NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Power Train complaints
160 reportsClear category filter76,000 miles · Mar 15, 2020
Power Train
IT STARTED WITH A BURNT OIL SMELL THAT COULD BE SMELT INSIDE THE VEHICLE ONCE IN A WHILE. THEN LITTLE BY LITTLE GRINDING NOISES STARTED TO BE HEARD FROM UNDERNEATH THE VEHICLE AFTER SLOWING DOWN FROM A HIGHER SPEED. THE VEHICLE THEN STARTED MAKING A NOISE WHEN STEERING AND A RATTLING NOISE UNDERNEATH THE VEHICLE. ONCE IN A WHILE…
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IT STARTED WITH A BURNT OIL SMELL THAT COULD BE SMELT INSIDE THE VEHICLE ONCE IN A WHILE. THEN LITTLE BY LITTLE GRINDING NOISES STARTED TO BE HEARD FROM UNDERNEATH THE VEHICLE AFTER SLOWING DOWN FROM A HIGHER SPEED. THE VEHICLE THEN STARTED MAKING A NOISE WHEN STEERING AND A RATTLING NOISE UNDERNEATH THE VEHICLE. ONCE IN A WHILE AND THEN STARTED BAGGING WHEN I WOULD GO TO ACCELERATE. THE NOISE IS MADE FROM UNDERNEATH THE VEHICLE WERE INTERMITTENT SOMETIMES THEY WOULD DO IT AND SOMETIMES THEY WOULD NOT AND MANY TIMES THEY GOT VERY LOUD. YOU COULD HEAR THE NOISE WHILE DRIVING AND MORE SO WHILE SLOWING DOWN TO A STOP. ALL OF A SUDDEN THE VEHICLE WOULD BIGGER FORWARD WHEN GIVING A LITTLE GAS. WAS JUST MAY ABLE TO MAKE IT HOME BEFORE IT WAS NO LONGER DRIVE-ABLE. THIS IS ONLY A 6 1/2YR. OLD VEHICLE WITH 76,000 MILES. APPEARS TO BE MAJOR PROBLEM WITH TRANSFER CASE, REAR DIFFERENTIAL, AND TRANSMISSION.
NHTSA ODI #11318107
145,000 miles · Mar 11, 2020
Power Train
THE VEHICLE BEGAN EMITTING A SMELL INTERMITTENTLY, WHICH WAS LATER DETERMINED TO BE GEAR OIL FROM THE TRANSFER CASE. EVENTUALLY, THE CAR BEGAN TO MAKE A GRINDING SOUND WHILE STEERING AND STOPPING UNTIL THE TRANSFER CASE BLEW UP AND DESTROYED THE TRANSMISSION. THE TRANSFER CASE AND TRANSMISSION WERE REPLACED, WAS TOLD THAT THIS…
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THE VEHICLE BEGAN EMITTING A SMELL INTERMITTENTLY, WHICH WAS LATER DETERMINED TO BE GEAR OIL FROM THE TRANSFER CASE. EVENTUALLY, THE CAR BEGAN TO MAKE A GRINDING SOUND WHILE STEERING AND STOPPING UNTIL THE TRANSFER CASE BLEW UP AND DESTROYED THE TRANSMISSION. THE TRANSFER CASE AND TRANSMISSION WERE REPLACED, WAS TOLD THAT THIS TRANSFER CASE WAS AN "ISSUE" IN THESE CARS. AFTER