DOOR AJAR LIGHT SAYS ON WHILE DRIVING - DOORS WILL NOT LOCK AND INTERIOR LIGHT STAYS ON IN PARK STARTED AT 36,000 MILES
2011 Ford Edge
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Edge years
Owner complaints for the 2011 Ford Edge are substantially higher than the model-year median of 724.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Edge 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
1,438 reports with mileage · 363 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 686 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Structure. Review the 274 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 261 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Exterior Lighting complaints
187 reportsTHE EMERGENCY FLASHERS TURN ON AT ANYTIME INCLUDING WHEN THE VEHICLE IS NOT RUNNING. THE ONLY WAY TO TURN OFF IS TO DISCONNECT WIRE. WE HAVE CAR IN TO GARAGE AND THEY HAD NEVER HEARD OF THIS HAPPENING BEFORE!! THEY 1ST SAID WOULD COST UP TO $600 BUT THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT PROBLEM WAS NOW THEY ARE SAYING A MODULE HAS TO BE REPLACE…
Read full complaint
THE EMERGENCY FLASHERS TURN ON AT ANYTIME INCLUDING WHEN THE VEHICLE IS NOT RUNNING. THE ONLY WAY TO TURN OFF IS TO DISCONNECT WIRE. WE HAVE CAR IN TO GARAGE AND THEY HAD NEVER HEARD OF THIS HAPPENING BEFORE!! THEY 1ST SAID WOULD COST UP TO $600 BUT THEY DIDN'T KNOW WHAT PROBLEM WAS NOW THEY ARE SAYING A MODULE HAS TO BE REPLACED AND WILL COST OVER $1100. I DID SEE ON LINE WHERE THERE WAS A RECALL THAT STATED THE MODULE HAD TO BE REPLACED TO CORRECT ELECTRICAL PROBLEM, AND FORD WOULD TAKE CARE OF IT. I DON'T FEEL I SHOULD BE BILLED FOR THIS SINCE THEY KNOW THERE IS AN ELECTRICAL ISSUE AND MODULE IS ONLY FIX. THE CAR DOES NOT HAVE TO BE IN MOTION FOR THIS TO HAPPEN IT HAS HAPPENED EVEN WHEN THE CAR IS PARKED!!
PASSENGER DOOR AJAR LIGHT REMAINS ON AT ALL SPEEDS AND STATIONARY. SAFETY OF MYSELF AND CHILDREN ARE IN JEPARDY BECAUSE MY CAR NO LONGER LOCKS. WE WILL BE TRADING THIS VEHICLE IN. SAFETY ISN'T SOMETHING YOU RISK. EXTREMELY UPSETTING. WITH ALLL OF THE ISSUES POSTED THAT FORD HASN'T SENT A RECALL ON THIS.
WHEN I SHUT MY DRIVER DOOR THE LIGHT COMES ON THE DASHBOARD SAYING "DRIVER DOOR AJAR". I HAVE TO KEEP SHUTTING/SLAMMING THE DOOR TO CLEAR ALARM. AT MOST IT WILL NOT GO OFF. WHEN I START TO DRIVE WITH ALL THE DOORS CLOSED ALL DOORS SHOULD LOCK AND THEY DON'T BECAUSE THE DOOR IS OPEN. I HAVE TWO YOUNG CHILDREN AND I DON'T THINK IT…
Read full complaint
WHEN I SHUT MY DRIVER DOOR THE LIGHT COMES ON THE DASHBOARD SAYING "DRIVER DOOR AJAR". I HAVE TO KEEP SHUTTING/SLAMMING THE DOOR TO CLEAR ALARM. AT MOST IT WILL NOT GO OFF. WHEN I START TO DRIVE WITH ALL THE DOORS CLOSED ALL DOORS SHOULD LOCK AND THEY DON'T BECAUSE THE DOOR IS OPEN. I HAVE TWO YOUNG CHILDREN AND I DON'T THINK IT'S SAFE. WHEN I HIT MY KEY TO LOCK THE DOORS AFTER I GET OUT MY INTERIOR LIGHTS STAY ON WHICH IS CAUSING LOW BATTERY! THIS NEEDS TO BE FIXED! FOR YOU TO PROVIDE VEHICLES TO THE WORLD SAFETY IS A MUST AND THEIR ARE SO MANY OTHERS OUT THERE THAT HAS THIS PROBLEM WHY BE SO SLOW TO CORRECT IT!!
