2016 Ford Fusion: shudder or vibration when accelerating

Filed Jul 4, 2026 · Engine · PA

On April 25, 2024, my car broke down as I was driving. There were no warning lights leading up to it, and then all of a sudden, the check engine light started flashing, my temperature gauge spiked, and I was forced to pull over as the car barely responded to the gas pedal. When I got out, there was smoke coming out from under the hood, and just moving the car to get it towed better made the engine shudder and screech. At that time, the mechanic replaced the water pump, which appeared to solve that issue. But after that, between April and November 2024, my check engine light came on no less than 5 times. Each time, I took my car to the mechanic and they identified and fixed the code to the best of their abilities, but a few weeks later, the light would be back on again. They said the car might have an internal coolant leak and needed a new spark plug and ignition coil. Even after they replaced the spark plug and the ignition coil, I would also occasionally hear screeching sounds as I drove, or-- the longer this went on-- the car would shudder any time the engine was running. Finally, my mechanic told me that the internal coolant leak was something only the dealership could fix, so I took it to Ford, who evaluated the car and found an internal leak in cylinder 2. The only way to fix it would be to replace the entire engine, which I could not afford. The car has been sitting undriven ever since. If I'd been on the highway or driving at a faster speed when the engine suddenly cut out, I could've been in an accident. The only warning for the cylinder issue was the continuous check engine light and the shuddering of the engine, and the same issue was confirmed by an independent mechanic (AutoExpress in Doylestown and the Ford Dealership). There are numerous results on a Google search regarding Ford EcoBoost engine coolant intrusion which is the exact issue I'm having but Ford has not recalled the 2016 Fusion nor offered any solution to this dangerous manufacturing defect

Filed May 5, 2025 · Engine · 115,385 miles · KY

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the vehicle was shuddering abnormally. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that there was an internal coolant intrusion into the cylinders and that the engine needed to be replaced. The independent mechanic made the contact aware of an unknown the federal safety agency Campaign Number; however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 115,385.

Filed Jul 17, 2024 · Engine · CA

Component failure: Engine -- Catastrophic engine failure due to coolant leakage onto the engine block. EcoBoost engine. Dealership confirmation that car engine will need full replacement - car essentially scrap metal without new engine. At the time of this failure car had approximately 40,000 miles odometer read total on it and maintenance was up to date. Personal safety - I was driving the car on a Freeway with other vehicles at approximately 65 mph and the entire car began to shudder and I lost the ability to accelerate. The road was on an uphill trajectory and I was in the middle lane - I had to navigate my vehicle to the right hand lane and off the freeway at the next exit - I and others were at high risk of a collision due to the severity and sudden failure of the engine while on a busy road. Dealer confirmation: Dealership had specific codes on the diagnostics decribing this issue. Repair offered was replacement of the long block with a Ford engine that had been modified to fix the coolant leakage problem. Essentially Ford was offering a new TYPE of engine instead of a fix with the same model the car originally had. Dealership was aware of this engine coolant issue with Ecoboost, they revealed Ford was aware of the issue but never issued a recall. We were given the customer complaint line and were told FORD has been offering SOME people new engines at no cost. We were rejected by Ford customer line and told to file a complaint here. Essentially described by dealership repair as need to replace the long block (entire engine) to fix the problem or replace the short block only to expect it to happen again. The cost to replace the long block was quoted at 9500.00. Inspection and repair worksheets available from owner. Warning signs: NONE. Check engine light came on approximately 30 seconds AFTER symptoms on freeway began.

Filed Oct 24, 2023 · Engine · 87,000 miles · KY

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle shuddered significantly. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring while driving. Additionally, the contact stated that the failure recurred while driving from a complete stop while the engine revved to 1500-2000 RPMs. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion into engine cylinder #3. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and transferred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 87,000.

Filed Apr 18, 2023 · Engine · 62,000 miles · IL

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle was shuddering. The message "Engine Coolant Over Temperature" was displayed. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact stated upon turning off and restarting the vehicle, the vehicle shuddered significantly and made abnormal knocking sounds. The contact stated that after the vehicle remained stationary for a while, the vehicle responded as needed; however, there was dark smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where the ignition coils were replaced; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken back to the mechanic, who was unable to duplicate the failure. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring increasingly, and the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was towed to another independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that there was coolant intrusion in the engine and the engine needed to be rebuilt. The vehicle was not repaired. An unknown dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in an unknown recall. The contact related the failure to Ford Technical Service Bulletin Numbers: 20- 2100 and TSB 22-2229. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000.