REPAIR, THE CAR BEGAN TO MAKE NOISES AGAIN, GEAR OIL SMELLS IN THE PASSENGER CABIN, AND SUBSEQUENTLY, THE TRANSFER CASE AGAIN BLEW UP, FILLING THE PASSENGER CABIN WITH SMOKE AND DISABLING THE VEHICLE ON A MAJOR HIGHWAY LESS THAN 100 MILES AFTER PREVIOUS REPAIR. TRANSFER CASE REPLACED AGAIN, WAS DRIVEN BY THE MECHANIC FOR 26 MILES, AND AGAIN BLEW UP LEAVING THE VEHICLE DISABLED. THE TRUE FAILURE APPEARS THAT THE CAR IS FAILING TO SWITCH FROM AWD TO FWD WHEN IT GETS UP TO HIGH SPEEDS CAUSING REPEATED FAILURES TO THE ENTIRE SYSTEM AND DISABLING THE CAR PUTTING ME AND MY FAMILY AT RISK EACH TIME. FORD IS AWARE THAT THIS IS AN ISSUE. THE PARTS DEPARTMENT HAS DOZENS OF TRANSFER CASES AND REAR DIFFERENTIALS AVAILABLE TO CONTINUE REPLACING AND THEY KNOW THAT THEY ARE PUTTING THEIR CUSTOMERS AT RISK. MY TRANSFER CASES FAILURES HAPPENED ON A CITY STREET (1ST TIME) TURNING LEFT, MAJOR HIGHWAY @ 70MPH GOING STRAIGHT DOWN A HILL AND COASTING (2ND TIME), CITY STREET GOING STRAIGHT (3RD TIME). THIS IS A DANGEROUS SITUATION AND NEEDS TO BE RESOLVED WITH ON MULTIPLE AWD VEHICLES THAT FORD HAS MADE WITH THIS SYSTEM.
NHTSA ODI #11317455
91,000 miles · Feb 27, 2020
Power TrainVehicle Speed Control
THIS HAS HAPPENED ON AT LEAST 6 OCCASIONS INT HE LAST WEEK. MOST RECENTLY I WAS TRAVELING ON A HIGHWAY AT APPROX. 50MPH WHEN THE ENGINE ENTERED A DEFAULT LOW POWER STATE AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED. I WAS ABLE TO PULL ONTO THE SHOULDER AND THE CAR BEHIND ME WAS ABLE TO AVOID A COLLISION BY SLAMMING ON THEIR BRAKES. AD…
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THIS HAS HAPPENED ON AT LEAST 6 OCCASIONS INT HE LAST WEEK. MOST RECENTLY I WAS TRAVELING ON A HIGHWAY AT APPROX. 50MPH WHEN THE ENGINE ENTERED A DEFAULT LOW POWER STATE AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED. I WAS ABLE TO PULL ONTO THE SHOULDER AND THE CAR BEHIND ME WAS ABLE TO AVOID A COLLISION BY SLAMMING ON THEIR BRAKES. ADDITIONALLY, THE CAR CONSISTENTLY PRESENTS SYMPTOMS OF ROUGH IDLE, ROUGH ENGINE RUNNING AT NORMAL SPEEDS, AND A HIGHLY DECREASED FUEL ECONOMY. AFTER PULLING THE ODBII CODES AND SOME RESEARCH, THIS APPEARS TO BE A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH THE CAR'S THROTTLE BODY ASSEMBLY. THE ODBII CODE IS P2111.
