Ford C-Max Complaints
510 consumer complaints on file.
- #11601224July 11, 2024ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:HORN
The contact owns a 2016 Ford C-Max Energi. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the contact attempted to honk at another vehicle, but the horn failed to respond while depressed. The contact stated that the horn occasionally responded while depressed. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was repaired temporarily with electrical gel on a fuse. The contact attempted to check the fuse, but the fuse box cover was difficult to remove. The failure reoccurred after several months but the electrical gel failed to repair the vehicle. In addition, the horn failed to respond while depressed. The local dealer was contacted but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 92,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11596882June 26, 2024POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-Max Hybrid. The contact stated when the vehicle was started, there was an abnormal rattling sound coming from the engine. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for a tune-up and to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the axle was loosened, and the bushing was damaged, and the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and the contact was referred to the NHSTA for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 106,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11592716June 5, 2024UNKNOWN OR OTHER, WHEELS:LUGS/NUTS/BOLTS/STUDS
Swollen lugnuts
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11587106May 6, 2024POWER TRAIN
When I first drive it with battery-only mode (about 15 miles), it is quiet. When the engine kicks in, there is a loud whining noise when driving it on the streets or on highways and even on idle. I took it to Ford dealership they said it is the transmission and they can not repair just some parts of it, so it needs a brand new transmission to the tune of $8000. At only 110k miles, I could not drive it past 15 miles of battery range.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11585535April 26, 2024AIR BAGS
Had a front end collision airbags did not deploy car was total
- Crash:
- Yes
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 3
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11585231April 25, 2024ENGINE, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Car accelerated by itself in Drive. I'd to either apply brake or put the car in Neutral to stop it. When shifted back to D, it auto accelerated. After I got home, shut it off and after 10 min. it started working normally.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11585303April 25, 2024AIR BAGS
Had a front end collision air bags did not deploy
- Crash:
- Yes
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11583321April 16, 2024BACK OVER PREVENTION, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
The contact owns a 2016 Ford C-Max Energi. The contact stated while in reverse (R) and backing up at 3 MPH the back-over prevention camera failed and displayed a black screen. The contact stated that when the back-over prevention camera failed to operate, the radio and the GPS became inoperable. The contact stated that the back over prevention screen occasionally turned blue or showed a distorted image. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent but occurred several times. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that a software update was needed. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that she was advised by the dealer that the software update was not a certain remedy. The contact stated that the failure had reoccurred and that the back-over prevention camera became inoperable. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 127,295.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11581402April 5, 2024POWER TRAIN
Transmission failed at 80,000 miles, replaced at ford dealership, failed again at 105,000 miles, just 2 years after replacement.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11576201March 8, 2024UNKNOWN OR OTHER, BACK OVER PREVENTION: SENSING SYSTEM: CAMERA
2 issues 1) back-up camera has started to intermittently fail. Sometimes it displays when you start to back up then goes blank. 2) the driver side rear door is stuck shut. The inside panel binds against the door jam and prevents it from opening.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11575199March 3, 2024TIRES, TIRES:SIDEWALL, TIRES:TREAD/BELT
225/57/17 driving down the interstate and the tire blew
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11571042February 9, 2024STEERING
System: Electric Power Steering assist module failed on engine start up. Safety: Without power steering it is extremely difficult to steer the car manually which could cause an accident and/or bodily injury. This is a well known problem with the Ford cMax which has created a recall for earlier model years of the cMax (but my 2014 model is not covered under previous recalls). Inspection: Vehicle is at the Ford dealership and has been diagnosed with a failed Power Steering module and is currently under parts replacement. Warnings: On 8 Feb 2014 during engine start, I warning window was displayed that said "Service Power Steering". Same warning window appeared the following morning when car was started. I drove it carefully to the dealership for repair.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11568220January 27, 2024VISIBILITY/WIPER, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Rear back-up camera does not display on dashboard console screen when air temperature is cold, i.e. below about 45º, and will only turn back on when the car has sufficiently warmed up after driving some distance. This has been happening for at least two years. When the camera is not working, there is a blind spot directly behind the car. The rear of the car proximity warning signal still works, but the screen remains black. I brought this problem to the attention of the dealership service manager, who told me he could not find anything obviously wrong.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11567542January 24, 2024STEERING
