Problems · by component
2016 Ford Fusion Hybrid engine problems
432 owner complaints to NHTSA about the 2016 Ford Fusion Hybrid cite engine, 29% of all 1,468 complaints for this model year.
Complaints
432
29% of all complaints
Crashes
3
Reported by owners
Fires
2
Reported by owners
Injuries
1
Reported by owners
What owners say about the engine
Verbatim from NHTSA complaints, newest first
“My coolants been leaking starting at around 110k miles and it seems like the 2016 ford fusions with 1.6L are know to have coolant intrusions due to a defect in engineering by Ford. This problem eventually leads to corroded head gaskets and can cause the engine to basically explode in the middle of nowhere which is a safety concern. The costs of repair is over 4k+ for a new engine or just to replace the head gasket for something Ford engineers should be liable for. Please look into this and you may even look at my car if you like.”
“Dear NHTSA, I am reporting a potential safety and design issue related to my 2016 Ford Fusion Titanium with the 2.0L EcoBoost engine. The vehicle is experiencing coolant loss with no visible external leak, which is a documented issue under Ford TSB 19-2208. This condition can lead to sudden engine failure or hydrolock due to coolant entering the combustion chamber. A compression test revealed all cylinders at 155 psi, indicating the block has not yet failed — but the symptoms are known warning signs of the defect Ford acknowledged in its Customer Satisfaction Program 19N05, which does not include my VIN despite identical failure risk. Ford has refused to provide goodwill support under case [XXX], despite this being a well-known failure that has prompted engine replacements in other affected 2.0L EcoBoost models. Please document this case as part of your ongoing safety tracking. I believe this design flaw represents a serious long-term reliability and safety concern. Vehicle: 2016 Ford Fusion Titanium Engine: 2.0L EcoBoost Mileage at Onset: 130,000 approx. VIN: [XXX] Sincerely, [XXX] [XXX] [XXX] [XXX]”
“The engine coolant over temperature light came on and i was forced to pull off the side of the interstate because the car had lost most of it’s power. It’s my understanding the 1.5 L eco boist engines have a failure where they allow coolant to leak into the cylinder. We had the car looked at, let it cool down and the code cleared and drove home. This happened again and luckily we were close to a family members home and were able to limp the car there with very little power. The car was checked by a mechanic and they could not find a problem. The code was cleared and it drove fine again. Today the car did the same thing after a 30 minute drive and luckily we were close to home and once again limped it back to the house. I will be calling Ford in the morning to have it looked at.”
“My engine died from the design error with the engine block and coolant leaking. This needs to be remedied by Ford. It is not on the recall list, and it absolutely should be.”
“The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to restart. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 150,000.”
“Coolant intrusion into cylinder 1, low coolant and Engine DTC P0301. Multiple TSB's by Ford recommend engine replacement as a remedy for the Cylinder head - open deck cooling problem. Customer Satisfaction Program 21N12 addresses this problem in similar cars/engines. Has this been expanded to cover this vehicle with the same 2.0L engine? From Ford TSB 19-2346 "Issue: Some 2015-2018 Edge and 2017-2019 Fusion/MKZ/Escape/MKC vehicles equipped with a 2.0L EcoBoost engine may exhibit a low coolant level, white exhaust smoke and/or a runs rough condition with or without an illuminated malfunction indicator lamp (MIL). Diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) may include P0300, P0301-P0304, P0316, P0217, P1285 and/or P1299 stored in powertrain control module (PCM). This may be due to coolant intrusion into the cylinder. To correct the condition, follow the Service Procedure steps to replace the long block engine assembly."”
Showing 6 of 432 reports. Read every report on NHTSA.gov.
Data from NHTSA Complaints API (owner reports, unverified) · synced Oct 30, 2026NHTSA vehicle page
Complaints are unverified owner reports to NHTSA and are not normalized for sales volume. One complaint can cite several components.