NHTSA ODI #11311793
36,463 miles · Feb 26, 2020
Power Train
TRANSMISSION COMPLETELY FAILED AT 36463 MILES AFTER MY WIFE GOT HOME FROM A 6 MILE TRIP. CAR TRANSMISSION FAILED TO GO IN REVERSE AND START VIBRATING VIOLENTLY WHEN TRYING TO PUT IN A FORWARD GEAR. CAR WAS 6 YEARS AND A FEW MONTHS OLD. DEALER AND FORD WOULD NOT BACK THE TRANSMISSION UP BECAUSE IT WAS OUT OF WARRANTY,
NHTSA ODI #11311649
100,000 miles · Feb 12, 2020
Power TrainCrash
BROKEN SHIFTER CABLE. WHILE PARKING MY 2013 FORD EDGE IN MY GARAGE (HOUSE SITS ON A VERY BIG HILL), MY VEHICLE STARTED ROLLING AWAY FROM ME. ATTEMPTING TO GET BACK IN WASN'T POSSIBLE. MY VEHICLE ROLLED DOWN A VERY STEEP DRIVE WAY AND COULD HAVE KILLED ANYONE IN ITS WAY! AFTER LOOKING ONLINE I FOUND THAT FORD RECALLED 504,000 …
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BROKEN SHIFTER CABLE. WHILE PARKING MY 2013 FORD EDGE IN MY GARAGE (HOUSE SITS ON A VERY BIG HILL), MY VEHICLE STARTED ROLLING AWAY FROM ME. ATTEMPTING TO GET BACK IN WASN'T POSSIBLE. MY VEHICLE ROLLED DOWN A VERY STEEP DRIVE WAY AND COULD HAVE KILLED ANYONE IN ITS WAY! AFTER LOOKING ONLINE I FOUND THAT FORD RECALLED 504,000 ESCAPE AND FUSION VEHICLES. I DID NOT FIND WHERE FORD EDGE WAS MENTIONED. THIS NEEDS TO BE MADE AWARE TO THE PEOPLE WHO OWN FORD EDGE! MY LIFE COULD HAVE BEEN DESTROYED FOREVER IF SOMEONE WAS KILLED OR SEVERELY HURT! AFTER TALKING TO THE MECHANIC WHO FIXED MY VEHICLE, HE TOLD ME THIS INCIDENT WASN'T MY FAULT, THAT THE SHIFT CABLE WAS BROKE AND THE CAR STARTED ROLLING ON ITS OWN RIGHT AT HIS SHOP. IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE TO PUT THE CAR IN THE PARK POSITION. MY VEHICLE DOOR AND FENDER WERE DESTROYED UPON LEAVING MY GARAGE BECAUSE I OPENED THE DOOR TO TRY AND GET BACK IN THE VEHICLE. I HAD TO JUMP OUT OF THE WAY OR I WOULD HAVE BEEN CRUSHED BETWEEN THE DOOR AND MY HOUSE.
NHTSA ODI #11308712
39,100 miles · Jan 21, 2020
Power TrainUnknown Or Other
RECENTLY HAD MY VEHICLE SERVICED FOR AN ONGOING DOOR LOCK ISSUE WHERE FORD EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE. DURING THE MOST RECENT SERVICE ON 7 JAN 2020, THE SERVICE ADVISOR ALSO INDICATED AND DOCUMENTED THAT THE PTU (POWER TRANSFER UNIT) IS LEAKING FROM A VENT AND THAT INDICATES IT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AT APPROX $1,800.00. THE VEHI…
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RECENTLY HAD MY VEHICLE SERVICED FOR AN ONGOING DOOR LOCK ISSUE WHERE FORD EXTENDED WARRANTY COVERAGE. DURING THE MOST RECENT SERVICE ON 7 JAN 2020, THE SERVICE ADVISOR ALSO INDICATED AND DOCUMENTED THAT THE PTU (POWER TRANSFER UNIT) IS LEAKING FROM A VENT AND THAT INDICATES IT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AT APPROX $1,800.00. THE VEHICLE AS NOTED IN THEIR RECORDS AND MY ODOMETER, HAD ONLY 39,100 MILES AT THIS TIME. PER RESEARCH ON THE WEB IT APPEARS THIS IS A WELL KNOWN ISSUE WITH THE FORD EDGE THAT FORD IS AWARE OF AND DISCONTINUED USING THAT PARTICULAR PTU. WHEN QUESTIONED, THE FORD ADVISOR AT HOLMAN FORD INDICATED HE WAS NOT AWARE OF ANY SUCH ISSUES NOR THAT A DIFFERENT DRIVE PART WAS NOW BEING USED BY FORD. FORD IS NOT OFFERING ANY FORM OF COMPENSATION OR CREDIT OR ANY RECOMPENSE AT THIS TIME.
