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2018 Ford Fusion

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2018 Ford Fusion do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 1,109.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

188 reports with mileage · 250 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 201 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 106 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 88 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

9 crash reports1 fire reports5 injury reports

Engine complaints

201 reports
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27,800 miles · Oct 31, 2024
Engine

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle was driving rough. In addition, the contact noticed that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of coolant. The failure progressed, and the engine started overheating. T…

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The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle was driving rough. In addition, the contact noticed that the engine was consuming an excessive amount of coolant. The failure progressed, and the engine started overheating. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a cracked engine and coolant intrusion. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and provided no assistance. The contact referenced Technical Service Bulletin: 22-2134; however, the contact was informed that the repair was not covered under the program. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 27,800.

NHTSA ODI #11622974

102,405 miles · Oct 25, 2024
Engine

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, the "Engine Overheated Idle Engine" message was displayed on the instrumental panel. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer to be diagnosed and it was determined that the engine needed to be repl…

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The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 MPH, the "Engine Overheated Idle Engine" message was displayed on the instrumental panel. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer to be diagnosed and it was determined that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 102,405.

NHTSA ODI #11621984

13,000 miles · Oct 15, 2024
Engine

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart on the third attempt however the failure recurred. The vehicle was driven to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine and the cylinder heads needed to be replaced.…

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The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to restart on the third attempt however the failure recurred. The vehicle was driven to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine and the cylinder heads needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 13,000.

NHTSA ODI #11619859

58,000 miles · Oct 7, 2024
Electrical SystemEnginePower Train

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while his wife was driving 60 MPH, the wrench symbol became displayed. The power train fault warning light was illuminated. The vehicle started to shake with the check engine warning light illuminated. The power steering was inoperable. The local dealer was not contacted. T…

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The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while his wife was driving 60 MPH, the wrench symbol became displayed. The power train fault warning light was illuminated. The vehicle started to shake with the check engine warning light illuminated. The power steering was inoperable. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 58,000.

NHTSA ODI #11618514

96,000 miles · Oct 1, 2024
Engine

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle took approximately three minutes to start. The vehicle started after several attempts. The contact stated while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer …

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The contact owns a 2018 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle took approximately three minutes to start. The vehicle started after several attempts. The contact stated while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the vehicle needed a tune up and an oil change. The vehicle was repaired but the power train warning light illuminated. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 96,000.

NHTSA ODI #11617432

Mileage unknown · Sep 24, 2024
Engine

Driving down the interstate and lost power due to rough running engine. I barely made it to the emergency lane before someone hit me. Coolant intrusion in the cylinders cause the engine malfunction. Ford is fully aware of this problem and refuses to help.

NHTSA ODI #11616191

Mileage unknown · Sep 19, 2024
Engine

The car overheated and threw the code p1299, pulled over and there was no visual coolant leak. Put coolant in it and drove it to the garage a few days later, they told me coolant has leaked into the block and that I will need a whole new cylinder block and head gasket. Looked up recalls for my type of car and it showed 2013-2018…

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The car overheated and threw the code p1299, pulled over and there was no visual coolant leak. Put coolant in it and drove it to the garage a few days later, they told me coolant has leaked into the block and that I will need a whole new cylinder block and head gasket. Looked up recalls for my type of car and it showed 2013-2018 ford fusions have recalls about my problem and showed the symptoms and my car has every symptom of that recall but yet there is no active recall for my car.

NHTSA ODI #11615482

Mileage unknown · Sep 16, 2024
Engine

Engine has misfire in cylinder one from coolant intrusion. TSB 22-2229. Engine coolant leak can cause many problems for the engine and other components to fail and even break. Dealership confirmed, they’re are other fusion models and same engines with the same problem in the 2.0l. There were no previous lights on the dashboard t…

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Engine has misfire in cylinder one from coolant intrusion. TSB 22-2229. Engine coolant leak can cause many problems for the engine and other components to fail and even break. Dealership confirmed, they’re are other fusion models and same engines with the same problem in the 2.0l. There were no previous lights on the dashboard the car is maintained well.

NHTSA ODI #11614844

Mileage unknown · Sep 10, 2024
Engine

2018 fusion ecoboost with no lights or warnings would not start. Took to ford to repair, took them several weeks and several of the same part to fix crankshaft position sensor. Was given a clean bill of health on car. Everything was I'm good condition they said after I paid the 1500.00$ repair bill. Less than 1 week later the ca…

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2018 fusion ecoboost with no lights or warnings would not start. Took to ford to repair, took them several weeks and several of the same part to fix crankshaft position sensor. Was given a clean bill of health on car. Everything was I'm good condition they said after I paid the 1500.00$ repair bill. Less than 1 week later the car dies while on highway going 65 mph without warning. No lights, nothing. Just sputtered and died. Done all I could to get out of the way so I would not be hit on highway. Catastrophic engine failure resulting in engine locking up had occurred. This car has been taken care of, less than 75k miles on it and the engine is garbage. I lost my job, almost lost my life, lost my home, over half of my possessions all as a direct result of this faulty car that was designed to fail. Ford knows about this engine problem, they continue to sell these cars and refuse to pay for repairs or recall them.

