IllustrationDRIVING ON HIGHWAY AND HAD 1/4 TANK OF FUEL LEFT WHEN LOW FUEL WARNING BEEP SOUNDED. FUEL GAUGE WAS SUDDENLY AT "E" AND DISPLAY SAID 0 MILES UNTIL EMPTY. IMMEDIATELY PULLED INTO A GAS STATION. GAS PUMP SHUT OFF AFTER FILLING ONLY 14.5 GALLONS, ALTHOUGH TANK CAPACITY IS 18.6 GALLONS.
2009 Ford Flex
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2009 Ford Flex do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 139.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Flex years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
400–25K
2525–50K
2650–75K
2275–100K
27100–150K
10150K+
150 reports with mileage · 31 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Engine. Review the 36 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 32 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 23 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
7 crash reports2 fire reports5 injury reports
What owners actually said
181 reportsAT SLOW SPEEDS THE POWER STEERING GOES OUT AND IT BECOMES VERY DIFFICULT TO TURN THE CAR. TRYING TO LEAVE AND NAVIGATE PARKING LOTS AND SMALL SIDE STREETS BECOMING DANGEROUS AS THE CAR IS VERY HARD TO TURN
MY TRANSMISSION IS POPPING REALLY BAD WENT ON LINE AND THERE IS THE SAME PROBLEM WITH THE TRANSMISSION THERE IS A BUNCH OF OWNERS HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM
THE CAR WILL CUT OFF AND THINK ITS OUT OF GAS. WHEN MY CAR HAS 1/8 IT GOES FROM 50 MILES TO 0. THEN RUNS OUT OF GAS. IF I FILL UP IT WILL SAY 322 TIP EMPTY BUT ONLY GETTING 225 OUT OF FILL TANK OF GAS. I BEEN HAVING THE ISSUE SINCE I PURCHASED CAR IN 2011. THE FUEL PUMP SENDING UNIT HAS TO BE REPLACED WITH JET PUMP.
INITIALLY STARTED IN 2014 CAR SEEMINGLY LOCKED UP ON ME WHEN EXITING WORK PLACE DRIVEWAY AND MAKING RIGHT TURN. TOOK CAR TO AIRPORT MARINA FORD THEY KEPTT IT FOR APPROX 2 -3 DAYS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE. TROUBLE HAS NOW REAPPEARED IN MAY AND AGAIN TODAY. NOT SURE WHAT TO DO BECAUSE OF PREVIOUS DEALERSHIP CASE WITH THEM NOT BEING AB…
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INITIALLY STARTED IN 2014 CAR SEEMINGLY LOCKED UP ON ME WHEN EXITING WORK PLACE DRIVEWAY AND MAKING RIGHT TURN. TOOK CAR TO AIRPORT MARINA FORD THEY KEPTT IT FOR APPROX 2 -3 DAYS UNABLE TO DUPLICATE. TROUBLE HAS NOW REAPPEARED IN MAY AND AGAIN TODAY. NOT SURE WHAT TO DO BECAUSE OF PREVIOUS DEALERSHIP CASE WITH THEM NOT BEING ABLE TO DUPLICATE. I ACTUALLY REFUSED TO TAKE CAR BACK ASKING THE THE MANAGER DRIVE IT AROUND NOTHING FOUND.
"TAKATA RECALL" WHEN I AM DRIVING MY 2009 FORD FLEX TO 30 OR 40 MPH THE STERRING WHEEL TURNS TO THE RIGHT BY ITSELF MAKING A DANGEROUS MOVE AND I ALMOST BUMPED INTO ANOTHER CAR.
"TAKATA RECALL " DRIVER SIDE HEATED SEAT ONLY STAYS ON FOR LESS THEN 2 MINUTES AND SHUTS ITSELF OFF ..
CAR STARTED 2 YEARS AGO WITH "STUTTERING" WHEN DRIVING BETWEEN 50-60 MPH, AS IF THE CAR COULDN'T DETERMINE WHICH GEAR TO STAY IN. HAD TRANSMISSION FLUSHED AND REFILLED IN APRIL 2016. PROBLEM WAS LESS BUT STILL REMAINED. ADDED DR SHUTTER IN JUNE 2016 TO THE TRANSMISSION FLUID AND PROBLEM HAS WENT AWAY, THAT WAS LAST YEAR. PAINT …
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CAR STARTED 2 YEARS AGO WITH "STUTTERING" WHEN DRIVING BETWEEN 50-60 MPH, AS IF THE CAR COULDN'T DETERMINE WHICH GEAR TO STAY IN. HAD TRANSMISSION FLUSHED AND REFILLED IN APRIL 2016. PROBLEM WAS LESS BUT STILL REMAINED. ADDED DR SHUTTER IN JUNE 2016 TO THE TRANSMISSION FLUID AND PROBLEM HAS WENT AWAY, THAT WAS LAST YEAR. PAINT ON THE HOOD IS PEELING AND STARTED OUT AS A SMALL CHIP MAY 2016, AND IS NOW THE SIZE OF A 2 BASKETBALLS. BLACK BODY PIECES THAT ARE BETWEEN THE WINDOWS ON THE SIDE AND IN FRONT BY THE WINDSHIELD ARE LOOSE AND COMING OFF. WILL PROVIDE PHOTOS IF NEEDED
WHILE DRIVING FORD FLEX ON HIGHWAY OR IN TOWN MY ANTIBRAKE SYSTEM RANDOMLY ACTIVITIES CAUSING MY ENTIRE VEHICLE TO STOP. THIS HAS HAPPENED MORE THAN THREE TIMES AND I HAVE COMPLAINED TO FORD RED MCCOMBS DEALERSHIP AND THEY CAN'T FIND NOTHING WRONG. I WAS BILLED ABOUT 225.00 DOLLARS FOR A ANTIBRAKE SWITCH AND MY CAR WAS NOT FIXE…
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WHILE DRIVING FORD FLEX ON HIGHWAY OR IN TOWN MY ANTIBRAKE SYSTEM RANDOMLY ACTIVITIES CAUSING MY ENTIRE VEHICLE TO STOP. THIS HAS HAPPENED MORE THAN THREE TIMES AND I HAVE COMPLAINED TO FORD RED MCCOMBS DEALERSHIP AND THEY CAN'T FIND NOTHING WRONG. I WAS BILLED ABOUT 225.00 DOLLARS FOR A ANTIBRAKE SWITCH AND MY CAR WAS NOT FIXED. YES, AND I HAVE COMPLAINT TO FORD DEALERSHIP AND MADE THEM AWARE OF MY CONTINOUS BRAKE PROBLEMS WITH MY FORD FLEX VEHICLE.
I WAS DRIVING DOWN THE INTERSTATE AND MY SUNROOF EXPLODED. THERE WASN'T ANYONE IN FRONT OF ME SO A ROCK OR SOMETHING COULD NOT HAVE BEEN KICKED UP AND NOTHING COULD HAVE BLOWN OFF A VEHICLE AND HIT ME. THE SUNROOF JUST EXPLODED FOR NO APPARENT REASON
Official recalls
116V247000 · Air Bags:frontal
Apr 26, 2016
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 Ford Flex, 2008 and 2010-2012 Ford Taurus, 2008-2009 Ford Taurus X, 2008 Mercury Sable, 2009 and 2011 Lincoln MKS vehicles. The driver frontal air bag may improperly inflate during second-stage deployment in the event of a high speed crash. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 208, "Occupant Crash Protection."
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An improperly inflated air bag increases the risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the driver's frontal air bag module, as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin on June 13, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16C06.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.