NHTSA ODI #11300813
60,000 miles · Jan 21, 2020
Power Train
PARK LIGHT INDICATION NIT WORKING WHEN PUTTING CAR IN PARK. WHEN SHAFTING INTO PARK, THE INDICATOR ON DASH DIES NIT SHOW P. IT DOESN'T SHOW ANY TRANSMISSION SETTING. IF I TURN CAR OFF, AN ERROR APPEARS SAYING TO SHIFT CAR INTO PARK. DRYING FIRST FEW MONTHS, I COULD TOGGLE THE SHIFT PUTT ON OR WIGGLE THE SHUFFLE CONTROL AND THE …
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PARK LIGHT INDICATION NIT WORKING WHEN PUTTING CAR IN PARK. WHEN SHAFTING INTO PARK, THE INDICATOR ON DASH DIES NIT SHOW P. IT DOESN'T SHOW ANY TRANSMISSION SETTING. IF I TURN CAR OFF, AN ERROR APPEARS SAYING TO SHIFT CAR INTO PARK. DRYING FIRST FEW MONTHS, I COULD TOGGLE THE SHIFT PUTT ON OR WIGGLE THE SHUFFLE CONTROL AND THE LIGHT INDICATING PARK WOULD APPEAR THUS ALLOWING ME TO TURN CAR OFF WITHOUT ALARM. IT IS BECOMING INCREASINGLY DIFFICULT TO GET THE LIGHT TO APPEAR AFTER PLACING THE LEVER IN PARK. AT TIMES, I MUST RESTART THE CAR IF I HAVE TURNED IGNITION OFF , RESHIFT AND HOPE IT RECIGNUZES THE PARK SETTING. SINCE THE LIGHT IS INCREASINGLY NOT LIGHTING WHEN IN PARK, IT'S A GUESSING GAME WHEN THRNING CAR OFF. IF IT ISN'T RECOGNUZED (ALTHOUGH SHIFT IS IN PARK) I CANNOT FULLY TURN OFF CAR. ONCE RECOGNIZED IN PARK (WITH OR WITHOUT LIGHT), THE CAR TURNS OFF AS IT SHOULD AND SEAT MOVES BACK AND NO WARNINGS OCCUR. I HAVE RESEARCHED A BIT, IT IS A KNOWN PROBLEM BUT FORD WANTS HUNDREDS IF DOLLARS TO REPAIR. I AM NOT SURE IF CAR US IN PARK OR NIT ANY LONGER
NHTSA ODI #11300777
76,000 miles · Oct 29, 2019
EnginePower TrainUnknown Or Other
MY 2013 FORD EDGE RANDOMLY STALLS DOESN'T MATTER IF I'M TURNING GOING SLOW OR STRAIGHT AND GOING FAST. THE WRENCH LIGHT WILL SHOW UP. I USUALLY STOP, SHUT IT DOWN AND RESTART IT. IT'S PRETTY FRIGHTENING. I BROUGHT IT TO THE REPAIR SHOP AND THEY SAID IT MIGHT BE THE THROTTLE BOTTLE. GOT THAT CLEANED UP WHICH WAS TO DIRTY AND S…
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MY 2013 FORD EDGE RANDOMLY STALLS DOESN'T MATTER IF I'M TURNING GOING SLOW OR STRAIGHT AND GOING FAST. THE WRENCH LIGHT WILL SHOW UP. I USUALLY STOP, SHUT IT DOWN AND RESTART IT. IT'S PRETTY FRIGHTENING. I BROUGHT IT TO THE REPAIR SHOP AND THEY SAID IT MIGHT BE THE THROTTLE BOTTLE. GOT THAT CLEANED UP WHICH WAS TO DIRTY AND STILL STALLING.
NHTSA ODI #11276991
25,000 miles · Oct 6, 2019
Power Train
CAR WAS MAKING A LOUD HUMMING NOISE WHILE IN MOTION.
