NHTSA Will Investigate 2015-2017 Ford Edge Brake Hose Issue

Back in April 2023, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) closed its investigation into select 2013-2018 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ models over a a brake hose issue in which the front brake hoses may rupture and leak brake fluid, which can increase pedal travel and extend the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash. The NHTSA chose to do this after Ford issued a new recall for those models that it deemed satisfactory, but now, the agency has opened a new investigation into 2015-2017 Ford Edge models over the same type of problem.

According to the NHTSA, approximately 368,309 Ford Edge crossovers from the 2015-2017 model years can experience a loss of braking due to rear brake hose
failures. This can occur without any sort of warning, which can lead to an increased stopping distance and heighten the risk that a crash may occur. To date, the NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) has received 36 complaints from customers that have reportedly experienced this problem, which is being blamed on failure of the rear brake hose. Some of those customers claim that they’ve had repairs completed prior to the brake hose rupturing, too.

That’s precisely why the ODI has now opened an investigation into these Ford Edge models as it works to determine the scope and severity of this issue. The problem is eerily similar to the one experienced by the aforementioned Fusion and MKZ owners, too. In that case, after it issued the first recall, Ford discovered that the ruptures in the front brake jounce hoses – which are supplied by Hitachi – were caused by failure of the internal reinforcement braid due to “cyclic fatigue through tensile/bending and torsional inputs during suspension and steering articulations.”

That problem reportedly affects around 1,280,726 non-hybrid (due to their lower internal hose pressure stemming from regenerative braking) vehicles built between February 3^rd, 2012 and July 19^th, 2017. While these brake hose leaks can lengthen the distance needed to stop a vehicle and increase the risk of a crash, the proposed recall fix involves the replacement of those same hoses with new units that feature a revised braided material in their construction.