NHTSA ODI #11613897

Mileage unknown · Sep 9, 2024
EngineUnknown Or Other

While driving, the low oil pressure warning light illuminated on the dashboard. Within 5-10 minutes, the vehicle began to lose power and struggled to maintain speed. Over the next 15 minutes, the vehicle's performance continued to deteriorate, eventually shutting down completely. Despite multiple attempts, the vehicle was unable…

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While driving, the low oil pressure warning light illuminated on the dashboard. Within 5-10 minutes, the vehicle began to lose power and struggled to maintain speed. Over the next 15 minutes, the vehicle's performance continued to deteriorate, eventually shutting down completely. Despite multiple attempts, the vehicle was unable to be restarted, the vehicle has not been inspected and the vehicle never gave any prior warning of potential failure this was the frist and only issue I had with this vehicle I had to have the vehicle towed home due to not starting

NHTSA ODI #11613377

Official recalls

2

23V162000 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings

Mar 10, 2023

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles. The front brake hoses may rupture and leak brake fluid.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A brake fluid leak will increase brake pedal travel and extend the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the front brake hoses, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 27, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 23S12.

18V167000 · Steering: Steering Wheel/handle Bar

Mar 12, 2018

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014-2018 Lincoln MKZ and Ford Fusion vehicles. The steering wheel retaining bolt may loosen allowing the steering wheel to detach while driving.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: A steering wheel detachment can cause a loss of steering control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering wheel bolt with a longer bolt, free of charge. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S08.

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

1

RQ22004 · Front Brake Jounce Hose Failures

Opened Aug 8, 2022 · Closed Mar 24, 2023

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings

On August 8, 2022, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation based on 50 Vehicle Owner Questionnaires (VOQs) alleging front brake jounce hose ruptures on model year (MY) 2013-2018 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles. A ruptured front brake hose results in a brake fluid leak. As a result, the driver may experience an increase in pedal travel and a reduction in the rate of deceleration, increasing the risk of a crash. It should be noted that the subject vehicles identified fell outside the scope of NHTSA Safety Recall 20V-469, which addressed front brake hoses rupturing on certain MY 2015-2018 Ford Edge and 2016-2018 Lincoln MKX vehicles. The result causes a brake fluid leak, lengthening the distance needing to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.On March 10, 2023, Ford Motor Company (Ford) submitted to NHTSA Safety Recall 23V-162 (Ford Recall 23S12) to address front brake jounce hoses that may rupture. Ford found the rupture occurs from a localized failure of the internal reinforcement braid due to cyclic fatigue through tensile/bending and torsional inputs during suspension and steering articulations. The supplier for the front brake jounce hoses is Hitachi. This recall affects the subject vehicles equipped with non-hybrid engines and the suspect front brake jounce hoses (a total of 1,280,726 vehicles). The recall covers subject vehicles built from February 3, 2012 to July 19, 2017 when the suspect hoses were used in vehicle production. The remedy is for dealerships to replace both front brake jounce hoses with new hoses that have a revised braid material at no cost. The vehicles equipped with hybrid engines are excluded from the recall because the internal hose pressure is much lower due to the regenerative braking provided by the hybrid brake system. No failures of brake hoses on hybrid vehicles have been reported to ODI or Ford.Ford's actions address ODIs concerns at this time. Hybrid vehicles will be monitored for related failures. The agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by new circumstances.The 103 ODI numbers cited above can be viewed at NHTSA.gov under the following ID numbers:11511014, 11510867, 11510318, 11509030, 11505993, 11504989, 11504400, 11502147, 11502082, 11501820, 11501283, 11498439, 11498296, 11496842, 11496335, 11494931, 11494851, 11494252, 11493001, 11492084, 11492070, 11491444, 11491274, 11488858, 11488027, 11487627, 11487416, 11487233, 11486150, 11484924, 11484526, 11484080, 11483948, 11483926, 11483739, 11483723, 11482773, 11482690, 11481077, 11480788, 11480294, 11480052, 11479338, 11479334, 11479252, 11479247, 11479187, 11479094, 11479048, 11478985, 11478953, 11478729, 11478216, 11476892, 11476282, 11470558, 11468994, 11467109, 11466294, 11462746, 11461217, 11456065, 11455367, 11444848, 11436419, 11436376, 11430685, 11428329, 11425083, 11421026, 11420738, 11420735, 11420298, 11418197, 11403926, 11397549, 11366991, 11366757, 11361016, 11359968, 11354569, 11352165, 11350344, 11348799, 11343929, 11343205, 11331947, 11329020, 11319596, 11310529, 11292271, 11288455, 11254787, 11253479, 11253244, 11234622, 11230669, 11230050, 11228240, 11221111, 11143630, 11129392 and 11120228.