2012 Ford Flex reliability

Is it reliable?

Owners have filed 64 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Ford Flex over 15 years — 4 per year. The other Flex years sit at about the same rate: their median is 4 complaints per year. NHTSA has 2 recalls on file, including Frontal and Electric power steering.

2011 Ford Flex Limited — Photo by IFCAR, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons Public domain

Complaints

Per year

Recalls

Years on the road

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Steering (24 of 64), then Engine (11) and Electrical system (10). Complaints that include an odometer have a median of 65,006 miles, and the middle half falls between 34,768 and 108,225 miles. Those filings include 4 that report a crash, 1 that reports a fire, and 4 that report an injury.

Next to 2013

The 2013 Flex has 578 complaints, 31 per year. The 2012 has fewer complaints per year than the 2013.

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 2012 Ford Flex. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (2)

Recall air bags, frontal 2016-04-26 · NHTSA campaign 16V247000

Summary 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."

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.

Vehicles affected 695

Recall Electric power steering 2015-06-02 · NHTSA campaign 15V340000

Summary 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.

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.

Vehicles affected 393,623

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

Complaints by component (64 total)

Steering

Engine

Electrical system

Service brakes

Fuel and propulsion system

Powertrain

Structure

Air bags

Speed control

Suspension

Electronic stability control (ESC)

Fuel system, gasoline

Wheels

Exterior lighting

Visibility

Visibility and wipers

Show 8 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Of the 46 complaints that include an odometer reading, the median is 65,006 miles. The middle half fall between 34,768 and 108,225 miles.

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"There is serious safety trouble occurring with the power steering components, and the brake system. I went to the Ford dealership and they said the recalls weren’t fixed back in 2015. And those recalls are the same…"
Steering, Service brakes · filed 2025-12-30
"The contact owns a 2012 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 30 MPH, the ABS and the ESC warnings illuminated. The contact stated that she had recently heard an abnormal grinding sound while…"
Steering · filed 2025-12-30
"Ford said the recall was fixed 10 years ago, however it went out on me last night. It's been towed to the Folsom Ford dealership in California, they quoted me $3,000 to fix my power steering assistant failure that had a…"
Steering · filed 2025-04-23
"The contact owns a 2012 Ford Flex. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the vehicle intermittently became difficult to maneuver. The failure occurred on several occasions, including while the contact was…"
Steering · filed 2025-02-28
"vehicle power steering stops working. Manual steering is extremely difficult to operate."
Steering · filed 2025-02-24

NHTSA crash ratings

Version	Overall	Front	Side	Rollover
2012 Ford Flex SUV AWD	Not rated	Not rated	Not rated	4 stars
2012 Ford Flex SUV FWD	Not rated	Not rated	Not rated	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
Flex all-wheel drive	3.5L, 6-cyl	Automatic (6-speed)	All-wheel drive	16	22	18 MPG	$3600
Flex all-wheel drive	3.5L, 6-cyl	Automatic 6-speed	All-wheel drive	16	23	18 MPG	$3600
Flex front-wheel drive	3.5L, 6-cyl	Automatic 6-speed	Front-wheel drive	17	24	19 MPG	$3400

Specs and fitment

1st generation, 2009–2019

Body styles SUV

Oil 5W-20 (3.5L V6); 5W-30 (3.5L V6 EcoBoost) , 6 qt capacity

Tire size 235/60R17 (SE) to 255/45R20 (Limited EcoBoost)

Towing capacity 4,500 lbs

Known issues for this generation

2011-2013 Flex crossovers built between September 2010 and February 2012 are covered by Ford's 2015 recall of the electric power-assist steering (EPAS) system (NHTSA campaign 15V-340, Ford reference 15S18); for the 2011 and 2012 model years only vehicles with the 3.5L GTDI engine are affected. An intermittent electrical connection inside the steering gear motor, caused by conformal coat contamination and ribbon cable pin misalignment, can cause loss of the motor position sensor signal and loss of power steering assist. The mechanical linkage between the steering wheel and the road is maintained at all times and the system defaults to manual steering, but steering effort rises, especially at lower speeds; drivers are alerted by an audible chime and a power steering assist fault message in the instrument cluster. Ford's no-charge remedy checked the Power Steering Control Module for diagnostic trouble codes, updating the module software if none were present and replacing the steering gear if they were.

Compare

Next year 2013 Ford Flex See every Ford Flex model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2012 Ford Flex reliable?

What are common problems with a 2012 Ford Flex?

Is the 2012 Ford Flex more reliable than the years next to it?

The 2013 Flex has 578 complaints, 31 per year. The 2012 has fewer complaints per year than the 2013.

Has the 2012 Ford Flex been recalled?

The 2012 Ford Flex has 2 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 2012 Ford Flex?

Owners have filed 64 complaints about the 2012 Ford Flex with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2012 Ford Flex get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2012 Ford Flex is 18.3 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What generation is the 2016 Ford Flex?

1st generation (2009-2019); the Flex was never redesigned into a 2nd generation.

How much can a Ford Flex tow?

Up to 4,500 lbs with the factory Class III Trailer Tow Package per Ford's official towing guide, on both the base 3.5L V6 and the 3.5L EcoBoost engine.