The contact owns a 2011 Lincoln MKS. The contact stated that while reversing into a parking space, the power steering warning light illuminated. The vehicle was later restarted, and the traction control and power steering warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle then experienced a loss of power steering assist. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who determined that the steering gear had failed and that the steering rack needed to be replaced; however, the steering rack was no longer manufactured so the vehicle required an aftermarket steering rack. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 212,000.
2011 Lincoln MKS: loss of power steering
9 of the 43 complaints about the 2011 Lincoln MKS describe loss of power steering.
- owner complaints
- 9
- of this car's complaints
- 21%
- typical mileage
- 50,000
- recalls
- 1
Loss of power steering by model year
What owners say
I was driving and I hear a beeping sound,and my steering just stopped working and made it difficult to control the vehicle in a curve.. Recall Details: 2011–2013 Power Steering Electric Assist Loss •In June 2015, Ford issued Recall #15S18 (the federal safety agency Campaign 15V340000) for a range of vehicles—including the 2011 Lincoln MKS—due to a potential intermittent electrical connection in the steering gear. This defect could cause loss of electronic power steering assist, increasing steering effort and potential crash risk , I never received notification of this potential risk and it was lucky that my grandchildren was not in the car because I usually pick them up from school about the time this occurred. Just want to know what action can I take and how can you assist me?
In 2015 a recall was done to repair the power steering failure issue. In October of 2021, while driving the vehicle down the highway, the power steering went out making the vehicle almost impossible to steer. Had the vehicle towed to the dealership where they verified the issue and pulled code U3000 for steering gear failure. With 68827 miles, I was charged for the entire repair with not one mention about the extension to the power steering recall. The parts and labor that were charged were those mentioned in the recall. Fast forward to November 2022, had the vehicle towed to the same dealership for the same issue. Lights on the dash were present, and concern verified that the power steering was completely inoperative. No communication with the unit told me that the power steering control needed to be replaced. Again there was no mention or advocating involving the power steering recall that involved this exact issue. This time was told that they installed a part that was used in the previous repair so again I had to pay the entire cost. Currently, there are no issues with the vehicle but I have been looking to sell it because I have not driven it much due to the cost of these repairs. It was during my research to sell that I came across all the recall information on my vehicle and do not understand why all of these costs were not covered and why the dealership did nothing to advocate for me.
ELECTRIC POWER STEERING FAILED WHILE DRIVING. Had a difficult time pulling vehicle over after failure. Notice I missed recall by 90 days.
While driving my car it instantly lost steering no forewarning lights. It was very difficult to turn or control the car. I took it to lincoln and they said they can't cover this exact thing these cars have a recall on because my car was past the warranty. They even charged me to look at it because its past warranty. My car is 4,000 miles past coverage soo they're charging me $2800 for a malfunction that is noted a flaw for this same car.
Steering is hard to control. Took it to auto repair, gave me codes that match recall codes. Technition said the whole power steering system must be replaced
Recently, this car started intermittently displaying the "power steering assist fault" code and at the same time the steering would seize up when in motion. This has now happened twice within the last 2 weeks. On investigation, 2011 lincoln mks vehicles with the 3.5l gtdi engine (my vehicle) were supposed to be covered by recall 15s18 which addresses this exact safety situation. When I called both the ford dealer and the ford customer service line, they indicated this VIN is not covered and that they could do a diagnostic check at the dealership but under no circumstances would it be covered (translation--I get to pay for any repair). It is clearly not safe to drive. How can ford justify not covering this car when the recall was quite large in scope and cars of the same year, same model, same engine were specified in the recall? Thanks!
Power steering went out and had power steering assist fault error. Incident occurred after backing out of driveway and putting the car into drive.
Was driving down the road about to merge onto the freeway when I noticed the "power steering assist fault" message in the display center and my electronic power steering had shut off. It was a 20 mile drive home with no power steering in below freezing temperatures. Had I been driving at a more busy time, I might have had a collision with another vehicle.
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
Steering: electric power assist system
- What is wrong
- Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 Ford Fusion vehicles without a 3.5L engine and Lincoln MKZ hybrid electric vehicles, 2011 Mercury Milan vehicles, 2011-2012 Ford Taurus, Ford Flex, Lincoln MKS, and Lincoln MKT vehicles equipped with a 3.5L GTDI engine and 2013 Ford Taurus, Ford Flex, Lincoln MKS, and Lincoln MKT vehicles equipped with any available engine. The affected vehicles have electric power steering assist systems that may shut down as a result of a steering motor sensor fault.
- Risk
- If the vehicle experiences a loss of power steering assist, extra steering effort will be required at lower speeds, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Ford will notify owners, and dealers will check the Power Steering Control Module (PSCM) for Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTC). If dealers find any loss of steering assist DTCs, the steering gear will be replaced, free of charge. If, no codes are found during the PSCM inspection, the PSCM software will be updated, free of charge. The recall began on July 21, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1‑866‑436‑7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15S18.
Recall number 15V340000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2011 Lincoln MKS power steering loss
Is loss of power steering a common problem on the 2011 Lincoln MKS?
9 of 43 owner complaints about the 2011 Lincoln MKS (21%) mention loss of power steering. The model year with the most reports is 2013.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2011 Lincoln MKS?
There is 1 recall and 1 service bulletin for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2011 Lincoln MKS
VIN decoder
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