2012 Ford Fusion
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Steering is the leading concern among 2,616 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 3rd highest complaint count among 15 Fusion model years with reports.
Of the 2012 reports, 111 involved a crash and 9 involved a fire. 66 people were injured and 3 people died.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Air bags, frontal, driver side, inflator moduleMar 10, 2021
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2007-2011 Ranger, 2006-2012 Fusion, Lincoln Zephyr, Lincoln MKZ, 2006-2011 Mercury Milan, 2007-2010 Ford Edge, and Lincoln MKX vehicles. The driver's side air bag inflator may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the driver-side airbag inflator or module with an alternate one, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on April 9, 2021 for the passenger side, and November 14, 2022 for the driver side. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S12.
Campaign 21V158000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bags, frontalFeb 16, 2021
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2005-2014 Mustang, 2004-2011 Ranger, 2009-2011 Mercury Milan, 2006 Ford GT, 2008-2012 Fusion, 2007-2010 Edge and Lincoln MKX, and 2009-2010 Lincoln MKZ vehicles. These vehicles may be equipped with a driver or passenger frontal air bag inflator used as a replacement service part, that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the frontal air bag, an inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the driver and passenger air bag module, and replace either the module or the inflator, if necessary, free of charge. The recall began March 17, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S05.
Campaign 21V081000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bags, frontal, passenger side, inflator moduleFeb 16, 2021
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain air bag inflator and/or module replacement service parts that may have been used as part of a collision repair. The parts include certain driver-side air bag inflators and/or modules, designed to fit 2005-2014 Ford Mustang and Mustang GT500. It also includes certain passenger-side air bag inflators and/or modules designed to fit 2005-2014 Ford Mustang, 2010-2012 Lincoln MKZ, 2010-2012 Ford Fusion, 2010-2011 Mercury Milan, 2007-2011 Ford Ranger, and 2007-2010 Lincoln MKX vehicles. Please see Ford's recall report for the specific part numbers. These parts may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the frontal air bag, an inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Ford will notify dealers that purchased the affected parts, and dealers will provide replacement parts to purchasers, free of charge. The recall began March 18, 2021. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 21S05.
Campaign 21E013000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bags, frontal, passenger side, inflator moduleDo not drive until repairedJan 7, 2019
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, Ford is recalling certain 2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2011-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles and 2011-2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Ford is also recalling certain 2010 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles, 2010-2011 Ford Ranger and Mercury Milan vehicles, 2010-2012 Ford Fusion and Lincoln Zephyr/MKZ vehicles, and 2010-2014 Ford Mustang vehicles sold, or ever registered, in the states of AK, CO, CT, ID, IA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MT, NH, NY, ND, OR, RI, SD, UT, VT, WA, WI, and WY or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, used as original equipment or replacement equipment (such as after a vehicle crash necessitating replacement of the original air bags), that may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. The recall began February 13, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall 19S01.
Campaign 19V001000 on NHTSA.gov
Air bags, frontal, passenger side, inflator moduleDo not drive until repairedJan 10, 2017
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012 Ford Fusion and Mustang and Lincoln Zephyr and MKZ vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" above, Ford is recalling certain 2009 Ford Ranger, Edge, Fusion and Mustang, Lincoln MKX, MKZ and Zephyr and Mercury Milan vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia, or "Zone B." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" or "Zone B" above, Ford is recalling certain 2007-2008 Ford Ranger, Edge and Lincoln MKX, 2006-2008 Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan, Lincoln Zephyr and MKZ, 2005-2008 Ford Mustang and 2005-2006 Ford GT vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the passenger frontal air bag, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling.
An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the repair has been performed. Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag inflator, free of charge. Interim letters informing owners of the recall and that parts are not yet available began mailing March 1, 2017. Owners will receive a second notice when remedy parts become available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S01.
Campaign 17V024000 on NHTSA.gov
Steering, electric power assist systemJun 2, 2015
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.
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.
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.
Campaign 15V340000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints
2,616 reports, newest first.
Steering, Electrical system, Apr 29, 2024
Unknown electric power steering shut down while traveling leaving me with no power steering
Steering, Apr 26, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the contact became aware that the electronic power steering was not functioning properly, requiring increased effort to maneuver the vehicle. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the electronic power steering. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering) but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was unknown.
Steering, Apr 22, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the traction control and advanced traction warning lights illuminated. In addition, the steering wheel was difficult to turn. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed steering gear. The contact was informed that the steering gear needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed that the failure was like safety Manufacturer Communication Number: 15N01 and NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering); however, the VIN was not associated with the recalls. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. Additionally, the contact was advised to report the failure to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 87,508.
