11 of 19: complaints 281 to 310 of 542, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Abs system goes haywire if you hit a bump while braking. Pedal goes to the floor. After researching social media, I discovered that this is a rampant problem on older fusions. Seems like there should be some kind of recall for a problem that is this wide spread and common.
After a hard braking that engaged the ABS, the brake pedal felt soft afterwards. Braking is still possible, bit the pedal travels farther until the brakes start to engage and feels mushy between the previous braking position of the pedal and the new position where the brakes now engage. It feels as if a valve in the hcu/ABS brake control module is stuck in an open or half open position (I.e. More fluid is required to fill all paths before sufficient pressure builds up to the brakes). Dealership checked everything out and couldn't find the core issue, pedal is still mushy after having the brake system beld by them.
Yesterday I was turning left from a 2 lane road onto the one lane street where I work and had to brake suddenly because a car was stopped at the entrance to the road. I believe this engaged my ABS. Immediately after that, my brakes suddenly required me to push my brake pedal almost to the floor to engage it. I brought it to a mechanic this morning and they recommended I replace the master cylinder but that there is no test to know if that would even fix it. I googled this issue and come to find out it is a very common issue with a faulty hcu in all 2008 ford fusions. I do not understand why this known issue is not a formal recall as it is putting people's lives as risk including mine. Also, because it is not a formal recall, people are wasting hundreds of dollars on master cylinder replacement when that does not fix the issue at all. Please get this extremely dangerous issue addressed so everyone with a 2008 ford fusion gets the hcu replaced and can brake safely. Here are some links that describe this exact same issue on other ford fusions. Https://youtu.be/0r46_unyyk8 https://www.thecarconnection.com/news/1108032_2007-2009-ford-fusion-mercury-milan-investigated-for-brake-failure https://www.carcomplaints.com/ford/fusion/2008/brakes/service_brakes.shtml
In multiple occasions, after hitting a slight bump while braking the brake pedal has gone completely to the floor. Making it hard to stop at a safe distance. The ABS hydraulic control unit seems to be the main problem. This problem is occurring with many 2008 ford fusion owners and it is a huge safety risk. In two separate occasions I had to quickly move to the next lane in order to avoid hitting the car in front of me.
Ford brakes: whenever you hit a bump in the road, the brakes catch air and they do not work!
On december 7, 2016, I was driving home from work in extremely cold temperatures (roughly -20 degrees) and on snow and ice. During a stop, my ABS engaged and after that time, my brakes became very soft, required the pedal to be pushed almost all the way to the floor and offered very little stopping power. I had my car towed to the dealership which was already closed for the evening. The next day, they were unable to recreate the problem and theorized that the extreme cold temperatures didn't allow the hydraulic control unit (hcu) to reroute fluid properly after the ABS engaged. They advised me that if it happened again, I may need to replace the hydraulic control unit. I'm guessing my car had roughly 100,000 miles on it at that time. On november 4, 2017, I was driving in a blizzard that had started after a period of rain so the roads were extremely slick and icy. Once again, my ABS engaged which LED to a brake failure. I also happened to be at the summit of a mountain with a 5% grade - not a great time to lose your brakes! I took my car in to a shop on 11-6-17 to have them diagnose the problem. They witnessed the brake failure and after testing, determined that the hydraulic control unit had failed. They replaced the hcu (with a used unit at a materials/labor cost of roughly $450) and I will see what happens next time my ABS engages. My car currently has about 115,000 miles on it. I consider myself extremely lucky that I did not get into an accident during either of these malfunctions. The hcu failure is definitely a safety issue that needs to be addressed and can be extremely dangerous.
Takata recall. The airbag light continues to stay on, every once in a wail the light go off for a day or so but comes back on. When I make a turn, as I apply the brakes the car seems to slide.
Experiencing problem with low/soft brake after the ABS engages. Vehicle in motion, stopped slightly suddenly, ABS activated. Afterwards my brake pedal is very soft, begins to brake, then goes nearly to the floor before fully stopping car. Dangerous situation.
I had to make a sudden deceleration on roughed up asphalt ( city street in preparation to resurface). Abs kicked in for a moment, then my brakes went out. Pedal would go to the floor without stopping my vehicle. Luckily I was only going 10-15 MPH and no cars in front of me so I was able to pull into a parking lot using my emergency brake. Parked for roughly an hour, pumping brakes that slowly regained pressure, before I was comfortable attempting to drive again.. Seems fine now, but after reading about the issue, I know it very well will probably happen again. Who knows when or how fast I could be going, but the fix is $2000 which I am unable to afford.
Brake pedal is very soft has to be completely compressed to make a complete stop. Faulty part is said to be ABS hcu.
