2018 Ford Fusion: harsh or hard shifting

6 of the 445 complaints about the 2018 Ford Fusion describe harsh or hard shifting.

owner complaints: 6
of this car's complaints: 1%
recalls: 0

Is there a fix? 16 service bulletins cover this area of the car. See below

Harsh or hard shifting by model year

2020
6
2019
2
2018
6
2017
11
2016
9
2015
7
2014
8
2013
15
2012
21
2011
13
2010
51
2009
3
2008
2
2007
4
2006
13

What owners say

Filed May 23, 2025 · Transmission · CA

At 68,000 miles, the transmission began experiencing symptoms of a failed transmission. I took it to the dealer and they confirmed that there was a CONCERN HARSH SHIFT ON 3RD GEAR AND DIAGNOSE DIRECT DRUM CAUSING CUST CONCERN AND SHUDDER CONCERN TORQUE CONVERTER. This diagnosis caused the vehicle to hard shift everytime i would take off and often time cause a kick on the transmission. Because of this, the rear main seal of the engine also gave out prematurely. While driving on the freeway, the engine began leaking oil suddenly from the rear main seal causing the entire bottom of the engine to get soaked with oil. This also caused the oil to fall in to the brake pads and rotors. While driving on the freeway, i lost braking power and could not stop safely. I had to pull to the shoulder and attempt to stop the vehicle. Fortunatelly, there were no cars on the soulder and was able to stop the vehicle. This is where i discovered the vehicle full of oil in the bottom of the vehicle along with the brake pads and rotors. The vehicle was towed to the house about 130 miles. Once discovered, it was taken to Sunrise Ford where they discovered all of the issues. The service tech told me that it is a common problem for those transmissions to fail prematurely and cause other problems. This is a safety issue because after 7 years of the vehicle being on the road with under 100k miles, it is posing a safety hazard not only for the customers but also the public. Please investigate the transmission issue that is leading to other safety issues. This is the 6F35 transmission that is installed on these vehicles. These transmissions are famous for failing prematurely. This was one of those cases. No check engine light comes on to indicate that there is trouble with the transmission. This problem is putting others and oneself at risk because it lead to other failed components. The problem first appeared at 55k miles and around january 2023.

Filed Sep 3, 2024 · Transmission · 80,559 miles · OH

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle hesitated to respond, jerked, and experienced hard shifts while responding. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring while driving. The power train warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with internal transmission damage that caused clutch B to fail. The dealer determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 80,559.

Filed May 14, 2024 · Transmission · IL

The flex plate is cracked at 87,000 miles and causing the vehicle to make a loud rattling noise near the bottom of the engine toward the back of the transmission. While driving the vehicle it drags while accelerating on turns and gives a hard shift in gears from park. The vehicle was inspected by Aamco transmission and several Ford dealers where i was told that this seems to be a common issue with the ford fusions according to several ford dealers but the ford manufacturer is refusing to place a recall for this matter. There is no warning indicating the issue is near or has occurred until the flex plate has already caused damage.

Filed Apr 5, 2024 · Transmission · PA

Failed transmission. Hard shift from 2-3, and 4-5. Also transmission is slipping. Only 40,600 miles on the car. Car is a dealership for evaluation, they recommend replacing the transmission.

Filed Oct 24, 2022 · Transmission · 79,000 miles · FL

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that after reversing out of the driveway, the vehicle failed to shift out the reverse(R) after multiple attempts. The contact stated that the gear shifter indicated the vehicle was in park(P). The contact heard an abnormal clunking noise coming from the gear shifter as the shifter fault message appeared on the instrument panel. Due to the failure, the contact had the vehicle towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed with a defective shifter cable bushing. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 79,000.

Filed Apr 23, 2021 · Acceleration, Transmission · 61,000 miles · DE

I first noticed harsh shifting and delayed shifting. Then I was pulling off from the car wash and my gearshift jump gears from neutral to reverse but not drive however the car did move forward. I had the vehicle towed to winner gord where they immediately knew what the issue was because they said its common. When I got my vehicle back the harsh/delayed shifting was still an issue. Weeks later the car in addition to harsh and delayed shifting it now shakes really bad.