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2013 Ford Flex

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Flex years

Owner complaints for the 2013 Ford Flex are substantially higher than the model-year median of 139.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

435 reports with mileage · 143 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.

  • Electrical System. Review the 200 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Steering. Review the 149 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Structure. Review the 69 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

11 crash reports1 fire reports9 injury reports

Steering complaints

149 reports
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237,000 miles · Oct 26, 2021
Steering

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while driving at 15 MPH, the power steering assist failed as the power steering assist warning message appeared on the instrument panel. The contact was able to restart the vehicle; however, the failure occurred again soon after the restart. The contact then called her h…

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The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while driving at 15 MPH, the power steering assist failed as the power steering assist warning message appeared on the instrument panel. The contact was able to restart the vehicle; however, the failure occurred again soon after the restart. The contact then called her husband who used excessive force to drive the vehicle back to the residence. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 237,000.

NHTSA ODI #11438267

Mileage unknown · Oct 18, 2021
Steering

On 10/17/21 I was driving near my home and during a turn, the steering locked up and the dash read "power steering assist failure". I pulled over, called a tow truck. When they got there, they started it and the steering was working fine. They said to check the power steering fluid. I drove it home, and found it does not h…

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On 10/17/21 I was driving near my home and during a turn, the steering locked up and the dash read "power steering assist failure". I pulled over, called a tow truck. When they got there, they started it and the steering was working fine. They said to check the power steering fluid. I drove it home, and found it does not have power steering fluid. Ford told me it is not under any recall. It is now operating just fine. Not sure what happened.

NHTSA ODI #11437210

88,396 miles · Oct 18, 2021
Steering

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while coming out of a complete stop, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated that the power steering assists warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a local dealer to be inspected. Upon investigation, the contact associated the fail…

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The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while coming out of a complete stop, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated that the power steering assists warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a local dealer to be inspected. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was 88,396

NHTSA ODI #11437148

130,000 miles · Sep 23, 2021
Steering

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked and she was attempting to start the vehicle, a message for the steering motor sensor fault was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle loss power steering assist functionality. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle and the messag…

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The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked and she was attempting to start the vehicle, a message for the steering motor sensor fault was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle loss power steering assist functionality. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle and the message disappeared and the vehicle regained power steering assist functionality. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The contact took the vehicle to a local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the steering rack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.

NHTSA ODI #11434082

Mileage unknown · Sep 8, 2021
Steering

While driving the steering wheel will fight you when taking turns. This is a know issue with the Ford Flex. Makes driving sketchy. I will not let my wife drive especially with the kids in the Flex.

NHTSA ODI #11432224

235,000 miles · Aug 16, 2021
Steering

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated that the traction control warning light was illuminated. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering) however, the VI…

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The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. The contact stated that the traction control warning light was illuminated. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V340000 (Steering) however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 235,000.

NHTSA ODI #11429242

125,000 miles · Aug 9, 2021
Steering

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the power steering assist failed intermittently, and the steering wheel became difficult to steer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed with an electric power steering assist failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer…

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The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the power steering assist failed intermittently, and the steering wheel became difficult to steer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed with an electric power steering assist failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 15V340000 (Steering). The failure mileage was approximately 125,000.

NHTSA ODI #11428421

130,000 miles · Aug 2, 2021
Steering

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while making a right turn, the steering wheel malfunctioned and momentarily seized and could not be turned. Moments later the steering wheel would turn however, the steering wheel would shake and vibrate abnormally. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who replaced the e…

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The contact owns a 2013 Ford Flex. The contact stated while making a right turn, the steering wheel malfunctioned and momentarily seized and could not be turned. Moments later the steering wheel would turn however, the steering wheel would shake and vibrate abnormally. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer who replaced the entire suspension system, but the failure persisted. The dealer later diagnosed that the steering gear was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the vehicle was not included in the NHTSA campaign number: 15V340000 (Steering). The contact indicated that the vehicle experienced the same failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 130,000.

NHTSA ODI #11427447

Mileage unknown · Jul 31, 2021
Steering

Sudden loss of electronic steering assist without warning numerous times on my vehicle. Nearly caused me to get into an accident the other day. Contacting dealer this week. Ford needs to fix this problem.

NHTSA ODI #11427271

Mileage unknown · Jun 9, 2021
Steering

I was driving down I-285 (Atlanta) with my two daughters in the car and both the “Service Power Steering” and “Service AdvanceTrac” lights came on. About 10-15 min into the drive, it became really hard to turn my steering wheel. We were still about 30 min from our house so I had no choice but to drive very slowly until we could …

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I was driving down I-285 (Atlanta) with my two daughters in the car and both the “Service Power Steering” and “Service AdvanceTrac” lights came on. About 10-15 min into the drive, it became really hard to turn my steering wheel. We were still about 30 min from our house so I had no choice but to drive very slowly until we could get somewhere safe. While trying to turn off the interstate, my steering wheel completely locked up on me!!! Now my car is at my mother’s house because I couldn’t drive any further in fear of an accident. My mechanic put this car on a computer and no codes showed up. From my understanding there was a recall for this particular issue. The dealer I purchased the car from stated they were not aware of this issue and the car showed no signs that the power steering was about to go out.

NHTSA ODI #11420371

Official recalls

6

20V072000 · Suspension:rear

Feb 10, 2020

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Lincoln MKT and Ford Flex and Taurus vehicles with the Police Interceptor or SHO Performance Pack. The rear suspension toe links may fracture due to stress on the rear suspension.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A fractured rear toe link will cause a sudden change in vehicle handling and increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links, free of charge. Remedy parts are not currently available. Owners were notified about the recall on March 3, 2020. A second notice will be mailed when remedy parts become available, which is currently expected to be the end of September 2020. The recall began October 28, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332 or Lincoln customer service at 1-800-521-4140. Ford's number for this recall is 20S04.

16V621000 · Fuel System, Gasoline:delivery:fuel Pump

Aug 25, 2016

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Ford Taurus, Ford Flex, Lincoln MKS and Lincoln MKT vehicles equipped with 3.5L GTDI Ecoboost engines and 2013-2015 Ford Taurus Police Interceptor vehicles. A component within the fuel pump electric module (PEM) may overheat causing a loss of electrical power to the fuel pump.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A loss of power to the fuel pump will cause the engine to stall or prevent the vehicle from starting, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the fuel PEM part number and replace the fuel PEM, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on December 1, 2016. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S31.

15V812000 · Fuel System, Gasoline

Dec 2, 2015

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013 Explorer, Explorer Police Utility, Taurus, Taurus Police Interceptor, Flex, Lincoln MKS, and Lincoln MKT vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the fuel delivery module may crack, allowing fuel to leak.

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 delivery module, free of charge. The recall began on December 21, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 13S04-S1.

15V340000 · Steering:electric Power Assist System

Jun 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.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: 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.

14V393000 · Power Train:axle Assembly:axle Shaft

Jul 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.

13V227000 · Fuel System, Gasoline

May 31, 2013

Ford is recalling certain model year 2013 Explorer, Taurus, Flex, Fusion, Police Interceptor Sedan and Police Interceptor Utility vehicles; and certain model year 2013 Lincoln MKS, MKT, and MKZ vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the fuel delivery module may develop a crack, allowing fuel to leak.

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 delivery module, free of charge. The recall began on July 20, 2013. Owners may contact Ford Motor Company Customer Relationship Center at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's recall campaign number is 13S04.

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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.