2018 Ford Flex: problems, recalls and reliability
3 recalls and 61 owner complaints on record; the weakest area is structure (23% of complaints).
Data updated weekly · latest recall Oct 2025
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 61 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“Wile driving 40 mph, the right rear tire locked up and I had to counter steer aggressively to avoid spinning out and hitting oncoming traffic. The car was flat bed delivered to Ford and they recommended the following repairs. "Control Arm- Rear: rear suspension lateral links. The rear upper and lower control arms not only provide suspension travel but also secure the rear end to the vehicle." "*Tires - 4: passenger rear inner sidewall damaged."”Owner report · Suspension · May 2026
“Recently, while driving on the freeway The drivers B pillar, came off and was only held on by the wires for the keyless entry. While driving on the freeway, I had to hold the B pillar until I could get off the freeway. When I called Ford, they told me to bring it in to get it looked at to proceed with the repair, but was then informed there is no parts at this time and had no time line when they would receive them. which is completely unacceptable since my B pillar is no longer attached. Also, my backup camera does not work. Sometimes it will work, but everything's upside down and other times it just cuts out with lines across the screen.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Mar 2026
“The contact owns a 2018 Ford Flex. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V732000 (Structure); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the front passenger's side B-pillar trim detached. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact retrieved a temporary part at a local junk yard and attached the B-pillar trim with adhesive. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.”Owner report · Structure · Feb 2026
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“The contact owns a 2018 Ford Flex. The contact received notifications of NHTSA Campaign Numbers: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention) and 25V732000 (Structure); however, the parts to do the recall repairs were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The contact stated that while shifted to reverse(R), the back over prevention camera intermittently shut off. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 68,000.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Oct 2025
“The contact owns a 2018 Ford Flex. The contact stated that while driving at undisclosed speeds on city roads, a trim piece fell off the vehicle, and the contact was unable to recover the trim piece. After losing the trim piece, the contact heard road noise and air entering the vehicle through the gap. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V732000 (STRUCTURE); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 47,401.”Owner report · Structure · Oct 2025
“The contact owns a 2018 FORD Flex. The contact stated while using the back up camera on the vehicle it ends to shutoff randomly causing a back over prevention issue. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: (25V695000 (BACK OVER PREVENTION) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was/was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 60,000.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Oct 2025
“The contact owns a 2018 Ford Flex. The contact had recently undergone head and neck surgery, and the contact was unable to operate the vehicle with ease due to a disoriented image on the display. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (BACK OVER PREVENTION); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 127,000.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Oct 2025
“Recall has not been remedied, and it has been over six months.I was told it would be remedied by june or ford would be held accountable for compensating for repairs on the.Recall. #25SA9/25v695 The recall addresses the camera for backing up witch is still not functioning in a safety risk.”Owner report · Electrical System · Oct 2025
“Audio throughout the entire vehicle are malfunctioning as well as the reverse camera malfunction. This has caused a collision the 11th of October. The ACM is severely malfunctioning and causing a huge safety hazard. No audio like radio, etc and alerts make sound not touch panel tones. Camera unavailable alert showed up as well as media unavailable showed on screen.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Oct 2025
“Rear camera malfunctioned screen showed "camera not available" didn't alert any noise or warnings and a tree hovered slightly into parking spot and smashed in my rear window. Audio inside car malfunctioned as well (no musics, etc) and the touch pad tones stopped making sound when touched.”Owner report · Back Over Prevention · Oct 2025
When filing, owners marked a crash in 7 of these complaints and injuries in 1 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 3 campaigns
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Flex vehicles. The driver and front passenger B-Pillar door trim may detach while driving.
Remedy: Dealers will repair or replace the B-pillar trim as necessary, free of charge. Interim letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed December 17, 2025. Additional letters will be sent once the remedy is available, anticipated March 2027. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25SB8. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on October 28, 2025.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2019 Flex, 2015 Explorer, Lincoln MKT, Lincoln MKZ, 2015-2016 C-Max, Escape, Taurus, 2016 Fusion, 2018-2019 Taurus, 2019 Lincoln MKT, Fiesta, and 2020 Mustang vehicles. The rearview camera may display a distorted, intermittent, or blank image when the vehicle is in reverse.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the rearview camera as necessary, free of charge. This will be a phased campaign, with the remedy becoming available in different phases based on model and model years. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on October 25, 2025. Additional letters will be mailed once the final remedy is available on each phase. Mustang owner notification letters were mailed January 2, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25SA9. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on October 14, 2025.
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Lincoln MKT and Ford Flex and Taurus vehicles with the Police Interceptor or SHO Performance Pack. The rear suspension toe links may fracture due to stress on the rear suspension.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the rear suspension toe links, free of charge. Remedy parts are not currently available. Owners were notified about the recall on March 3, 2020. A second notice will be mailed when remedy parts become available, which is currently expected to be the end of September 2020. The recall began October 28, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332 or Lincoln customer service at 1-800-521-4140. Ford's number for this recall is 20S04.
Specifications
Factory options offered for the 2018 model year, decoded from the NHTSA vPIC database. Individual vehicles have one of each.
How other years compare
Check your exact Flex 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 2018 Ford Flex reliable?
NHTSA has 61 owner complaints and 3 recall campaigns on record for the 2018 Ford Flex. The most complained-about area is structure (23% of complaints).
At what mileage do 2018 Ford Flex problems usually appear?
Half of the complaints that mention mileage were filed at 58,500 miles or less.
Does the 2018 Ford Flex have open recalls?
3 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning structure:body. 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.