Seats Problems of Ford Flex

On Sunday, February 22, 2026, I was driving my 2013 Ford Flex with the driver’s seat heater activated. After a period of use, I began to notice an unusual electrical burning smell inside the vehicle. There were no dashboard warning lights or system alerts. I turned the seat heater off immediately once I detected the smell. I did not initially notice an injury at that time. The following day, I experienced significant pain and discovered burns on my buttocks in the area consistent with seat contact. I sought medical evaluation three days later and was diagnosed with second- to third-degree burns. Prescription treatment was provided. The vehicle has not yet been inspected for the cause of the overheating or odor. Based on the location and pattern of injury, and the timing of the electrical smell while the heated seat was activated, the burn appears to have resulted from a malfunction of the seat heating element.

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The middle row seats behind the passenger, that has a hand bar pull for folding the seat flat then up has broken. The handle lifts fully but no action happens once pulled to fully. The seat is stuck in the seated position now.

See all problems of the 2011 Ford Flex 🔎.

Tl the contact owns a 2011 Ford Flex. The contact stated that the second-row driver's side seat release handle was inoperable. The contact stated that the second-row seat failed to move forward which made third-row passenger's unable to exit the vehicle. The cause of the failure was not determined. Kelly Ford located at 776 magnolia Ave, melbourne, FL 32935, (321)216-2042 and the manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 133,000.

Front seat tracks wear prematurely due to poorly designed teeth. As a result the seat becomes 'wobbly' causing it to rock forwards and back which could cause serious injury in an accident where the seat should remain firmly in place. Many people are experiencing this issue across a wide range of Ford products vs specifically with one particular vehicle.

2nd row seat belts not working or broken. Driver side is not latching or retracting, so none can use that seat. Passenger side the buckle cover wont stay on, and it has some small sharp objects that can cut someone or my kids.

2010 Ford Flex 2nd row of seats 40/60. The larger seat has locked into position caused by a cable part that can slip out of place. Seat will not flip up or down. Dealers are charging $700 to fix this cable and plastic part. This has happened 2x since I've owned the car. Here is a youtube link https://m. Youtube. Com/watch?v=oaoymbztc6s many online reports of this problem to other Flex owners. Thanks.

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I am having multiple problems with this vehicle! first and most important is door latches are not reading closed which disallows safety lock during operation of the vehicle. I also believe this might be the reason the alarm/panic randomly and quite often goes off. Secondly the third row seats no longer operate correctly from the panel in the rear cargo area. It clicks and try's to move but will always return to the normal position making it impossible to use them to allow extra storage space. Lastly the traction assist is very erratic when driving in snow which makes this vehicle less then desirable to drive in the snow, even with the control assist off it handles very poorly in icy/snowy conditions. Overall I hate this car if I wasn't upside down in it would be gone ASAP.

At a low speed abrupt stop on a secondary row, the second row bench seat (it's split 60/40; the 60 side) came loose from the floor attachment, causing a rear facing car seat to hit the back of the front seat. This was not a tether malfunction. It is a defect in the attachment between the bench seat itself and the locking mechanism on the floor. At this point I cannot secure the seat because of this broken part. (this seat is designed to fold forward for storage/ingress-egress for 3rd row seat passengers). Ford has to date been unresponsive although I bought a premium care warranty that is still active. They are not addressing a critical safety issue.

See all problems of the 2014 Ford Flex 🔎.

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Flex. While as a passenger in the vehicle, the middle row seat on the right inadvertently moved forward. As a result, the seat collapsed and the head rest struck the contact in the back of the head. The contact sustained injuries to the head and eyes that required medical attention. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, but the cause of the failure could not be determined. The manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 11,000.

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Middle row seating. Seat is designed to flip forward to let 3rd row passengers exit. However, seat malfunctions and locks in the full upright position thus trapping potential 3rd row occupants. When taken to the dealer, their "fix" is to replace the entire assembly at over $800. Note that hey stock the part since, in the service writer's words "it's a very common failure". This should be fixed by the company and no charge to the owners since they are obviously aware of the problem, it is a potentially life threatening safety issue, and it is a design flaw of equipment.

2nd row 60/40 seat will not unlatch to let down seat allowing access to third row (can't get in or out of 3rd row in case of emergency).

60/40 seat larger seat (60) will not fold down.

The contact owns a 2009 Ford Flex. The contact stated that the driver's seat had reclined independently and failed to return to the upright position. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 129,000.