Filed Nov 4, 2022 · Transmission · VA

On November 28th 2018 my 2016 Ford Fusion was taken to R. D. Sawyer Motor Corp. (a Ford dealer) to have work for Recall 18S20 performed. On 10-21-22, the exact symptoms that Recall 18S20 were designed to prevent, "unintentional roll-away", were experienced by my daughter after she parked the vehicle on a mild incline. Although my daughter had moved the shifter into Park, the vehicle was actually in Neutral which allowed the vehicle to roll forward. Fortunately, there was an earthen embankment in front of the parking space so the vehicle did not roll very far before it was lodged against the earthen bank. I shudder to think what could have happen had it been parked in a spot that was without a barrier in front of it. A silent, rolling, unmanned vehicle could easily take the life of an unsuspecting pedestrian. The vehicle was towed to Levittown Ford (3195 Hempstead Turnpike, Levittown, NY 11756) where it had a repair done at a cost of approximately $1,300. I think that another recall should be required immediately as it is obvious that the manufacturer's attempt to correct their defective design has failed.

Filed Aug 25, 2022 · Engine, Transmission · 55,000 miles · ND

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving approximately 5 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power. While attempting to shift into gear, the vehicle shuddered and jerked. The vehicle failed to exceed 5 MPH while driving. The coolant in the engine was over the temperature message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine was cracked. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact that the repair was not covered and provided no additional assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000.

Filed Mar 7, 2022 · Transmission · 49,000 miles · MD

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 19V362000 (Power train) and the vehicle was taken to the local dealer for recall repair; however, the local dealer informed the contact that they could not repair the vehicle because the vehicle was not affected by the recall. The contact stated that a year later, the vehicle started lunging forward while shifting into drive. Additionally, the contact stated that the gear shifter would emit vibrating sounds and the vehicle would shudder while driving. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had increased in intensity and frequency. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer and the manufacturer were not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 49,000. Parts distribution disconnect.

Filed Dec 6, 2021 · Engine · 70,000 miles · WA

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while she was stopped at a red light, the vehicle temporarily shuddered and stalled. There were no warning lights illuminated. The check engine warning light illuminated. The contact was able to continue to drive the vehicle. The contact also stated that she saw smoke coming out of the exhaust of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the short block needed to be replaced due to a coolant leak. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they would assist with the repair of the vehicle. The contact was awaiting a call back from the manufacturer. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 70,000.

Filed Nov 25, 2020 · Steering, Transmission · 102,000 miles · GA

My vehicle would not shift into drive (ford fusion 2016 2l 5speed automatic). It shuddered and crawled forward but the transmission would not engage. I braked to a stop put it park and the car was still shuddering. I turned ignition off and attempted to restart engine and engage from park to drive. It did not shift to drive but shuddered. I had to repeat this process 4-5 times and then it finally moved from park to drive and drove somewhat normal 1 day prior the car was jerky as it engaged. This jerky behavior of the transmission at low speeds I was experiencing yesterday returned . The car became driveable but now a I am very supsect and I cannot find a recall for this issue that matches my VIN number. Eventhough many ford fusions made during the same year as mine have experienced this issue

Filed Feb 14, 2017 · Electrical, Engine · 8,000 miles · TX

I was driving my 2016 ford fusion on the highway going approximately 70-75 MPH. I suddenly lost all power and the car would not accelerate. I was luckily able to get to the shoulder. The orange wrench light was on, the instrument panel said see owners manual and the car was shuddering and shaking. It was late at night in a very remote area. I turned the car off and was able to restart it and get to my destination. The next day the same thing happened. Driving on very remote highway going approx 75 and car loses all power and dies. This time there was a truck behind me and he had to swerve into the oncoming lane to avoid rear ending me. I was able to get over but not out of my lane. Car was shuddering again, warning lights on instrument panel. Car started after 2 tries. I had to have my husband drive 7 hours to get me and put the car up on a rented uhaul car transport and drive 7 hrs back home to the dealership. They said the electronic throttle body failed. This is a known problem. Very very dangerous situation, and very scary. I called ford and they are aware of this problem but have not notified owners yet.

Filed Nov 30, 2016 · Body, Locks · FL

On november 25, 2016 at approximately 5:00 pm, my son opened the door with a defective child safety lock while the car was moving 65 MPH on the highway in maryland. After we quickly pulled over, we were unable to close the door as there was a metal piece blocking the closing mechanism. We called emergency road side services at 5:20 pm and was told a tow truck would bring us another car with an eta of 8:27 pm. Four calls were made up to 10:41pm to find out when the truck would arrive. We were consistently told there was a delay due to holiday traffic. The next morning at 8:03 am, another call was made to determine the status of the issue. We were told the fastest way to get a car would be to go to the local budget rental location but when we arrived we were told they could not give us a car because the computers were down. After multiple additional calls , the service promised to bring a car that afternoon. Finally, 21 hours after the initial call, a replacement car was delivered and the ford fusion with the defective child safety lock was returned. This was not only a serious hazard for my family, we lost a day planned with family for the holiday. As a former business traveler of 11 years, this was the worst car rental experience and I would like a full refund for the time, distress, and frustration this caused myself and daily. I shudder to think of what could have happened on that highway and I suggest you add a more thorough safety inspection of vehicles prior to renting them to your customers.