2014 Ford C-Max reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 80 complaints with NHTSA about the 2014 Ford C-Max over 13 years — 4 per year. That is more complaints per year than most C-Max years here — over the median of the other years, which is 2. NHTSA has 8 recalls on file, including Gear position indicator, Latch, and Electrical.

2015 Ford C-Max Hybrid SEL — Photo by Elise240SX, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0

Complaints

Per year

Recalls

Years on the road

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (17 of 80), then Powertrain (17) and Steering (14). Complaints that include an odometer have a median of 53,394 miles, and the middle half falls between 27,375 and 87,169 miles. Those filings include 6 that report a crash, 4 that report a fire, and 5 that report an injury.

Next to 2013 and 2015

The 2013 C-Max has 187 complaints, 7 per year, and the 2015 has 52 complaints, 2 per year. The 2014 has fewer complaints per year than the 2013. The 2014 has more complaints per year than the 2015.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2014 Ford C-Max. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (8)

Recall powertrain, automatic transmission, gear position indicator 2022-06-10 · NHTSA campaign 22V413000

Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2019 Escape, 2013-2018 C-Max, 2013-2016 Fusion, 2013-2021 Transit Connect, and 2015-2018 Edge vehicles. The bushing that attaches the shifter cable to the transmission may degrade or detach.

Remedy Dealers will replace the under hood shift bushing and add a protective cap over the shift cable bushing, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters, informing owners of the safety risk, were mailed July 1, 2022. Remedy parts are expected to be available in 4th Quarter 2022. Owner notification letters were mailed October 27, 2022. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 22S43.

Vehicles affected 2,925,968

Recall latches, locks, and linkages, doors, latch 2020-06-08 · NHTSA campaign 20V331000

Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2011-2014 Fiesta, 2013-2014 Fusion, 2015 Mustang, 2013-2015 Escape and C-Max, 2012-2015 Focus, 2014-2016 Transit Connect, 2013-2014 Lincoln MKZ, and 2015 MKC vehicles. These vehicles were previously recalled and repaired under recalls 15V-246, 16V-643 or 17V-210, however the repair may not have been completed properly. A component within the door latches may break making the doors difficult to latch and/or leading the driver or a passenger to believe a door is securely closed when, in fact, it is not.

Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the latch date codes to confirm if the repair was done correctly, and replace the side door latches if necessary, free of charge. Owners will also have the option to inspect their own vehicle's door latches and enter the date codes into a website to determine if the latches are correct. Owner notification letters were mailed on July 27, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S30.

Vehicles affected 2,147,323

Recall equipment, electrical 2018-09-10 · NHTSA campaign 18V592000

Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 120V Convenience charge cords that were supplied with and sold for use with 2013-2015 Ford C-Max Energi and Fusion Energi vehicles and 2012-2015 Ford Focus Electric vehicles. Cords with part numbers FM58-10B706-AA, FM58-10B706-AB, FM58-10B706-AC, FM58-10B706-AD, FM58-10B706-AE and FM58-10B706-AF were manufactured without thermistors, and during vehicle charging, increased resistance in the house's outlet or wiring can cause the cord to overheat and melt.

Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the current cord with a new 120V convenience cord with a thermistor, free of charge. The recall began January 18, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S24.

Vehicles affected 49,197

Recall latches, locks, and linkages, doors, latch 2016-09-06 · NHTSA campaign 16V643000

Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2012-2015 Ford Focus, 2013-2015 Ford Escape and Ford C-MAX, 2015 Lincoln MKC and Ford Mustang, and 2014-2016 Ford Transit Connect vehicles. A component within the door latches may break, preventing the doors from latching and/or leading the driver or a passenger to believe a door is securely closed when, in fact, it is not.

Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the door latches with an improved part, free of charge. The recall began on January 27, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S30.

Vehicles affected 2,046,297

Recall Air bags 2014-09-26 · NHTSA campaign 14V597000

Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Ford C-Max vehicles manufactured January 19, 2012, to November 21, 2013; Ford Fusion vehicles manufactured February 3, 2012, to August 24, 2013; Ford Escape vehicles manufactured October 5, 2011, to November 1, 2013; and Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured April 25, 2012, to September 30, 2013. The coating on portions of the Restraint Control Module (RCM) may crack, and when exposed to humidity, circuits on the printed circuit board may short.

Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the RCM, free of charge. Parts are not currently available. The recall began on May 26,2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 14S21.

Vehicles affected 746,842

Recall Steering 2014-08-22 · NHTSA campaign 14V514000

Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2014 Focus and C-Max vehicles manufactured August 8, 2014, to August 15, 2014. The affected vehicles may have steering gears that were incorrectly assembled.

Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering gears, free of charge. The recall began on November 11, 2014. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-800-392-3673. Ford's number for this recall is 14S18.

Vehicles affected 508

Recall air bags, frontal, inactive sensor control module 2014-05-07 · NHTSA campaign 14V237000

Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 C-MAX, and Escape vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the restraint control module (RCM) may have errors in the programming software which may result in a delayed deployment of the side-curtain rollover air bag.

Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the RCM, free of charge. The recall began on May 30, 2014. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-800-392-3673. Ford's number for this recall is 14S04.