ON 5/20/17 WE NOTICED THE DOOR AJAR LIGHT WAS ON AND INTERIOR DOME LIGHT STAYED ON WHILE DRIVING. STOPPED THE CAR, OPENED AND CLOSED EACH DOOR, SOMETIMES SEVERAL TIMES AND SEEMED TO BE THE DRIVER'S SIDE BACK DOOR. LIGHTS ALL FINALLY WENT OFF. THE NEXT DAY THE ISSUE RETURNED - DOME LIGHT REMAINED ON FOR 1.5 DAYS AND DOOR AJAR …
Read full complaint
ON 5/20/17 WE NOTICED THE DOOR AJAR LIGHT WAS ON AND INTERIOR DOME LIGHT STAYED ON WHILE DRIVING. STOPPED THE CAR, OPENED AND CLOSED EACH DOOR, SOMETIMES SEVERAL TIMES AND SEEMED TO BE THE DRIVER'S SIDE BACK DOOR. LIGHTS ALL FINALLY WENT OFF. THE NEXT DAY THE ISSUE RETURNED - DOME LIGHT REMAINED ON FOR 1.5 DAYS AND DOOR AJAR LIGHT WAS ALSO ON. THE NIGHT OF 5/22 MY HUSBAND DIRECTED MY SON TO TRY SOMETHING WITH THE DOOR LATCH ON THAT DOOR AND THAT GOT THE LIGHTS TO GO OFF AGAIN. IT'S DANGEROUS TO DRIVE THE CAR AT NIGHT WHEN THE INTERIOR LIGHTS WON'T GO OFF NOT TO MENTION THAT THIS WILL CAUSE BATTERY DRAINAGE.
WHEN DRIVER SIDE DOOR IS SHUT LIGHT STAYS ON AND SAYS DOOR IS AJAR, MAKES BATTERY RUN OUT OF JUICE. PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAG IS OFF AT ALL TIMES EVEN WHEN PASSENGER IS SITTING IN SEAT.
"DOOR AJAR" SENSOR ON DRIVER'S DOOR NOT SENSING WHEN DOOR IS SHUT CAUSING DOORS NOT TO LOCK AUTOMATICALLY WHEN IN MOTION AT ANY SPEED AND CAUSING BATTERY DRAINAGE AS LIGHTS WILL NOT TURN OFF AFTER BEING LOCKED WHEN PARKED, WHICH ALSO EXPOSES CONTENTS OF VEHICLE FOR POTENTIAL THEFT.
FRONT DRIVER SIDE DOOR SWITCH DOES NOT OPERATE PROPERLY CAUSING FALSE INDICATION THAT DOOR IS NOT CLOSED. WARNING INDICATOR CAN BE OVERRIDDEN BUT THIS CAN CAUSE A POTENTIAL HAZARD IF DRIVER ROUTINELY IGNORES INDICATOR AND THE DOOR IS NOT ACTUALLY LATCHED. BASED ON MY ON LINE SEARCH THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS MODEL. I CO…
Read full complaint
FRONT DRIVER SIDE DOOR SWITCH DOES NOT OPERATE PROPERLY CAUSING FALSE INDICATION THAT DOOR IS NOT CLOSED. WARNING INDICATOR CAN BE OVERRIDDEN BUT THIS CAN CAUSE A POTENTIAL HAZARD IF DRIVER ROUTINELY IGNORES INDICATOR AND THE DOOR IS NOT ACTUALLY LATCHED. BASED ON MY ON LINE SEARCH THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS MODEL. I CONSIDER THIS A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE. THIS ISSUE SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED FOR A POTENTIAL RECALL. THIS CONDITION EXISTS WHILE THE CAR IS STATIONARY OR IN MOTION.