Steering, Apr 22, 2024
Bought this car in January of 2024. 2 weeks after purchase, my steering wheel became hard to turn while I was on the road. The Power Steering Assist Fault light came on, so I decided to fix the issue by taking my car to a well-rated mechanic in my area. The issue was fixed, but only temporarily as the same issue occurred two months later while I was on the road, leading myself and anyone else around me to be in danger of me losing control and crashing into them. Luckily, I made it home safely, and researched the problem only to find out many vehicles similar to my make and year had the same issue with a lot of recalls. I already paid 1000 dollars to fix it once, I'd like to have a recall in order to fix it again.
Steering, Apr 19, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving from the driveway, the steering wheel was difficult to turn. The message "Power Steering Assist Fault” was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the electric power steering assist had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 44,529. The VIN was not available.
Steering, Apr 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while depressing the brake pedal, the "Power Steering default" message was displayed, and the steering wheel became stiff and difficult to turn. The contact stated that the vehicle was restarted and was operating normally; however, the failure recurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but was not repaired. The contact discovered an unknown NHTSA Campaign; however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 81,000.
Power train, Electrical system, Apr 12, 2024
Car was impacted by previous recall related to the power steering electrical systems and power steering assist fault light. Ford needs to pay for these issues, so many people with this vehicle have had this issue and ford is refusing to pay for it.
Steering, Apr 11, 2024
While pregnant wife was driving the vehicle, the steering completely stopped working. When she reached safety, wife pulled over and turned car off. After letting car set for a couple of minutes and turning back on, steering still wouldn't work. When taken to the dealership, Ford said that car didn't meet the customer satisfaction program warranty of 10 years or 150,000 miles.
Steering, Apr 11, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion Hybrid. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel was difficult to turn. No warning light was illuminated. The contact stated a message that the “Advance-trac System Failure - Service Required” message was displayed. The contact drove the vehicle home, turned off the vehicle, and noticed that the steering wheel was locked. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer to be diagnosed or repaired. The contact stated that the failure occurred on two prior occasions and was diagnosed as an Advance-trac system failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The approximate failure mileage was 207,000.
Steering, Electrical system, Mar 20, 2024
Power steering went out. The steering rack has now gone bad in this vehicle twice. The first time it was covered under a recall, 15S18, and then there were further issues, so they issued a customer satisfaction recall with the number 15N01. 2012 ford fusion with 110,000 miles, two steering racks, but because the customer service recall is expired, they won’t replace my second bad steering rack, and it is going to cost me 3,000 dollars, more than half the worth of the car according to KBB. I find this to be incredibly unfair that Ford can put a crappy part that costs 2000 dollars in a vehicle, and then say because the customer service recall is expired, it’s my job and responsibility to spend 3,000 dollars fixing their crappy part.
Steering, Mar 15, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel seized. The power steering service now and advanced track system warning lights are illuminated. The vehicle was undrivable. The contact was able to safely pull the vehicle to the shoulder of the roadway. The vehicle was towed to the residence. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed determined there was no communication between the steering wheel and the power steering. The steering wheel sensor needed to be replaced and possibly the control module and the rack and pinion. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and a case was filed. The failure mileage was approximately 132,000.
Air bags, Mar 13, 2024, crash
Driver side impact and passenger side curtain airbags deployed but not driver side that was hit.
Steering, Mar 13, 2024
I was driving along, going about 55mph, and all of a sudden the service advancedtrac pops up on my dash. A few minutes later service power steering now came across the screen. I noticed a difference in the steering. It was getting harder but it was manageable. I had to make a stop and turned the car off. When I crunk the car back up and started to drive the steering was very stiff. It took all I had just to pull out of a parking space. Ford really needs to extend the recall for this issue to other years.
Steering, Mar 6, 2024
Power steering went out and couldn't turn wheel. It is available for inspection. Tried to turn right at intersection and power steering was just gone. I had my wife and granddaughter in the car. We were lucky no vehicle was coming thru the intersection at that moment. Got it off the road and back to my house since I had only went about a quarter mile.The vehicle has not been inspected since its undriveable. There was first a power steering assist fault and then changed to Advancetrak Fault. It showed power steering fault about 3 weeks ago but I turned off car and restarted it, and it drove fine until [XXX]. We were headed to lowes and had just left our house when we pulled out at a red-light to go right and it locked up. Went to Ford dealership. They said extended warranty was 10 years from date or 150000 miles. They basically said it wasn't there problem. So now we have an excellent condition car that we can't drive. Thank You for your time. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Power train, Feb 22, 2024
When I started my vehicle to drive, a warning on my dashboard came on that said "Power Steering Assist Fault" and my steering wheel is now unable to turn in any direction.
