There are 6 owner-reported engine complaints for the 2012 Ford Flexin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Flex. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was diagnosed and repaired however, the failure recurred and persisted. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was informed of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 126,828.
THROTTLE BODY HAS BEEN DIAGNOSED ON MY 2012 FORD FLEX. LOOKING AT VEHICLE HISTORY, THE SAME THROTTLE BODY HAS RECALLS FOR DIFFERENT MODELS. YESTERDAY, 9/252020, I HAD MY FLEX DIE ON ME THREE TIMES ON THE INTERSTATE DURING TRAFFIC. THE MILAGE IS UNDER 100K MILES. EVERY TIME THE VEHICLE DIES IS WHEN IM UNDER 30 MPH.
BAD THROTTLE BODY. STALL WHEN DRIVING AND JERKY MOTION, BOTH WHEN GOING SLOW AND WHEN GOING HIGHWAY SPEEDS. RED WRENCH LIGHT COMES ON, PULL TO SIDE OF ROAD SHUT OFF AND TURN BACK ON AND DRIVES FINE UNTIL THE NEXT TIME. I HAD IT REPLACED W/ BRAND NEW PART AT A SHOP AND IT IS STILL MALFUNCTIONING.
10/15/2019 CAR WENT INTO LIMP MODE WITH WRENCH SHOWING. TURNED THE CAR OFF AD BACK ON TO SEE IF IT WOULD HELP AS IT DID THIS WHILE DRIVING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD ON A CITY STREET. IT PROCEEDED TO RETURN TO LIMP MODE ALMOST IMMEDIATELY. CAR WAS TOWED TO MECHANIC WHO INDICATED THE CODES THROWN WERE FOR A THROTTLE BODY FAILURE. THE THROTTLE BODY WAS REPLACED. A FEW DAYS LATER IT HAPPENED AGAIN AND THE THROTTLE BODY WAS REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY FOR A SECOND TIME ALONG WITH THE PCM. ABOUT 10 DAYS LATER THE CAR WENT INTO LIMP MODE AGAIN AND THIS TIME SOME WIRING WAS REPLACED AND WE ARE WAITING ON THE ECM. IT IS EXTREMELY UNSAFE WHEN THIS OCCURS AND WE ARE FEARFUL THE PROBLEM WILL NOT BE FIXED SINCE IT HAS BEEN IN AND OUT OF THE SHOP FOUR TIMES NOW; WE ARE ALSO AFRAID TO TRAVEL ON THE HIGHWAY FOR FEAR THE CAR WILL GO INTO LIMP MODE DROPPING FROM 65 MILES PER HOUR TO 5 ALSO IMMEDIATELY. THIS SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN AN ISSUE WITH SEVERAL MAKES AND MODELS OF VEHICLES ACCORDING TO COMMON REPAIR COMPLAINTS BUT ESPECIALLY FORD. COSTS OF REPAIR AND TROUBLE SHOOTING IS ALSO PROBLEMATIC. A COMPLAINT IS ALSO BEING FILED WITH FORD.
WE HAVE A 2012 FORD FLEX NORMALLY ASPIRATED ENGINE. STARTING IN AUGUST, WE HAD AN ISSUE WITH OUR ELECTRONIC THROTTLE BODY WHICH CAUSED OUR CAR TO SHUT DOWN. WE HAD THE PART REPLACED, SHORTLY AFTER A SIMILAR PROBLEM OCCURRED. THIS WAS DUE TO THE DEALERSHIP FRYING THE COMPUTER. THIS WAS REPLACED, BY THE DEALERSHIP, AFTER CALLING FORD DIRECTLY. IN FEBRUARY, THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE BODY FAILED AGAIN. REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY. THE SAME ISSUE OCCURRED LAST NIGHT AND THE VEHICLE WILL BE TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP. ALL SIGNS POINT TOWARD THE ELECTRONIC THROTTLE BODY AGAIN. EVERY TIME THIS ISSUE ARISES, THE CAR GOES INTO A SAFE MODE WHILE TRAVELING DOWN BUSY STREETS. THIS RESULTS IN SPEEDS OF AROUND 5 MILES PER HOUR AND CAN CAUSE MAJOR SAFETY PROBLEMS. THE VEHICLE AND THE PART INSTALLED ARE NO LONGER CONSIDERED SAFE TO DRIVE ANY DISTANCE GREATER THAN FIVE MILES FROM OUR RESIDENCE, IN CASE WE NEED TO GET HOME. TO CLARIFY, THE VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION .
MY 2012 NEW FORD FLEX HAD COMPLETE ENGINE FAILURE 3 TIMES 1-27 DRIVING..COMPLETE SHUT DOWN. I CRUISED TO CURB. RESTARTED QUICKLY 2-01 SAME INCIDENT 2-02 REPEAT ON MAJOR STREET DEALERS HAVE SAID THAT THEY HAVE NO IDEA WHAT TO DO. THEY HAVE HD MY VEHICLE SINCE 2-02. *TR
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026