Vehicles affected 594,785

Recall seats, front assembly, recliner 2014-04-02 · NHTSA campaign 14V164000

Summary Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured August 15, 2012, through September 10, 2013, 2013-2014 Ford Escape vehicles manufactured June 5, 2012, through August 12, 2013, and 2013-2014 Ford C-Max vehicles manufactured from July 23, 2012, through May 28, 2013. The driver and passenger seatback assemblies may have been produced with sub-standard weld joints used to attach the seat back recliner mechanism to the seat frame. The affected seat backs may have insufficient strength to meet the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 207, "Seating Systems."

Remedy Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the seatback, free of charge. The recall began on May 30, 2014. Owners may contact Ford at 1-800-392-3673. Ford's number for this recall is 14C03.

Vehicles affected 43,135

NHTSA's count is every vehicle in that campaign. A campaign can cover other model years and other models.

Complaints by component (80 total)

Electrical system

Powertrain

Steering

Engine

Latches, locks, and linkages

Air bags

Fuel and propulsion system

Latch

Structure, body

Electronic stability control (ESC)

Speed control

Wheels

Automatic transmission

Camera

Horn

Lock

Lug nuts

Onboard charging cable

Seat belts

Service brakes

Traction battery thermal management air handling

Show 13 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Of the 40 complaints that include an odometer reading, the median is 53,394 miles. The middle half fall between 27,375 and 87,169 miles.

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"Major electrical issues, including rear view camera not working, vehicle starting when no key fob is in or near the vehicle, tail lights burning out even after replacement, one taillight blinking faster than the other,…"
Electrical system · filed 2026-07-28
"For the last couple of years I've had a problem with the backup camera it goes out randomly sometimes the picture turns upside down sometimes it's just a black screen sometimes there is a thing that says see the dealer.…"
Electrical system · filed 2026-05-12
"My 2014 Ford Cmax Energi is unable to exceed 80 MPH. This is due to Ford MyKey systems not allowing other keys to be made for the vehicle without restrictions being applied. Because I had to get a new key made, my car…"
Unknown or other, Speed control · filed 2026-04-07
"While car shopping, I found a Ford hybrid listed with ~40,760 miles. Its public history shows a severe, unexplained odometer discrepancy. In September 2022, mileage was ~38,353. By May 2023, it spiked to 392,484. The…"
Unknown or other · filed 2025-12-04
"Backup camera nonfunctional. Will occasionally work or be upside down."
Unknown or other · filed 2025-07-11

NHTSA crash ratings

Version	Overall	Front	Side	Rollover
2014 Ford CMAX Energi 5 HB FWD	4 stars	4 stars	5 stars	4 stars
2014 Ford CMAX Hybrid 5 HB FWD	4 stars	4 stars	5 stars	4 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim	Engine	Transmission	Drive	City	Hwy	Combined	Annual fuel cost
C-MAX Energi Plug-in hybrid	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (variable gear ratios)	Front-wheel drive	40	36	38 MPG / 550 mi range	$1700
C-MAX hybrid front-wheel drive	2L, 4-cyl	Automatic (variable gear ratios)	Front-wheel drive	41	36	39 MPG	$1650

Specs and fitment

US-market generation, 2013–2018

Body styles Hatchback, Wagon

Oil 5W-20 synthetic blend (2.0L Atkinson-cycle hybrid) , 4.5 qt capacity

Tire size 225/50R17

Known issues for this generation

Ford originally rated the 2013 C-Max Hybrid at 47 mpg city/highway/ combined, sharing the label of the related Fusion Hybrid rather than testing the C-Max separately; independent testing by Consumer Reports and others found real-world results well below that figure, at 37 mpg overall in Consumer Reports' own testing. EPA rules at the time permitted the shared label because the two cars use the same engine, transmission and electric drive and their weights fall within 35 pounds of each other, even though they share neither size, shape nor platform. Ford lowered the C-Max's own rating to 40 mpg combined for 2013 and made goodwill payments to about 200,000 owners and lessees. The dispute produced a consolidated federal class-action (In re Ford Fusion and C-MAX Fuel Economy Litigation, MDL No. 2450) and, in 2022, a $19.2 million settlement with a 40-state and D.C. consortium over the 2013-2014 C-Max's advertised fuel economy.

Compare

Previous year 2013 Ford C-Max Next year 2015 Ford C-Max See every Ford C-Max model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2014 Ford C-Max reliable?

What are common problems with a 2014 Ford C-Max?

Is the 2014 Ford C-Max more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2013 C-Max has 187 complaints, 7 per year, and the 2015 has 52 complaints, 2 per year. The 2014 has fewer complaints per year than the 2013. The 2014 has more complaints per year than the 2015.

Has the 2014 Ford C-Max been recalled?

The 2014 Ford C-Max has 8 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2014 Ford C-Max?

Owners have filed 80 complaints about the 2014 Ford C-Max with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2014 Ford C-Max get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2014 Ford C-Max is 38.5 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What years was the Ford C-Max sold in the US?

The C-Max Hybrid and Energi were sold in the US for model years 2013 through 2018.

Did the Ford C-Max have a fuel economy lawsuit?

Yes; Ford's 47-mpg claim for the 2013 C-Max was lowered to 40 mpg after real-world testing, leading to goodwill payments and a 2022 multistate settlement.