2013 Ford C-Max: problems, recalls and reliability
8 recalls and 187 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is steering (23% of complaints); the 2014 and 2015 model years look more trouble-free.
Data updated weekly · latest recall Jun 2022
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 187 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“The backup camera always quits working while in the middle of reversing. It will work for a second, but then the display will flip upside down or go completely black and display a message saying "Camera unavailable. Please contact your dealership." It started doing this about a year ago, but was intermittent. It started happening more often over time, and now it always happens. It makes reversing dangerous, as the camera will quit working while the vehicle is still moving. This is especially dangerous in parking lots where there are pedestrians around. It is available for inspection upon request. It has not been inspected by anyone yet.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Oct 2025
“Engine light came on. Mechanic said 2 codes showed up. One for low coolant, another for engine misfiring. The misfiring code had come on several times in past and spark plugs were replaced. Upon inspection was told the engine block is cracked due to faulty design. I will need a new engine!”Owner report · Engine · Sep 2025
“Steering stopped working but after restarted it began to work again. It was fine for a few days and then DTC came up indicating "Service Power Steering" and the power steering has quit working.”Owner report · Steering · Sep 2025
Show 7 more owner reports
“Got a "Power steering assist fault" message on the screen. It was very hard to steer the wheel. The case on the wheel was turning around it. Managed to drive 3 more miles to the dealership. A lot of other ford models have same issues, even under 50.000 miles. And many of the are in recall program, but not 2013 ford c-max. Can't afford 3.400$ price for fixing it at the dealership. I'm a second owner, bought it for 5.000 , 3 years ago. At least it didn't stuck completely, and I didn't Die”Owner report · Steering · Nov 2024
“The wrench ð"§ light came on in my car. and when I put it in drive the car took off without me putting my foot on the gas. and it was like I had no control over the gas pedal. I tried hitting the brakes and it was still wanting to accelerate.”Owner report · Vehicle Speed Control · Jul 2024
“The component that failed is the lug nuts. They are swollen. Had them replaced when I got new tires in December, 2022 because mechanic could not use the ones that came with the previous tires. He said I would be driving on broken lug nuts because of how he had to take off the lug nuts that came with my Ford. On May 17/2023, took my car to A ford dealership for an oil change and inspection. They could not rotate the tire because of the swollen lug nuts.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · May 2023
“Description from Ford Dealer is in quotes, plus I added more details: "Rear sub-frame" (F1FZ5035D Cross Member) "broke in half" (due to rusting). "Unsafe to drive at this time." Good thing my wife questioned the new clunking sound that was emanating from the rear of the vehicle when going over bumps. We were able to proactively catch this before it resulted in an accident. I believe these parts should last much longer than 10 years.”Owner report · Suspension · May 2023
“Several times over the past 3 years, the 12 volt battery has been deeply drained while the car has been off/unused for ~3 days. (The problem has been described on your website: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2016/SB-10093862-2532.pdf.) This is a safety issue because there is a reasonable expectation of serviceability of a car, for emergencies or for returning to a safe place. Just as one depends on the reasonable reliability of devices like fire extinguishers, elevators, heart monitors, etc., so does one expect cars to be reasonably reliable. There is no advance warning that the battery will be drained.”Owner report · Electrical System · Feb 2023
“My vehicle fails to properly turn off after it has been put into park. As a result, I believe the regular battery is being drained at an alarming rate. If my vehicle sits overnight 8-10 hours, it is very likely that the battery will be dead and the car doors will not open. At first I thought it was just a manufacturer error with the batteries, but once I had purchased three batteries in less than 6 months. At this point, It seems to be an electrical draw issue that I am uncertain how to resolve as these cars are barely 10 years old.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Nov 2022
“I started the car and could not move the steering wheel without great great effort. "Power steering failure" notice appeared on dashboard.”Owner report · Steering · Nov 2022
When filing, owners marked a crash in 4 of these complaints and injuries in 2 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 8 campaigns
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.
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.
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.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2012-2013 Focus Electric vehicles and 2013 C-Max vehicles equipped with the Intelligent Access Push Button Start System. In the affected vehicles, there is no audible chime when the vehicle is operational and the driver's door is opened. Thus, these vehicles fail to conform to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the door chime, free of charge. The recall began on October 30, 2013. Owners may contact the Ford customer relationship center at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's recall number is 13C07.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Specifications
Factory options offered for the 2013 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.
How other years compare
Check your exact C-Max by VIN
Recalls and equipment differ between individual vehicles. Decode your VIN to see what applies to yours.
Open VIN decoderFrequently asked questions
Is the 2013 Ford C-Max reliable?
NHTSA has 187 owner complaints and 8 recall campaigns on record for the 2013 Ford C-Max. The most complained-about area is steering (23% of complaints).
At what mileage do 2013 Ford C-Max problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 69,489 miles or less.
Does the 2013 Ford C-Max have open recalls?
8 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning equipment:electrical. Check your specific vehicle by VIN - recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.
Source: NHTSA recall campaigns and owner complaints (public domain). Counts reflect reports on file and are not a defect rate.