NHTSA ODI #11266590
100,000 miles · Sep 16, 2019
Power Train
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 FORD EDGE. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE CONTACT HEARD AN ABNORMAL NOISE COMING FROM THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT INSPECTED THE VEHICLE AND FOUND AN OIL LEAK UNDER THE REAR PASSENGER SIDE. ALSO, WHEN PARKING THE VEHICLE, IT ROLLED FORWARD WHEN THE EMER…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 FORD EDGE. WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE CONTACT HEARD AN ABNORMAL NOISE COMING FROM THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT INSPECTED THE VEHICLE AND FOUND AN OIL LEAK UNDER THE REAR PASSENGER SIDE. ALSO, WHEN PARKING THE VEHICLE, IT ROLLED FORWARD WHEN THE EMERGENCY BRAKE WAS NOT APPLIED. THE CONTACT ASSOCIATED THE FAILURE WITH NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 14V393000 (POWER TRAIN). THE CONTACT CALLED SUMMIT FORD (LOCATED AT 200 BUFFALO MOUNTAIN DR, SILVERTHORNE, CO 80497, (970) 262-9230) AND INFORMED THEM OF THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 100,000.
NHTSA ODI #11255918
Official recalls
2Jul 2, 2014
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2012-2014 Ford Edge and Lincoln MKX vehicles manufactured September 2, 2010, to November 30, 2013; 2013-2014 Ford Taurus and Lincoln MKS vehicles manufactured August 25, 2011, to November 30, 2013; and 2013-2014 Ford Flex and Lincoln MKT vehicles manufactured September 12, 2011, to November 30, 2013. In the affected vehicles, the halfshaft retention circlip may not have been properly installed, and as a result, the halfshaft may move outward and disengage from the linkshaft while driving and without prior warning.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the halfshaft and linkshaft become disengaged while driving, power will no longer be transmitted to the wheels, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash. Additionally, if the parking brake is not applied before exiting the vehicle, the vehicle may roll away despite the transmission being placed in 'Park', increasing the risk of injury to exiting occupants and bystanders.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the vehicles to make sure that the halfshaft is properly retained. If it is not, dealers will replace the linkshaft and also replace the halfshaft if it shows evidence of spline damage, free of charge. The recall began on August 4, 2014. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-800-392-3673. Ford's number for this recall is 14S10.
Jan 6, 2014
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2012-2013 Edge vehicles manufactured from September 2, 2010, through April 25, 2013, and equipped with 2.0L engines. The fuel line pulse damper metal housing may crack as a result of an improper manufacturing process. A cracked fuel line pulse damper housing may result in a combination of fuel odor, weepage, or a continuous leak while the fuel system is pressurized.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: A fuel leak in the presence of an ignition source may result in a fire.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel line with one that does not have a damper, free of charge. The safety recall began on February 25, 2014. Owners may contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 13S13. IMPORTANT: This recall supersedes recall 12V-438. All vehicles that have been remedied under the previous recall need to have the current remedy applied.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1PE16012 · Door Ajar Warning Light Always On
Opened Sep 28, 2016 · Closed Mar 20, 2017
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Interior Lighting; Latches/locks/linkages; Latches/locks/linkages:doors:latch
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation on September 28, 2016 based on allegations that the door ajar light located on the instrument cluster stays on all of the time even when all doors are closed and fully latched on 2011-2013 model year Ford Edge vehicles.When the light is illuminated continuously, vehicle occupants cannot be certain if any of the doors are properly latched.Reported safety consequences as a result of this issue include doors opening while driving (because doors were initially not latched properly), doors cannot be locked while driving, and the interior dome lights staying on continuously. Ford data received from the Information Request letter corresponding to this investigation indicates the failures were caused by contamination of the electrical contacts on the switch located within each door latch that tells the vehicle if the door is open or closed.All four doors contain the same latch design and switch.According to Ford, the Body Control Module (BCM) monitors the position of the switch and continuously samples it to detect a state of change.After a closed door state is detected, a continuous wetting current designed to keep the electrical contacts clean is sent from the BCM to the switches as long as the BCM is active.Beginning with the 2011 model year Edge vehicles, a change in BCM strategy resulted in a reduction of the wetting current sent out to clean the switch contacts by more than 75%.Over time, this low level of current is not sufficient to keep the switch contacts clean and contamination build up causes them to fail as described above.During the course of this investigation, ODI has identified a total of 1,983 complaints related to the door ajar light.Of these complaints, 14 indicated that a door opened while driving.Twelve of the 14 door opening events were situations where an occupant of the vehicle (often a child) opened a passenger door because the doors were not locked.The remaining two complaints involved a door opening on its own because the driver was unaware that the door was unlatched.There were no accidents but one complainant reported that a shoulder injury was caused by the driver having to repeatedly slam the door in an effort to get the door ajar light to turn off.After reviewing all available data, an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety has not been identified.The door latches themselves continue to function properly, remaining securely latched until acted upon by a driver or passenger.Child safety locks on the rear doors continue to function properly and can be used to prevent the rear doors from opening via the inside door handles.Vehicle crashworthiness is not affected by the lock condition of the doors and all active safety systems continue to function normally even if the vehicle BCM believes one or more doors is open.In addition, no accidents or accident related injuries have been reported.A safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.Accordingly, the investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor the issue and reserves the right to take future action if warranted by the circumstances.ODI numbers for the reports cited above are shown in the attached document.
