Cruise control, electrical and engine issues among the top complaints received by the NHTSA from vehicle owners
The 2019 Ford Fusion won a lot of hearts with its fuel-efficiency and sporty style. The model was hailed as being the “cure for the common car,” but many owners wish they had chosen something else. This particular model suffers from a faulty electrical system, defective engine and dangerous vehicle speed control system.
The modern vehicle’s electrical system runs every aspect of today’s cars. When something isn’t operating correctly, the owner can feel it.
That’s what this Cars.com review talks about. “I’m under 500 miles on my car and twice now my sync screen/system has glitched and become non-responsive. My screen will either freeze or glitch between rear view camera as I’m driving, to a blank blue screen and back and forth. The first time I just turned off the car and waited about 5 minutes, it resolved itself. I’m currently waiting to see if I can do the same this second time. But I feel this is a defect and will be going back to my dealer ASAP.”
Other electrical concerns are rampant. Even the automaker discusses the trouble with the voice prompts with Service Bulletin #SSM 48336. Ford states that some vehicles suffer from skipping, hiccups or short pauses while information is provided, yet they don’t have a fix yet. Instead, they require that the engineers spend a little more time figuring out what is wrong. The “cure for the common car” is one that actually works the way owners want it to. Sadly, the Fusion can’t provide this simple functionality, making it a lemon.
| Complaint Category | Number of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Electrical System | |
| Engine | |
| Power Train | |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | |
| Unknown Or Other | |
| Fuel/propulsion System | |
| Steering | |
| Air Bags | |
| Latches/locks/linkages:trunk Lid:latch | |
| Service Brakes |
No one expects the small Fusion to have an engine that powers the vehicle to be of the same level as a race car, but it should still be reliable. Unfortunately, this is another area that Ford messed up with.
One NHTSA complaint states, “The contact owns a 2019 Ford Fusion. As the contact pulled the vehicle into a parking space and placed the gear into Park, the engine revved three times. The vehicle jerked forward before shutting off on its own. A few minutes later, the contact restarted the vehicle and it operated normally. The contact managed to drive the vehicle home. The contact called [dealer] and was informed to bring the vehicle to their service department. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, but no failure was found. The contact stated that she no longer wanted the vehicle. The dealer referred the contact to the manufacturer to try to get out of the lease. The manufacturer assigned a case number and manager to the contact. The case manager informed the contact that the dealer found no failure and could not lease her another vehicle. The contact refused to take the vehicle back and threatened to make no more payments on it even if it ruined her credit. The following day, the dealer tried to return the vehicle, but the contact refused. The contact spoke with the dealer manager and they finally agreed to let the contact lease a new vehicle; However, they rolled over the other lease into the new vehicle, which doubled the monthly payment. The dealer justified this by stating that no failure was found with the first vehicle and blamed the contact. The failure mileage was 100.”
The owner didn’t even get 100 miles on this car before it malfunctioned and then the dealer was “kind” enough to roll her payments over to a new car with double the payments as a way to thank her for her business. It turns out that Ford is having a lot of trouble with this engine. The automaker even warns technicians (Service Bulletin #SSM 47922) to carefully remove the oil filter during service because the stem can easily become separated or damaged. This further proves how right the tagline “cure for the common car” actually is. Regular vehicles will last more than 100 miles and don’t try to hold on to maintenance parts that should be removed.
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Along with the engine, the vehicle speed control is malfunctioning and putting users in danger.
Read this NHTSA complaint. “The contact owns a 2019 Ford Fusion. While driving 35 mph with the cruise control engaged, the contact applied pressure to the brake pedal. Upon releasing the brake pedal, the vehicle accelerated on its own at a high rate of speed. The failure occurred twice and the speed reached exactly 71 mph. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was towed to [dealer] but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 350.”
In all three complaints reviewed above, it shows that the Fusion failed before hitting 500 miles on the odometer. Is Ford attempting to create some sort of throw-away car that lasts for a month? If so, it would help if the company would drop the price that reflects the low level of quality.
Think you have a lemon? Sit back and let the experts work out your lemon case at no cost to you. The law makes Ford pay legal fees. You may be able to get your lemon out of your life. Every year, auto manufacturers buy back, replace or pay cash settlements to thousands of ‘lemon’ owners like you.
Brian Jones spent more than 30 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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2019-2020 Ford Fusion Energi Hybrid Plugin recalled due to BECM Fire Risk (NHTSA: 23V440, Ford: 23S33)
I have the 2019. Haven’t been able to charge it since June. People have been stating that it is eligible for the Lemon Law since they have offered $250 for the MPG loss, I didn’t accept it. I live in California and that won’t go very far. I think we need a class-action lawsuit for everyone. I definitely want to try and lemon law this thing back to them.
2019 Ford Fusion: Bad manufacturer design on the front bumper, has to go into the shop.
2019 fusion 2.0 eco, failed dealer-rebuilt transmission which now has to be replaced. 2nd the coolant is disappearing but can’t be found but needs a new long block and turbo from what tech says. Extended warranty sending out an inspector for evaluation. Looks like new car time.
My 2019 fusion, cuts off in traffic. I had it diagnosed, and it’s a bad purge valve. It’s very scary driving it , I only had it for 11 months. And don’t trust driving it in fear of getting stuck somewhere. I think I bought a lemon. SMH
2019 Ford Fusion Energi-Titanium was purchased brand new with my ford mobile app from one of their dealerships. This app was the very best of many apps yet ford recently said the AT &T no longer supports 3g so Ford said you don’t have to but if you would like an app you need to go to a dealership to replace the 3g modem over to a 4g modem to have another different app called Ford Pass. Short Version nothing but one major problem after another many months later still not working properly about 70%. Have a 2020 Ford Fusion SEL Hybrid with Ford Pass works about 80% of the time. Lots more too much to list.
I have for Ford Fusion 2019 since a day that I have the car I noticed a problems shaky steering wheel the engine don’t have power the transmission jerks engine light come on and off I took five times to the dealer the service writer never Road my complaints on the repair order the only thing she rode was hook it up on the computer to see if I chose any problems but they did not find anything tomorrow I have an appointment at 1:30 p.m. I have to take the car one more time but this time I want to make the service writer to write my complaints on the service report because that’s the only way I can protect myself
I have a 2019 Ford Fusion with 22k miles. I took my car into the dealer for an oil change. When the day after I got my car back the check engine light came on and I took it back to the dealer. I was given a loaner after a few days and after a week and a half I was told that the car needed a new engine that was on back order. It’s been over a month. I have called corporate and am waiting on them to get back to me. What is my recourse as I am concerned about the value and reliability of my vehicle going forward.