Steering, Feb 21, 2024
1.My daughter was driving her Fusion in Los Angeles, California when the power steering gave out. 2. Fortunately she maintained control of the car but had it towed to the shop. 3. The car is impossible to drive safely with the steering so defective. 4. The repairs are prohibitively expensive [$2754.33]. 5. Ford has not placed this defect as a recall but has acknowledged this dangerous condition under its "Customer Satisfaction Program campaign # [XXX]. 6. Ford refuses to pay for the repair as it claims some sort of time limit has expired. 7. [My daughter may supplement this report to give finer details, as I am not sure on the dates or exactly how the incident happened.] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Steering, Feb 8, 2024
On January 13 went a school function. When leaving the function the power steering assist light went on and the power steering cease to function making it hard to control. I was able to to control the vehicle and prevent it from getting in any type of accident. Some of the vehicles have been recalled because of faulty power steering. Ford will not pay the cost of the repair.
Steering, Feb 2, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while her son was driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering feature was inoperable. The contact stated that the failure had occurred two weeks ago. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed power steering assist. The contact was informed that the power steering assist needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 162,250.
Steering, Feb 2, 2024
Power steering has completely quit working and no error codes are coming up when checked. This is putting my family and everyone on the road at risk as it is very hard to steer the vehicle and near impossible to drive defensively. This has been inspected by a repair shop. No codes are found. No warning before this happened. Power steering failed and a notice in the car came up on the screen at the same time to have it fixed.
Steering, Jan 31, 2024, crash
I was driving, the power steering failed and caused me to start to lose control of my vehicle while turning on the freeway, which caused me to slightly crash into the side wall and almost go over the highway into the water. I also hit my head on the driver side window and felt very dizzy for a while afterwards. Because I was so in shock and scared, I wasn’t able to drive the car home for hours, so I pulled onto the side of the road and called my family to let them know what happened. When I purchased the vehicle I wasn’t informed of any issues with the model. Both this model and several others were included as part of a recall, and the car was taken into the shop and “repaired” by past owners, yet the power steering failed again. There is no active unrepaired recall because the car was brought in before and worked on by Ford mechanics who then cleared the recall after fixing the car because they deemed the issue to be addressed. However, the issue is still ongoing. It is not fixed at all. I purchased this car last year, and if I would’ve known this would happen or that the car had so many issues I never would’ve bought it. I’ve taken the car to several dealerships that have said the problem is a complete failure of the steering gear, yet when I take it in to ford dealerships they state that the “extended warranty is expired” and that they can’t do anything about the vehicle needing a recall. I almost lost my life, I have a car that I cannot drive and have not been able to drive ever since the incident occurred. Why am I being punished because my car has been refused to be repaired, and because Ford has refused to provide me any reimbursement for the problem? To whoever reads this, thank you so much for taking the time to read and help me with this problem, as my vehicle is how I’m able to ensure survival and I’ve been struggling to survive without any type of vehicle.
Steering, Jan 31, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the message "Service Electronic Power Steering" displayed, and the steering wheel became difficult to turn in either direction. The vehicle was driven to the local dealer who diagnosed that the steering gear had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The contact stated that the vehicle was previously serviced under the NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering) in 2019. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 111,000.
Air bags, Vehicle speed control, Jan 31, 2024, crash
Ive had multiple accidents trying to get this car repaired . There are recalls all the way up to 2010 yet 2011 are also having the same hydraulic issues and ABS issues .This is outrageous i have to spent over 3000 dollars and the issues still is resolved especially when im paying for manufacturers error.I am not hard on any of my cars but this one is HORRIBLE
Steering, Jan 21, 2024
Power steering
Steering, Jan 9, 2024
on 1/6/2024 my car steering went. There was a recall on certain cars that the 2012 Ford Fusion has a recall for this but the dealer is saying there is not for my car. This seems to be an extensive problem with his car and a expensive repair. Electric steering rack failed
Steering, Jan 8, 2024
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle became extremely difficult to steer the vehicle. The power steering assist light was illuminated. The contact stated that the steering assist failure started 4 years prior to the failure and as per the dealer, the vehicle was not under recall. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer yet. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.