Additional source detail variants (3)
Interior Lighting
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation on September 28, 2016 based on allegations that the door ajar light located on the instrument cluster stays on all of the time even when all doors are closed and fully latched on 2011-2013 model year Ford Edge vehicles.When the light is illuminated continuously, vehicle occupants cannot be certain if any of the doors are properly latched.Reported safety consequences as a result of this issue include doors opening while driving (because doors were initially not latched properly), doors cannot be locked while driving, and the interior dome lights staying on continuously. Ford data received from the Information Request letter corresponding to this investigation indicates the failures were caused by contamination of the electrical contacts on the switch located within each door latch that tells the vehicle if the door is open or closed.All four doors contain the same latch design and switch.According to Ford, the Body Control Module (BCM) monitors the position of the switch and continuously samples it to detect a state of change.After a closed door state is detected, a continuous wetting current designed to keep the electrical contacts clean is sent from the BCM to the switches as long as the BCM is active.Beginning with the 2011 model year Edge vehicles, a change in BCM strategy resulted in a reduction of the wetting current sent out to clean the switch contacts by more than 75%.Over time, this low level of current is not sufficient to keep the switch contacts clean and contamination build up causes them to fail as described above.During the course of this investigation, ODI has identified a total of 1,983 complaints related to the door ajar light.Of these complaints, 14 indicated that a door opened while driving.Twelve of the 14 door opening events were situations where an occupant of the vehicle (often a child) opened a passenger door because the doors were not locked.The remaining two complaints involved a door opening on its own because the driver was unaware that the door was unlatched.There were no accidents but one complainant reported that a shoulder injury was caused by the driver having to repeatedly slam the door in an effort to get the door ajar light to turn off.After reviewing all available data, an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety has not been identified.The door latches themselves continue to function properly, remaining securely latched until acted upon by a driver or passenger.Child safety locks on the rear doors continue to function properly and can be used to prevent the rear doors from opening via the inside door handles.Vehicle crashworthiness is not affected by the lock condition of the doors and all active safety systems continue to function normally even if the vehicle BCM believes one or more doors is open.In addition, no accidents or accident related injuries have been reported.A safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.Accordingly, the investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor the issue and reserves the right to take future action if warranted by the circumstances.ODI numbers for the reports cited above are shown in the attached document.