Had several incidents with my brakes not working properly after ABS going on by hittin my brakes on a bumpy road or uneven gravel and in rainy weather, my brakes went soft and low and I would have to press the brakes all the way down to the ground for my vehicle to stop. After pumping the brakes and stopping a lot of times the brakes would go somewhat back to normal, recently I pressed my brakes in uneven gravel and I almost ran into a construction post because my brakes gave out on me and went soft and low, so I had to turn my vehicle to prevent me from crashing, my brakes have been low and soft ever since and I drove my vehicle several times after that incident and my brakes have not returned back to normal, im trying to figure out this issue and believe it's extremely dangerous, I take care of my vehicle it looks brand new still and I always take care of it, I just don't understand why this is happening and almost caused me to crash into a construction post, I believe from researching that others with the 2008 ford fusions are experiencing the same problems.
When braking on a steep hill at 20+MPH, brakes become soft and require pushing the pedal to the floor to bring car to complete stop. Problem seems to fix itself after some time before reoccurring later after new braking.
Pedal goes to the floor when an ABS brake incident occurs like a wet road or snow or sudden stop. Turns out the ABS pump unit was defective. This is well documented on the internet of other people having same issue. The problem is often misdiagnosed and the ABS pump unit is the faulty item which can lead to a dangerous accident. Had several occasions where the pedal went to the floor
The brakes go spongy after hitting a simple pothole. You have to push your foot to the floor and be sure you have room to stop and not hit anything. If you had a sudden stop, it would take way longer to stop. There is over 160 complaints on this on same year of fusion. That says enough to me. Some people said it was a defective brake control unit. Defective means there should be a recall. The air bags are still an issue as well. Please help with a recall!!!
Abs brakes failed after hitting a pot hole causing the peddle to go to the floor. Abs failed on a rough road at a four way intersection causing loss of brakes and ended up in the intersection.
While braking down a hill and about to make a left-hand turn, the ABS system kicked on suddenly and the brake pedal hit the floor. The brakes felt very sluggish after that, like only the rear breaks were working and the brake pedal had to be depressed all the way to the floor in order to achieve any deceleration. After speaking with a mechanic he informed me that this is a common problem and that the ABS hydrolic unit of the vehicle need to be replaced. I have not received the vehicle back yet from the mechanic but it will cost at least $1100 dollars for the repair. $800 for the ABS hydrolic unit and $300 for labor and services.
2008 ford fusion brakes are soft and go to floor. Takes longer and more room to brake. First happened when raining or hitting a puddle brake pedal would go to floor; now happens every time you brake. Push pedal down it goes 75% down before brake engages. This is a huge safety issue. Issue found to be ABS hydraulic control unit.
Hi im having trouble braking after my ABS kicks in. My pedal sinks to the floor usually. The car is always braking different now sometimes I barely have to press it but then it sinks and losses pressure. There is no brake light or ABS light on. Ive had my brake system inspected and a brake line flush. It didnt help. It seems like a real safety issue.
Attached is the work order and the payment receipt we paid ford, we pray that we can get our money back. On oct 28,2015 my ford fusion: low/soft brake pedal at times , I brought my certified pre owned ford fusion 2008 in 2012, at capital ford dealership in raleigh nc. The service department is wonderful. I am a senior citizen on social security I have no funds for savings so I am limited in what I do, my brake pedal goes all the way to the floor, I drive my great grandson to kindergarten daily, to school and on that day it was a dry day, I am afraid the car won't stop one day. I have all info that it is not the master cylinder, but a hcu, my warranty ran out at 124,000 miles, I have 132,000 miles, but I understand that this has been an issue with the 2008 ford fusions. Then on nov. 3 I was driving to raleigh and went to stop at the light and the pedal went all the way to the floor, and I panicked but got the car to stop with hitting any thing, when my husband called ford the man said that they had problems with that year vehicle before, and that all 3 components of the brake system had to be replaced ant the same time we have no money other than social security, and we had to pay $2,700 to have it fixed this is so terrible for a company like ford to have a recall on floor mats and not on the brake system or the transmission, our car was taken back to ford about the car lurching forward when we stepped on the gas and them at 40 miles per hour the whole car would lurch like it was jumping put of gear, and the ford mechanic said they couldn't find anything wrong with the car, we will never buy another ford. [xxx] redacted to protect personally identifiable information pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6)
Without warning, the brakes almost completely failed. The pedal went nearly to the floor and the stopping distance was much longer than usual. The mechanic inspected the entire braking system and found nothing wrong. He then electronically purged the ABS system three times and normal braking and pedal travel were restored. He gave me a copy of tsb 575576.
