2013 FORD C-MAX Complaints

Summary of Safety Issue The vehicle repeatedly experiences sudden loss of propulsion while driving, accompanied by a “Stop Safely Now” warning message and various other dashboard warnings . During these events the accelerator pedal becomes completely unresponsive while the vehicle remains powered, indicating a failure of the hybrid propulsion system or high-voltage battery control system. The vehicle and video footage of the failure are available for inspection upon request. Timeline of Events January 13, 2026 – The vehicle displayed a “Stop Safely Now” warning message and lost the ability to accelerate. The vehicle had to be towed to Lehighton Ford. January 21, 2026 – Paid $866.85 for repairs including battery service, Rear Control Module replacement, and PCM harness repair. Lehighton Ford stated the vehicle was repaired and safe to drive. Within minutes of leaving the dealership, the vehicle stalled again in active traffic and had to be returned. The issue was escalated to the Ford Engineering hotline and a Field Service Engineer. February 17, 2026 – The dealership attempted to return the vehicle after performing a BECM reprogramming. Upon pickup, new issues were immediately observed including near-stall conditions and hybrid system malfunction, so the vehicle was left with the dealership again. February 18, 2026 - The owner brought forth concerns about Ford’s Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) 17-0015 which identifies potential damage to the traction battery interlock harness as a root cause for intermittent stalling and "Stop Safely Now" warnings. Although the dealership recorded Diagnostic Trouble Code B11D8—a fault directly related to the stall condition—the dealership later stated that no diagnostic codes relevant to the TSB were present and this component was not inspected. February 20, 2026 - Dealership claims that the vehicle has been test-driven for over 100 miles and is “functioning perfectly” and that a ‘battery rebalance’ was causing the issues experie

The rear impact bar is completely disintegrated and is falling off of the subframe due to extreme rust. There is either no or very little amount of rust on the entirety of the rest of the vehicle. The impact bar is either manufactured with incorrect materials or is otherwise defective. The impact absorber is attached to the impact bar and due to the integrity of the impact bar being destroyed, the crumple zone in the rear of the vehicle will not work as intended and the safety systems would not perform as intended. The impact absorber is not sitting correctly as attached to the impact bar and major portions of the impact bar are missing due to extreme rust. This is currently available for inspection but is going to be repaired soon. A review of forums, like Reddit, online reveal that other owners of this generation of Cmax have had rusted out impact bars in the rear and have failed state safety inspection. This vehicle was never in an accident.

The contact owns a 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The message "Stop Safely Now'" was displayed on the screen. The contact was able to pull to the side of the road. However, no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that on a separate occasion, while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, no cause for the failure was found. The failure persisted. The vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal, and the vehicle stalled. The message "Stop Safely Now'" was displayed on the screen. The contact was able to coast to the side of the road. After waiting for several minutes, the contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle functioned as intended. The vehicle was towed to the dealer; however, no cause for the failure was found. The contact stated that the failure first occurred three years ago, and the dealer diagnosed that it as a battery failure. The contact was unsure if the battery was replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 107,000.

Rear view camera display is upside down. Display was normal when the vehicle was purchased and then one day it flipped upside down and all overlay information disappeared (lines and distance indicators).

I took it to the Ford dealership and they diagnosed it as having a parasitic draw from the 12 V battery when the car is shut down so when you go to get into the car if the battery is dead, they will fix it for $425 however, this problem was a recall in 2013 and my car did have a recall done to it. However, the issue is still going on therefore I feel as though the customer should not be charged. My car broke down going up the canyon and it told me to pull over safely, which I did going up the hill, but it was on an exit and it was a dangerous situation as I could not even turn on my flashers. This has been a known issue with the Ford C max since 2013 and since their software program then did not correct the problem and now they want to update the software why should the cost come from the Consumer?

The contact owns a 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid. The contact stated that on several occasions, while the vehicle was parked, it failed to start. The vehicle was jump-started on several occasions but needed to be towed occasionally. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed with battery failure. The contact was informed that the battery needed to be replaced. The battery was replaced; however, the failure reoccurred. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer, but was not diagnosed. The dealer suggested that a waiver be signed for the battery replacement. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced electrical failures. The instrument panel intermittently malfunctioned, and the turn signals failed to operate properly. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 36,463.

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.

The contact owns a 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid. The contact stated that while in reverse, the rearview camera failed to display a rearview image, potentially compromising the back over prevention system. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The rearview camera warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V695000 (Back Over Prevention), but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 230,000.

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!

The rearview camera is usually upside down. Occasionally, a blank, black screen is displayed. Infrequently, it appears normal. A few times, a message is displayed saying it needs to be replaced. In view of the fact many models have a recall notice for this very problem, I elected to report it.