Latches/locks/linkages:doors:latch
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation on September 28, 2016 based on allegations that the door ajar light located on the instrument cluster stays on all of the time even when all doors are closed and fully latched on 2011-2013 model year Ford Edge vehicles.When the light is illuminated continuously, vehicle occupants cannot be certain if any of the doors are properly latched.Reported safety consequences as a result of this issue include doors opening while driving (because doors were initially not latched properly), doors cannot be locked while driving, and the interior dome lights staying on continuously. Ford data received from the Information Request letter corresponding to this investigation indicates the failures were caused by contamination of the electrical contacts on the switch located within each door latch that tells the vehicle if the door is open or closed.All four doors contain the same latch design and switch.According to Ford, the Body Control Module (BCM) monitors the position of the switch and continuously samples it to detect a state of change.After a closed door state is detected, a continuous wetting current designed to keep the electrical contacts clean is sent from the BCM to the switches as long as the BCM is active.Beginning with the 2011 model year Edge vehicles, a change in BCM strategy resulted in a reduction of the wetting current sent out to clean the switch contacts by more than 75%.Over time, this low level of current is not sufficient to keep the switch contacts clean and contamination build up causes them to fail as described above.During the course of this investigation, ODI has identified a total of 1,983 complaints related to the door ajar light.Of these complaints, 14 indicated that a door opened while driving.Twelve of the 14 door opening events were situations where an occupant of the vehicle (often a child) opened a passenger door because the doors were not locked.The remaining two complaints involved a door opening on its own because the driver was unaware that the door was unlatched.There were no accidents but one complainant reported that a shoulder injury was caused by the driver having to repeatedly slam the door in an effort to get the door ajar light to turn off.After reviewing all available data, an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety has not been identified.The door latches themselves continue to function properly, remaining securely latched until acted upon by a driver or passenger.Child safety locks on the rear doors continue to function properly and can be used to prevent the rear doors from opening via the inside door handles.Vehicle crashworthiness is not affected by the lock condition of the doors and all active safety systems continue to function normally even if the vehicle BCM believes one or more doors is open.In addition, no accidents or accident related injuries have been reported.A safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.Accordingly, the investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor the issue and reserves the right to take future action if warranted by the circumstances.ODI numbers for the reports cited above are shown in the attached document.
Latches/locks/linkages
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation on September 28, 2016 based on allegations that the door ajar light located on the instrument cluster stays on all of the time even when all doors are closed and fully latched on 2011-2013 model year Ford Edge vehicles.When the light is illuminated continuously, vehicle occupants cannot be certain if any of the doors are properly latched.Reported safety consequences as a result of this issue include doors opening while driving (because doors were initially not latched properly), doors cannot be locked while driving, and the interior dome lights staying on continuously. Ford data received from the Information Request letter corresponding to this investigation indicates the failures were caused by contamination of the electrical contacts on the switch located within each door latch that tells the vehicle if the door is open or closed.All four doors contain the same latch design and switch.According to Ford, the Body Control Module (BCM) monitors the position of the switch and continuously samples it to detect a state of change.After a closed door state is detected, a continuous wetting current designed to keep the electrical contacts clean is sent from the BCM to the switches as long as the BCM is active.Beginning with the 2011 model year Edge vehicles, a change in BCM strategy resulted in a reduction of the wetting current sent out to clean the switch contacts by more than 75%.Over time, this low level of current is not sufficient to keep the switch contacts clean and contamination build up causes them to fail as described above.During the course of this investigation, ODI has identified a total of 1,983 complaints related to the door ajar light.Of these complaints, 14 indicated that a door opened while driving.Twelve of the 14 door opening events were situations where an occupant of the vehicle (often a child) opened a passenger door because the doors were not locked.The remaining two complaints involved a door opening on its own because the driver was unaware that the door was unlatched.There were no accidents but one complainant reported that a shoulder injury was caused by the driver having to repeatedly slam the door in an effort to get the door ajar light to turn off.After reviewing all available data, an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety has not been identified.The door latches themselves continue to function properly, remaining securely latched until acted upon by a driver or passenger.Child safety locks on the rear doors continue to function properly and can be used to prevent the rear doors from opening via the inside door handles.Vehicle crashworthiness is not affected by the lock condition of the doors and all active safety systems continue to function normally even if the vehicle BCM believes one or more doors is open.In addition, no accidents or accident related injuries have been reported.A safety-related defect trend has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.Accordingly, the investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor the issue and reserves the right to take future action if warranted by the circumstances.ODI numbers for the reports cited above are shown in the attached document.
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