The contact owns a 2017 Ford C-MAX Hybrid. The contact stated while starting the vehicle in cold temperatures, the steering wheel was locked. The contact stated that the steering wheel operated as needed after the vehicle had warmed up. Additionally, the contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The message "Power Steering Assist Fault" was displayed. The contact stated that he used his physical strength to steer the steering wheel, and he drove to his nearby residence. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the power steering rack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer, where the same assessment was made. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 50,500.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11564892January 11, 2024STEERING, POWER TRAIN, LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-Max. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and attempting to make a left or right turn, there was a squeaking sound coming from the front passenger’s side wheel. The sound occurred while driving over a bump in the roadway and while accelerating. The tire pressure sensor failure warning light had been illuminated. The contact learned of NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V514000 (Steering) and believed that the failure was related to the recall. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and was confirmed that the VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 14V514000 (Steering). The manufacturer also confirmed that the VIN was included in NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 20V331000 (Latches, Locks, Linkages) and 22V413000 (Power Train). The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was 307,868.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11564193January 8, 2024FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
I bought this vehicle in 2018. For the next 6 years, I lived in an area where I was unable to plug it in to a wall to charge, so used it as a hybrid. Now, I have a house and when I plugged it in for several hours, it melted the plug and nearly started an electrical fire. Upon further investigation, I found the serial number to the charger that was included with purchase as the factory-issued charger, matches a known recall due to fire safety hazard, but my VIN does *not* match the recall. At the time of purchase I was informed the charger was not the factory original but "everything would be okay." I have contacted the dealership that sold it to me and they won't take responsibility for not only selling me a faulty piece of charging equipment, but also failing to inform me about a recall that impacted it, and only through sheer luck and me noticing the outlet was starting to melt, it didn't start an electrical fire in my house. Ford also refuses to take responsibility for it. My local Ford dealership confirmed that it's a recalled charger, but also said they can't process the recall because my VIN doesn't match it, and confirmed it was not the correct charger to be sold with that car. I already had the electrical outlet replaced, and didn't realize at the time that there may be a recall issue with the charger, but the charger is visibly scorched and melted and I can also get the statement from the electrician that the outlet was scorched. I can't afford to replace the charger, and Ford refuses to help me correct their mistake - which was both expensive and created a serious safety hazard for me. NOTE: File upload feature is not working, but I have photographs of the melted charger and it's serial number
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11562694December 30, 2023AIR BAGS, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The airbags did not deploy upon collision
- Crash:
- Yes
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 1
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11559895December 13, 2023STEERING
On the morning of 12/13/23 I got in my car to go to work. Upon starting my car the warning light for service power steering came on. I noticed the car was very hard to steer when existing my drive way. I drove the car back into my neighborhood to see if it was safe to drive in traffic. The steering was so tight and steering wheel would fight me wanting to return to center. With the fault code still present I went home and inspected the steering system and hooked up my scan tool to the OBD port. I had a fault code of 3000-53 and 3000-49. The 3000-53 would not clear. I have found online other Fford vehicles with recalls for the same steering system setup, but not on the Ford C Max. If this had happened when I was driving on the road at a high rate of speed it would have caused a serious accident, as the steering was very unresponsive and actually fighting my input of direction.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11559226December 8, 2023VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
I pulled over to take a phone call. The car was in park but idling. When I finished the call, I put the car in drive and released my foot from the brake. The car began to accelerate as if I was pressing the accelerator, but I was not. I checked the make sure there was no obstruction near the pedals. There was nothing there, no random object, no floor mat, nothing. I tried to release my foot a few more times and it continued to accelerate without any pressure on the accelerator. I put the car in park, noticed there was a wrench image lit up on the dash and then turned off the car. When I started it again, the wrench was gone and the car drove normally. I called the service center to make an appointment to have the car looked at. The earliest appointment is in 19 days.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11558398December 4, 2023LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:DOORS:LATCH
The contact owns a 2014 Ford C-Max Hybrid. The contact stated that while reversing, the back-over prevention camera was inoperable. The contact stated that the back-over prevention camera displayed images upside down. The contact stated that the passenger’s side rear door latch was inoperable and failed to lock as needed. The contact also stated that the hatchback latch failed to close without excessive force. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a fractured cable inside the hatchback. The contact was informed that the cable needed to be replaced. The contact previously experienced electrical failure with the electrical system and the vehicle was taken to the dealer and the electrical failure was covered under warranty. The contact stated that the failure with the passenger-side rear door and the back-over prevention camera had not been diagnosed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0