NHTSA Complaint #11053795 — 2013 FORD FLEX

MY 2013 FORD FLEX HAS DOOR LATCH SENSOR ISSUES. WHEN I AM DRIVING ANYWHERE (CITY, HIGHWAY, INTERSTATE) MY INTERIOR LIGHTS WILL RANDOMLY TURN ON AND I GET A 'DOOR AJAR' NOTIFICATION WHEN THE DOORS ARE CLEARLY CLOSED. IT IS ALARMING AND HAS ALMOST CAUSED ACCIDENTS. WHEN I RESEARCHED THE PROBLEM ONLINE, IT IS AN EXTREMELY COMMON PROBLEM THAT HAS CAUSED NUMEROUS ACCIDENT AND COST FLEX OWNERS THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS,ONLY TO HAVE THE PROBLEM REOCCUR IN 6 MONTHS TO A YEAR. I RECENTLY CONTACTED MY FORD DEALERSHIP AND THEY TOO ARE AWARE OF THE PROBLEM AND STATED THAT IT IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM IN FLEX'S AND I WILL PROBABLY HAVE TO REPLACE THE LATCH SYSTEM EVERY 2-3 YEARS. AT $350-500 A LATCH THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS AND COSTLY PROBLEM TO BE SO COMMON. THE SOLUTION MOST SUGGEST IS TO GROUND THE WIRE GOING TO THE LATCH, WHICH WILL TOTALLY DEFAULT THE SENSOR ALL TOGETHER AND MAKE THE VEHICLE THINK THAT THE DOORS ARE CLOSED AT ALL TIMES, WHICH IS ALSO VERY UNSAFE.