← New search

2011 Ford Flex

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2011 Ford Flex do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 139.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

117 reports with mileage · 27 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.

  • Steering. Review the 57 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine. Review the 25 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 19 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

5 crash reports1 fire reports8 injury reports

Exterior Lighting complaints

2 reports
Clear category filter
Mileage unknown · Oct 22, 2025
Electrical SystemExterior LightingSteering

I had changed all my bulbs and fuses to my car for my brake lights several times and they still don’t work. My car almost got hit with me and my kids in it due to my break lights not working. Also my car keeps saying service advance trac and keeps saying it every time I drive. My car also keeps running out of power steering flui…

Read full complaint

I had changed all my bulbs and fuses to my car for my brake lights several times and they still don’t work. My car almost got hit with me and my kids in it due to my break lights not working. Also my car keeps saying service advance trac and keeps saying it every time I drive. My car also keeps running out of power steering fluid every two week I have to add more to keep it from making that loud noise while driving.

NHTSA ODI #11694945

85,000 miles · Oct 8, 2018
Electrical SystemExterior LightingSteering

MY CURRENT PROBLEM AND HAS BEEN FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS IS THE STEERING. AS OF AROUND TWO YEARS AGO I HAVE ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS THE POWER STEERING LOSING THE POWER AND RESULTING IN A VERY HARD TO CONTROL STEERING WHEEL WHILE DRIVING AND VERY DANGEROUS. THIS HAS HAPPENED ROUGHLY 6 TIMES IN TWO YEARS. THE PROBLEM WOULD USUALLY…

Read full complaint

MY CURRENT PROBLEM AND HAS BEEN FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS IS THE STEERING. AS OF AROUND TWO YEARS AGO I HAVE ON MULTIPLE OCCASIONS THE POWER STEERING LOSING THE POWER AND RESULTING IN A VERY HARD TO CONTROL STEERING WHEEL WHILE DRIVING AND VERY DANGEROUS. THIS HAS HAPPENED ROUGHLY 6 TIMES IN TWO YEARS. THE PROBLEM WOULD USUALLY CORRECT WITHIN AROUND FIVE SECONDS OR SO. I HAVE FOUND THERE ARE MANY ISSUES ON THE INTERNET WITH THIS FORD PROBLEM THERE IS A RECALL ON THIS ISSUE BUT MY VEHICLE COMES WITHIN A MONTH OF THE RECALL SO NO HELP FROM THE DEALER. THEY WANT AROUND 3000-3500 FOR REPLACEMENT. WORD IS THEY HAVE DOUBLED THE COST OF THE PART TO MAKE UP FOR THE RECALL MONEY THEY ARE OUT. THIS IS VERY SERIOUS AND FORD NEEDS TO HANDLE THIS ISSUE. I AM TOLD THE STEERING IS ELECTRICAL. MY SECOND ISSUE IS AND HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR AROUND TWO YEARS ALSO. THE LIGHTS WILL GO OUT EACH AT DIFFERENT TIMES. IF I REACH DOWN AND TURN THE SWITCH OFF AND ON AGAIN THEY WILL COME BACK ON AND CORRECT, BUT WILL GO OUT AGAIN. ONE MIGHT GO OUT AND THEN ONE STAY ON. A DANGEROUS SITUATION OCCURS WHEN THEY BOTH FAIL. TURNING THE SWITCH ON AND OFF ALWAYS TURNS THEM ON. PROBLEM HAS BEEN HAPPENING FOR TWO YEARS. NEITHER ARE NOT FIXED AT THE MOMENT.

NHTSA ODI #11139001

Official recalls

2

16V247000 · 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.

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.

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.