Brake pedal lost pressure after hitting a speed bump and it took 30 mins to resume to the normal position. Breaking was very slow during this time and took a longer distance to brake. After researching the issue which seems to be affecting this year of ford fusions it appears it is a fault with the ABS hydraulic control unit.
At times my ABS will kick in when hitting a bump while braking or when hard braking, after the ABS kicks in I lose all pressure and have to floor my brake pedal to be able to stop. Eventually my brakes re pressurize but this takes time, this last event took 2.5 weeks for my brakes to "come back". This is also no the first time this has happened. I almost hit a girl crossing the street, my ABS kicked in, then my brakes failed and I had to floor the brake pedal to stop, I nearly hit the girl. Thankfully I realized what happened and knew to floor my brake pedal. First incident: I was braking to a stop and my tire hit a raised manhole cover in the road, wasn't real hard but enough that my brakes "failed" and I skidded into the intersection, thankfully no one was moving yet. My brakes recovered a couple days later. Second incident: the young girl I almost hit, I mentioned this in the above paragraph. Heading to work, doing about 30, I spaced out for a min, girl starts to cross, I slam on the brakes.(yes, I know, it was bad all around). The ABS kicks in, I start to slow, then I lose 99% of my brakes and I have to floor my pedal to stop from hitting her. I came within 5 feet of the girl. There have been other instances but I don't remember specifics. Although, the two events above, the first one was about 2 years ago, the second was 2 weeks ago.
Tucson, az. City driving; potholes and sand on roadways common. No evasive or avoidance skidding preceded poor brake performance. Brake pedal must be pushed nearly to the floor to get brake action, which is only partial brake effectiveness. Brake repair shop replaced master cylinder - no change in brake performance. Brake repair shop then replaced ABS hydraulic control unit - brake performance returns to normal. Brake shop advised ABS can activate with cause, then hcu valve sticks open, creating reported condition.
During adverse weather conditions, such as icy or wet, if I hit a bump or pothole, or take a sharp turn sometimes the ABS does not kick in and my brake pedal goes all the way to the floor and the car barely slows down to a stop. If I pump my brakes during this they will work again. This happens intermittently and not every time but when it does I have very little braking power. I have had my vehicle at the ford moses in st. Albans wv twice and it sits there now. According to complaints and other private mechanics it is my hcu but ford will not replace because they cannot duplicate the brake failure. It cannot be duplicated because it does not happen every time. According to private mechanics and information they researched it is a valve in the hcu not operating correctly and is a factory defect in the part, however ford will not admit it is a factory defect. I have had my braking system checked by 2 private mechanics and been to ford technicians twice with rotors, brake lines, calipers, and brakes inspected, removed and put back on, calipers replaced, brake lines bled, and still having the same issue. I have nothing to upload because the car is sitting at the ford service department because it is not safe to drive. The problem has occurred while exiting the interstate at 25-35mph, on the interstate at higher speeds, pulling into a parking lot, and pulling into a side street at low speeds, as well as when hitting potholes or bumps in the roads and parking lots but all instances the pavement was wet and my ABS should have engaged and failed to.
I was on the highway driving my 2008 ford fusion when a tractor trailer suddenly pulled out in front of my car. I slammed on my brakes to avoid a collision with the tractor trailer and my antilock brake system activated. After my antilock brake system activated, I lost significant brake pressure and the brake pedal went to the floor. Luckily I was able to maneuver to the side of the road and use the emergency brake and low range gear to come to a stop even though I was travelling down a steep gradient hill. My car had about 100,000 miles at the time of the incident. My car was towed to a mechanics shop where the mechanic said the hydraulic control unit was stuck. I removed the fuse for the antilock brake system to disable it.
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford fusion. While driving 35 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed and traveled to the floorboard. The contact stated that the pedal was soft and spongy. The contact pumped the brake pedal a few times and the brake pedal returned to normal. The vehicle was not taken to be diagnosed. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer were contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 98,000.
I have a 2008 ford fusion, about 1 year ago brakes went to floor while driving. Almost rear ended guy in front of me. Had the car looked at several times at auto shops to be told it was ABS control module. Almost a 700$part. Luckily they found a newer used one for me. Never buying ford again after this
After going over a set of rail road tracks my breaks would go all the way tot the floor. I would not have any breaks for like 45 seconds and im like trying yo stop and nothing until I keep pumping. It's happened twice now and I go slow over the tracks.
The brakes go soft after going over a rough patch or a pot hole. Brakes go all the way to the floor, reducing stopping distance. This is a known safety issue and it needs to be recalled before someone gets injured or worse. It occurs frequently on my vehicle and in my opinion, it is very dangerous.
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