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2016 Ford Fusion: brake failure

22 of the 1,662 complaints about the 2016 Ford Fusion describe brake failure.

owner complaints
22
of this car's complaints
1%
typical mileage
77,300
recalls
1
Is there a fix? There is 1 recall and 9 service bulletins for this area of the car. See below

Brake failure by model year

What owners say

Filed Aug 14, 2026 · Brakes · FL

I would like to make a complaint for malpractice during a recall repair. I was notified on aug 4, 2026 that after the dealership did the recall 23S12 brake hose that during the test drive that my master seal and brake booster started to leak and needs to be replaced. They asked me if i have had any brake problems and we have not. They wanted to charge me over $1000. I declined because i had no issues prior to my vehicle going to them. They then stated they would complete the job for a little over $600. i declined. They said they reached out to Ford to see if they could cover the master seal and brake booster but they said FORD declined. However, they never asked ford. I have the OASIAS report verifying that information. They did not inform me that this is a saftey issue, they never said do not drive the vehicle, the documentation they gave me does not warn this is a issue. However, on the way home I realized I had no brakes. I assumed my vehicle would be in the same shape as i had it taken in and I would have brakes. I do not. I brought my vehicle to my home called the dealership who basically said unless i want to pay for the job in full i am on my own. I need help. I have the information on July 30 when they did the original inspection and they did a brake inpection and there is no mention of any brake issues. However, after the recall the inspection was done, they took a camera went into the brake booster and master seal. All of this was done with out informing us until it came time to pay.

Filed Dec 26, 2025 · Brakes · NY

The vehicle is a 2016 Ford Fusion with 70,000 miles when this happened happened the first time. I pushed on the brakes and the pedal went to the floor. I had just enough braking power to stop the vehicle. The danger is obvious, I had no brakes but I was going slow on local roads. I had the vehicle towed to an independent repair shop where they diagnosed failure of the right rear brake caliper. They replaced the caliper, hoses and ceramic brake pads at a cost of about $600. All was good for about 1500 miles when the exact same thing happened, except now it was the driver's side caliper. Fortunately, once again, I was driving on local roads at low speeds and by holding the pedal totally against the floor, I was able to drive over the curb onto a lawn without hitting anyone. if I had been on an Interstate, I don't see how it wouldn't have resulted in a serious accident. I have no parts or pictures from the first failure, only the receipt for work done, but the car is in the same repair shop as I write this and I will have the failed parts and pictures when I pick up the vehicle on Monday, 12/29/25. Two brake caliper failures, with no warning, at 70,000 and 71,500 miles is a scary scenario. I have no confidence in the vehicle's safety and will be disposing it as soon as it's fixed. Your system won't allow me to put in two dates for the two failures but the first was on 01/24/25 at approximately 70,000 miles and the second was today 12/26/25 at approximately 71,500 miles. The vehicle is registered to me at the address listed on this form but I am a snowbird and the vehicle is in Naples Florida at my winter residence.

Filed Jul 25, 2024 · Brakes · NJ

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while her son was driving at approximately 65 MPH, the "Low Brake Fluid" warning light was blinking. The contact attempted to slow down and depressed the brake pedal, and the brake pedal was depressed to the floorboard and the vehicle failed to respond as needed. The contact stated that her son was able to stop the vehicle and called for assistance. The contact stated that she drove to his location had a quart of brake fluid and refilled the brake fluid reservoir. The vehicle was driven back to her residence. The contact noticed that brake fluid was forming a puddle underneath the driver's side rear wheel well. The contact stated that the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V162000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) repair had been completed in November 2023; for the front brake lines. The contact related the failure of the rear driver’s side brake failure to the recall. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Jul 9, 2024 · Brakes · KY · fire

While traveling at a high rate of speed of 75 mph, on the highway, my brakes failed, the brake pedal was pushed to the floor. The car was hesitant to shift/accelerate. Upon trying to get some type of braking remedy i almost crashed from off the bridge that i was trying to merge on to. upon trying to stop the car i went up a small grade which brought the car to a stop with the emergency brake on. While out of the vehicle the back, driver side caliber caught flame with bluish and greenish flames from the brake fluid coming out, being the metal was at an extreme temperature. I thankfully had my children's drinks/slushies in the car to throw on the flame to stop the spread and to put the flames out. I had to call for a tow truck to get myself and children off the side of the highway. After a $172.98 bill, the car was towed home. I contacted the dealership, which was then told i was responsible to pay and have it towed yet again to the dealerships lot. I have contacted the ford manufacture customer service line, dealership and the number for the recall notice multiple times to get my car fixed and have yet to receive adequate help in doing so.

Filed Nov 20, 2023 · Brakes, Transmission · 102,704 miles · OR

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V162000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated while driving 55-60 MPH and depressing the brake pedal, the brake pedal went all the way to the floorboard with a message displayed that the brake fluid level was low. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the front passenger's side brake hose was leaking and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact later received a second notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 23V162000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) advising that the part was available for the recall repair. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the front driver's side brake hose was replaced. Additionally, the dealer informed the contact that the brake lines were severely damaged. The contact also stated that while driving at various speeds and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle hesitated to respond and made an abnormal loud sound. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 102,704.