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The driver's side seat controls have stopped working in my 2010 Ford Flex, leaving my seat without the ability to move (forward, backward, up or down) to meet the needs of different drivers. The first incident was discovered in summer 2013 - eliminating the ability for my wife/CO-owner to regularly drive the car. My local Ford dealership was good to work with when I brought in the car to be fixed. Unfortunately - the fix did not work - nor did the 2 additional times I brought the car in to be repaired for the same issue. Most recently, in January 2014, the seat controls worked momentarily and then ceased working. To accommodate other drivers including my wife, we must place pillows behind the driver to enable her to reach the pedals. I am particularly concerned about my children's safety - when my wife must drive the Flex. Unfortunately, we are in a position where we must drive this car, but I would rather avoid putting my family in an unsafe situation.

The 2nd row seat that collapses at the push of a button is a death seat. If this seat is occupied when the button is accidentally pushed eg when grabbing for the seat belt the force of the seat collapsing could crush the occupant. I don't know you are aware of this.

The contact owns a 2010 Ford Flex. The contact stated that the rear passenger seat failed to stayed latch down. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the cuddle catch that holds the seat in place was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 43,000 and the current mileage was 45,000.

The middle row bench seat will not fold down forward. I rarely use this seat to fold down as I have not reason to. However, when you depress the outer lever nothing happens. The seat doesnt move by either the lever or strap. It did seem stiff when I bought the car but I assumed it was due to the vehicle being new. Not!.

I purchased the vehicle new. It was repaired on three separate occassions for problems stemming from the windshield sensor as well as the molding was not correctly put on the door. Now the bench seat will not fold down. . Read more...

The contact owns a 2011 Ford Flex. The contact stated that the vehicle was parked when one of her children accidentally pressed the button to automatically fold down the third row passenger seat. While the seat was folding down, another child's leg got stuck between the seat and floorboard. As a result, the child suffered bruises and carpet burns. The contact expressed serious concern that the seat continued to fold down forcefully when the child was stuck. The contact also expressed concern over how difficult it was to free the child once the child's leg was wedged between the seat and floorboard. The vehicle was not taken to have the failure diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to NHTSA. The failure mileage was 16,439. The VIN was unavailable.

Several complaints: first the a/c makes a popping noise when turned on. It works fine as of now though. Second, drivers side 2nd row seat will not fold down 99% of the time. It's stuck somehow. Third, gas light no longer works. Fourth is the biggy. Car is overheating due to radiator fan's no longer working. It runs hot when idling or moving at a slow pace. This has happened multiple times during the hot, summer months of + and I have a two and a four year old. Three days ago it happened in weather with a wind chill of below zero on the side of the interstate with my husband being my nearest help who was 45 minutes away. My children were crying after just 10 minutes or less that they were freezing and that their toes hurt. But what am I to do on the side of the interstate? I have contacted Ford several times and it's always the same answer "there is no recalls. Take it to your nearest Ford dealer". I found out at the end of last year that we have an extended care plan. It's currently all being repaired under the plan, thank goodness, with only a $100 deductible and a rental car. We're very fortunate in that aspect. I feel as though this should all be a recall due to the amount of people having these same problems, especially the overheating. Nobody should be having to pay a dime out of pocket to fix these issues. However, Ford could care less. They got their money from the purchase of the vehicles and obviously could care less about safety and making things right. When people ask how I like my Flex. My reply is "originally I loved it, now I hate it" and I tell them exactly why if they ask, which is every time. First and last Ford. Bad company all the way around.

A friend of mine recently purchased a 2011 Ford Flex. Upon bringing it home we decided to let my children inside the vehicle to "check it out" as my older son would say. When my youngest son, 18 months at the time entered the second row of the car, he went to reach for the seat belt( trying to be cool like his brother who was already buckled and on a pretend road trip)and accidently bumped against an automatic seat fold button which caused the seat back to flip down hitting him in the face, knocking him into the back of the driver's seat and down onto the floor where the seat continued to fold. This has happened 2 times before my friend decided to disconnect the switch himself. Luckily there were no major injuries, only a bitten tongue, a red mark on his forehead and after the second time( which was not as forceful due to the fact that the seating folding onto him the first time had weekened the motor a bit) however now he does have a slight fear of getting into the car. I think the automatic seat feature is not what caused this, but the placement of the button itself which is right alongside the 2nd row seat where it is easy to accidently push it, easy enough for my 5 year old to reach while seated and belted in(the button can be activated with door open or shut) if they can't change the placement of the button they should at least be outfitted with some type of flip cover you have to open before the button can be pushed preventing things like this from happening.