NHTSA Complaint #11129308 — 2010 FORD FUSION

VEHICLE SHOWED INTERMITTENT "SERVICE ADVANCETRAK" LIGHT AND WOULD INTERMITTENTLY GO INTO FULL ABS MODE AT LOW SPEED ON SMOOTH, DRY PAVEMENT. THE ABS PART OF THE PROBLEM CAUSED US TO MISS SEVERAL TURNS FOR LACK OF EFFECTIVE BRAKING AND, AT LEAST ONCE, TO END UP FOUR FEET PAST A STOP SIGN AND INTO THE CROSSING LANE OF TRAFFIC. THE FORD DEALER REPLACED THE L/R ABS SENSOR TWICE BUT THE PROBLEM RECURRED 9 MONTHS AND THEN 3 MONTHS LATER. THE THIRD TIME, WE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO AN INDEPENDENT SHOP WHERE I WAS ABLE TO PERSONALLY OBSERVE THE FINAL AND CORRECT DIAGNOSIS AND REPAIR OF THE PROBLEM. THERE WAS A BUILDUP OF RUST AND SCALE ON THE SENSOR MOUNTING POINT WHICH HAD GRADUALLY FORCED THE PLASTIC SENSOR FURTHER AND FURTHER FROM NOTCHED SENDER WHEEL UNTIL, EVENTUALLY, THE SENSOR BECAME INTERMITTENT. THE COMPUTER APPARENTLY INTERPRETED THIS AS A LOCKED WHEEL AND THEN WENT INTO FULL ABS MODE. THAT'S WHAT THE REAL MECHANIC SAID, ANYWAY, AND HIS REPAIR HAS WORKED FINE FOR ABOUT FOUR MONTHS NOW (THE R/H SENSOR ALSO WENT INTERMITTENT FOR THE SAME REASON ABOUT TWO MONTHS AGO AND WAS ALSO SUCCESSFULLY REPAIRED BY CLEANING UP THE MOUNT AND REINSTALLING THE ORIGINAL 2010 SENSOR). THE FORD DEALER'S MECHANIC APPARENTLY NEVER CLEANED UP THE SURFACE OF THE MOUNT ON EITHER OF HIS REPAIRS. JUST TORQUING DOWN THE NEW SENSOR WAS EVIDENTLY ENOUGH TO MAKE IT WORK FOR A WHILE. THIS WOULD NOT BE WORTH BOTHERING YOU OVER BUT FOR THE RANDOM ABS PART WHICH COULD HAVE CAUSED US TO BE IN A PRETTY SERIOUS ACCIDENT ON AT LEAST ONE OCCASION (THE STOP SIGN!). I DID NOT OBSERVE ANY OBVIOUS PATTERN OR RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE LIGHT COMING ON AND/OR THE ABS MALFUNCTION. RUST IS A COMMON PROBLEM HERE IN THE NORTHEAST. THE MECHANIC WHO SOLVED THE PROBLEM SAID HE HAS RUN INTO SIMILAR ISSUES WITH OTHER CARS. IT MIGHT BE WORTH AT LEAST A SERVICE BULLETIN.