DOOR AJAR SWITCH NOT WORKING PROPERLY
THE DOOR AJAR LIGHT STAYS ON EVEN WHEN THE DOORS ARE CLOSED. THIS THEN DRAINS BATTERY AND LEAVES DRIVER STRANDED. IT ALSO KEEPS THE INTERIOR LIGHTS FROM SHUTTING DOWN BECAUSE THE SYSTEM THINKS THE DOOR IS AJAR. IT DOESN'T MATTER IF THE CAR IS RUNNING OR NOT THIS HAPPENS.
Official recalls
311V128000 · Electrical System:software
Feb 24, 2011
FORD IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 FORD F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450, F-550, EDGE, AND LINCOLN MKX TRUCKS MANUFACTURED FROM OCTOBER 25, 2010, THROUGH NOVEMBER 20, 2010. THESE VEHICLES WERE INSPECTED USING INTEGRATED DIAGNOSTIC SYSTEM (IDS) THAT HAD A CUSTOM SOFTWARE ROUTINE TO READ THE SUSPECT BODY CONTROL MODULE (BCM) SERIAL NUMBER. BASED ON THE SERIAL NUMBER THE BCM WAS EITHER NOT AFFECTED OR REPLACED. THE CUSTOM SOFTWARE ROUTINE WAS NOT READING THE CORRECT SET OF CHARACTERS, AND WAS NOT ABLE TO IDENTIFY A BCM THAT REQUIRED REPLACEMENT AFFECTED BCMS MAY HAVE THE POTENTIAL FOR AN INTERNAL SHORT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: IF AN ELECTRICAL SHORT DEVELOPS, AN OVERHEATING CONDITION MAY OCCUR WHICH COULD RESULT IN A VEHICLE FIRE.
Remedy: DEALER WILL INSPECT THE BODY CONTROL MODULE AND IF NECESSARY REPLACE IT FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 7, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD MOTOR COMPANY CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP CENTER AT 1-866-436-7332.
10V659000 · Structure:body
Dec 29, 2010
FORD IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 F-150, F-250, F-350, F-450, F-550, EDGE AND LINCOLN MKX VEHICLES. DURING A SIX-DAY PRODUCTION PERIOD, THE SUPPLIER OF THE BODY CONTROL MODULE MANUFACTURED MODULES THAT MAY HAVE THE POTENTIAL FOR AN INTERNAL SHORT.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: IF AN ELECTRICAL SHORT DEVELOPS, AN OVERHEATING CONDITION MAY OCCUR WHICH CAN RESULT IN AN UNATTENDED VEHICLE FIRE.
Remedy: DEALER WILL REPLACE THE BODY CONTROL MODULE IF NECESSARY FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON JANUARY 11, 2011. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD AT 1-866-436-7332.
10V516000 · Latches/locks/linkages:hatchback/liftgate:lock
Oct 27, 2010
FORD IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2011 EDGE AND LINCOLN MKX VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM JULY 1, 2010, THROUGH OCTOBER 8, 2010. THESE VEHICLES WERE SHIPPED WITH INCORRECTLY CONFIGURED ELECTRONIC MODULE SETTINGS THAT DISABLE THE LOCKING FUNCTION OF THE LIFTGATE. ACCORDINGLY, THE VEHICLES FAIL TO CONFORM TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 206, "DOOR LOCKS AND DOOR RETENTION COMPONENTS."
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: THE LIFTGATE LOCK MAY BE DISABLED AND THE DRIVER MAY NOT BE ABLE TO LOCK THE LIFTGATE USING INTERIOR LOCK SWITCHES OR REMOTE KEY FOB BUTTONS.
Remedy: FORD WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND DEALERS WILL HAVE THE AFFECTED CONTROL MODULES UPDATED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON NOVEMBER 1, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD AT 1-866-436-7332.
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.
Illustration