Filed Nov 1, 2023 · Brakes · IL

Brake Booster Failed. No warning lights prior. I was driving when all of the sudden my brakes stopped working and brake pedal became very stiff and extremely hard to press down. I almost hit the car in front of me but fortunately was able to swerve on to the shoulder and had to take a right through a red light and was able to roll the car to a stop almost 40 yards further. I could have caused a severe accident. I see now there is recall for the same issue on F-150 trucks. I definitely think this needs to be a recall as I could have been severely inured or possibly fatally injured. My brakes do not work properly and the brake pedal is extremely hard to press down. The Ford dealership ran a diagnostic and stated, Replace engine camshaft, vacuum pump and related gaskets and hardware. Do not recommend driving vehicle until all repairs are performed. The vacuum pump is the brake booster pump recalled on other ford vehicles. This is a safety issue 100 percent as brakes suddenly stopped working at a high rate of speed not allowing driver proper stopping distance. My car is still not drivable because I can not properly brake at a safe stopping distance. It takes all my leg force just to start slowing down a tiny bit. This needs to be resolved right away.

Filed Sep 14, 2023 · Brakes · 77,300 miles · NC

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the contact heard an abnormal sound and became aware that when the brake was depressed, the brakes failed to operate as needed. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the brake pads and rotors needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 77,300. The VIN was not available.

Filed Aug 13, 2023 · Brakes, Driver assistance · MA

My brakes failed. Pedal went to the floor. Brake fluid leaked out. Extremely terrifying.

Filed Jul 21, 2023 · Brakes · FL

Brakes went out while driving on the interstate, brake fluid level low light came on. Myslef and others were at great risk as I was traveling at high speeds without a way to brake. Got it towed to a repair shop and was confirmed to be the front brake hoses. There were no warning signs of this happening.

Filed Jul 15, 2023 · Acceleration, Brakes · FL · crash

I got into an accident around May 3rd. Roughly around 11 pm to 12 am. To inform whomever is reading, none of the issues I will list have happened prior to this event. At the accident my car would not turn on, and it would not lock. As well as a piece of the car had broke off. I took my car to Mike's auto body for repairs. When the person inspecting the car had reviewed what was wrong with my 2016 Ford Fusion, I was informed part of the issue was the starter. I was informed by Nick a staff member of Mike's auto body, that the piece was replaced. After I had picked up my car on June 6, 2023 as per the receipt from my payment. The first time the event happened was on around June 6th to June 20th (I know it happened on a rainy Tuesday or Wednesday anywhere from 7am to 8am prior to Thursday June 22nd.) My car flashed "See manual" on my dash board. The air bag light had turned on. My car would not accelerate, the brakes functioned at this point, but when I pulled off the road and parked my car shook. When I had turned my car off, took out the keys, and turned it on again the problem was "resolved" and I was able to continue driving to work. I had called the auto shop and eventually left my car with the auto shop to be safe. The next event happened on Thursday June 22nd at 4:10 pm after I had picked it up from the auto shop when Nick had informed me my car was safe and nothing was reading on the scanner. (I took a picture of the dash board to show the message) and turned my car back into the auto shop. To note, the brakes did not work during this time. The next time it happened was the first time I drove my car again after picking it up from Mike's auto shop. July 1st at 12:47 pm. The same stuff happened. I recorded on video what my car was doing. My car decelerate when my foot was still on the gas, the brakes were not working, hot air out of the ac, car shaking. It happened 10+ times today (7/15/23) after leaving the dealership to fix a recall I have several videos of it

Filed Jan 17, 2023 · Brakes · 163,619 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic due to brake failure. The vehicle was diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the front driver’s side rubber brake hose was torn, causing brake fluid to leak. The contact stated that all brake hoses were replaced, and the vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 163,619.

Filed Nov 25, 2022 · Brakes · WI

On 11/18/22, I left the house to pick my son up from school. Several blocks later, I tried to stop at a stop sign and found I had no brakes. The brake pedal pushed all the way to the floor with no resistance and little effect. Prior to this moment, there was no indication of brake troubles. Thankfully, I was not yet in the school zone, which could have been disastrous. I was able to slowly navigate back home, where we checked and filled the brake fluid, which promptly and completely drained on our driveway. Only after this time did the low brake fluid light come on. I had to have my car towed to a mechanic, where they found the right front brake hose was split open and the left front hose was bulging dangerously. Both front hoses were replaced, costing over $400 in parts, labor, and towing.

Service bulletins that may apply

Related recalls

Service brakes, hydraulic: foundation components: hoses, lines/piping, and fittingsReported March 10, 2023 · 1,280,726 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles. The front brake hoses may rupture and leak brake fluid.
Risk
A brake fluid leak will increase brake pedal travel and extend the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will replace the front brake hoses, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 27, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1‑866‑436‑7332. Ford's number for this recall is 23S12.

Recall number 23V162000 · Recall details

Questions about the 2016 Ford Fusion brake failure

Is brake failure a common problem on the 2016 Ford Fusion?

22 of 1,662 owner complaints about the 2016 Ford Fusion (1%) mention brake failure. The model year with the most reports is 2010.

Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2016 Ford Fusion?

There is 1 recall and 9 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.

Other symptoms on the 2016 Ford Fusion

Check engine light 270Overheating 191Engine failure 136Misfire 131Backup camera 124Stalling 93Loss of power 70Fire or smoke 60Power steering loss 54Door locks 53Jerking 44Won't shift 41Screen failure 35Won't start 33ABS 27Hesitation 27Airbag light 25Transmission failure 21Steering lock-up 15Shudder 13No deployment 10Adaptive cruise 9Grinding brakes 9Fuel pump 9Harsh shifting 9Rollaway 9Seat belt 9Wipers 8Headlights 7Slipping 7Battery drain 5Knocking 5Fuel smell 5Sudden acceleration 5Warning lights 5

All model years of the Ford Fusion

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