2013 Ford FLEX - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2013 Ford Flex SUV FWD has not been rated for overall safety by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). However, it does have a rollover rating of 4 out of 5, indicating a moderate risk of rollover. This vehicle comes equipped with standard electronic stability control, providing added safety on the road. It also offers an optional forward collision warning system for further protection against potential accidents. Unfortunately, it does not have a lane departure warning feature to assist with staying within lanes.

In terms of complaints and recalls, the 2013 Ford Flex has received a total of 527 complaints and has been subject to 6 recalls. It's important for owners and potential buyers to stay informed about these issues and address them promptly to ensure the safety and reliability of the vehicle.

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Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

527

Recall Count

6

Investigation Count

0

Safety Rating

Not Rated

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Safety Features

2013 Ford Flex SUV FWD Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2013 Ford Flex SUV FWD

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

Standard
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

Optional
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2013 Ford Flex SUV FWD Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2013 Ford Flex SUV FWD Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2009 Score 2013 Score 2019 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 5 Not Rated Not Rated
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 Not Rated Not Rated

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2009 Score 2013 Score 2019 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 5 Not Rated Not Rated
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 5 Not Rated Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2009 Score 2013 Score 2019 Score
Rollover Rating 4 4 4
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip No Tip No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated Not Rated

Complaints for the 2013 Ford FLEX

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"while driving, the radio turns off and the climate control system malfunctions causing the heater to engage to high with no way to turn the system off. all controls are disabled and there is no way to turn the system off. unplugged the battery for 30 minutes as suggested, removed fuses to the radio and climate control module which temporarily fixes the issue, but issue happens randomly and creates excessive heat in the cabin. this is the 5th time this has happened. it is the 3rd time while on long trips (3hrs or longer). others online have mentioned the same. we had to ride with the windows and moonroof open to let the heat escape. first time occurred in 2019 in early december. navigation still worked, but all other systems would not function."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2025-03-12
Complaint:
"vehicle would not start after 3 days of not being started or driven. after having the battery jumped the climate control unit malfunctioned. the heat would not turn off and stayed on full blast. this caused the car to overheat and difficult to drive even with the windows down. when brought to the dealership service center, they replaced the heater blower. this fixed the issue temporarily. then the heat stopped working and in single digit temperatures the vehicle was too cold to drive. the dealership replaced the resistor. this again became a temporary fix. the heat came back but then the vehicle battery kept draining. having some type of electrical issue put the vehicle at a possible risk for short circuiting, catching fire etc. this is an ongoing issue with all years of the ford flex. when the vehicle is jump started this causes an electrical short affecting the climate control system but also the entire communication system. ."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2022-07-01
Complaint:
"the 2013 flex has an issue with door ajar switch within the door latch mechanism failing. this results in the car incorrectly identifying the door as “ajar” when it is closed. the result is that the automatic door locking does not activate when the car is in motion. this means that the door remains unlocked unless manually locked by the passenger. this can pose a safety hazard as the door could come open in an accident or be opened while in motion by a passenger. this problem has been well described on the web with multiple work around including disabling the mechanism or wiring a different switch in. it also described as typically happening around 69,000 miles. in conclusion ford has created a faulty door ajar sensor that negatively affects the safety of the occupants in the vehicles and has resulted in numerous work arounds that could further negatively impact the safety of the occupants. thank you for your time."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2023-06-07
Complaint:
"right rear passanger "door ajar" comes on all the time when the door is fully closed. in the beginning was able to get it to stop by opening and closing the door several times, now its continual. the interior lights stay on, causing hazardous condition while driving, due to inability to see what is in the rearview mirrow, chimes continuously."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2021-03-07
Complaint:
"door ajar sensor for left rear door stays on, despite the door being fully closed. the dome lights remain on for a few minutes after starting the vehicle. and the dome lights stay on after you lock the vehicle. the dome lights staying on runs down the battery and is also a distraction and hazard while driving at night. online forums indicate that this is a very common problem with ford flexes, and the repairs are apparently $300-$350 per door, with repairs at the dealership lasting for about a year."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2022-04-06
Complaint:
"2013 ford flex issues with door sensors reading door open when doors are closed. dome lights stay on, alarm will not go on and panic alarm goes off on its own. drive door lock no longer work & neither does the right back passenger door."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2021-08-10
Complaint:
"passenger door ajar light illuminates. lock won't engage and dome lights remain on for awhile."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2020-01-04
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2013 ford flex. the contact stated that the vehicle was at stand still and stated while she was charging her cellphone by using the middle usb portal, when she noticed the wiring was melted. the contact stated no warning light was illuminated. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired as of yet. a dealer was not contacted. the manufacturer had not been informed of failure. the failure mileage was approximately 124,000."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2020-09-09
Complaint:
"the door latches do not work i've had them replaced twice and the electrical panel that controls the ac does not work it blows out heat cannot turn heat off because the touch screen does not work it is completely shut down and it flickers on and off and this does not happen all the time but periodically"
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2016-09-08
Complaint:
"door ajar warning sensor previously failed on front passenger side door twice. repaired under warranty, n/c. now the rear drivers side door ajar sensor periodically indicates the door is ajar when it's not after opening or closing the door. dome lights stay on. have to repeatedly open and close door, hard, to get the sensor to correct. out of warranty, 147,000 miles on flex."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2022-06-03

Recalls for the 2013 Ford FLEX

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"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:
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.

Component(s) Involved: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
Date of incident: 2015-12-02
Recall:
"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:
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.

Component(s) Involved: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
Date of incident: 2013-05-31

FORD Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

FORD ranks 1 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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