Update: In December 2024, a federal judge in the Eastern District of Michigan dismissed the Ford 6F35 transmission case, ruling that the nearly 4,000 owners who had joined it were improperly grouped into a single suit and were free to refile individually, as CarComplaints reported at the time. If your vehicle was on that list, there is no longer a group case to opt out of, and your California lemon law rights are unaffected.
If your Ford Fusion or Escape hesitates when you pull into traffic, clunks between gears or shudders as it picks up speed, you are not imagining it and you are not the only owner reporting it. Slow acceleration, clunking, shuddering and shaking are among the defects reported in Ford Fusion and Ford Escape vehicles with an automatic 6-speed transmission. According to a 2024 lawsuit against Ford Motor Company, Ford knew about the defects in the 6F35 automatic transmission since 2009. Despite this knowledge, Ford has been selling vehicles equipped with the 6F35 transmission for more than a decade.
Ford marketed these transmissions as having “more efficient power delivery, better fuel economy and smoother, quieter and more precise shifts.” However, Ford Fusion and Ford Escape owners are claiming that their vehicles take an inordinately long time to accelerate from a stop or a low speed, fail to accelerate when needed, clunk when drivers slow down or accelerate at low speeds, shudder and shake, and/or make a loud clunk or knocking noise when the defective transmission selects the correct gear ratio.
On top of that, Ford Fusion and Ford Escape owners allege that the transmissions’ lifespans are unreasonably short. Yet, they have to shell out a good deal of money for transmission replacements because the transmissions are often not repaired sufficiently during the warranty period.
Many of these vehicles are now older and may fall outside the scope of California lemon law protection, which usually apply to newer vehicles still under the manufacturer’s warranty.
Ford 6F35 Transmission Questions Answered
- What model years are in the transmission lawsuit?
- What’s wrong with the Ford 6F35 transmission?
- What causes the Ford 6F35 transmission problems?
- Do These Transmission Problems Qualify for a Lemon Law Claim?
- How has Ford responded to the 6F35 transmission defects?
- What if my Ford vehicle has a different transmission?
- What are my legal options?
What model years are in the transmission lawsuit?
The Ford 6F35 transmission lawsuit primarily involves older Ford vehicles produced between 2009 and 2020. At the time of filing, the Ford 6F35 transmission lawsuit broadly included the following vehicles:
- 2010–2020 Ford Fusion
- 2009–2021 Ford Escape
The following vehicles contain the 6F35 transmission:
- Some 2010–2012 Ford Fusion (automatic, non-hybrid)
- All 2013–2020 Ford Fusion (automatic, non-hybrid)
- All 2009–2019 Ford Escape
Some Ford Fusions, notably Fusion Sports and Fusions with 3-L V-6 engines, include the SelectShift control option for the 6F35 transmission. SelectShift allows the driver to shift gears using hand controls without a clutch.
Not all vehicles with 6F35 transmission come with the SelectShift control option. The transmission defects present similarly, regardless if the SelectShift control option is present.
What’s wrong with the Ford 6F35 transmission?
The short answer is rough, unpredictable shifting that can end in outright transmission failure. According to the lawsuit, Ford’s 6F35 transmission is prone to the following issues requiring repair:
- Sudden and unexpected shaking
- Violent jerking
- Lurching, surging or revving
- Clunking and other noises
- Shuddering or juddering (when it bucks and kicks on acceleration)
- Delayed acceleration, especially from a complete stop
- Gears slipping
- Hesitating while accelerating
- Difficulty stopping the vehicle
- Loss or lack of motive power
- Delayed downshifting
- Hard deceleration
- Shift flares (slippage or an increase in engine RPM between gears on acceleration)
- Premature wear and tear, such as on the transmission case bushing.
- Transmission failure while driving
The transmission defects and/or failures allegedly cause Ford Fusion and Ford Escape owners to require a transmission replacement.
What causes the Ford 6F35 transmission problems?
The lawsuit points at the transmission’s internal hardware and its control software, not at how the vehicles were driven. It alleges that the 6F35 transmission issues are caused by:
- Failing fluid seal integrity,
- Deficiencies in the throttle body,
- Failed torque converter welds,
- Driveshaft failure,
- An undersized fuel pump,
- Faulty software logic and architecture,
- Faulty calibration values,
- Faulty solenoids,
- Faulty clutch friction materials,
- Faulty rocker one-way clutch,
- Faulty torque converter,
- Failed Transmission Control Module or Powertrain Control Module updates, which were intended to limit problems caused by the transmission’s design or manufacture,
- Automatic transmission fluid (“ATF”) not suited to the 6F35 transmission,
- Vehicle design and architecture issues, and/or
- The transmission’s software and hardware being unable to work together to ensure proper gear shifting, thanks to an overall insufficiently robust design.
The lawsuit alleges that at least one of these issues is the culprit behind the recurring Ford 6F35 transmission defects. However, other transmission models installed in the Ford Fusion and Ford Escape may show similar issues.
Do These Transmission Problems Qualify for a Lemon Law Claim?
Yes, but only for a narrow group of these vehicles. Though 6F35 transmission problems have been widely reported, most affected cars are now too old to qualify for a California lemon law claim, because they are no longer covered by a manufacturer’s warranty.
Most qualifying lemon law claims for a Ford vehicle in California meet the following criteria:
- 2021 or newer Ford vehicles
- Vehicles still covered under the manufacturer’s warranty
- Vehicles purchased new, leased, or certified pre-owned from a dealership
If you have a 2021 or newer Ford vehicle with transmission problems that have not been repaired under warranty, you may still qualify for a lemon law claim.
How has Ford responded to the 6F35 transmission defects?
Ford’s answer, according to the lawsuit, has been repeated repair attempts that did not hold rather than a permanent fix. Since at least 2009, Ford was aware that the 6F35 transmission was defective. According to the lawsuit, Ford knew or should have known about these defects through pre-market testing, warranty claims, consumer complaints to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, complaints made to Ford and its dealerships and other sources.
The Ford Fusion and Ford Escape vehicles once included in the lawsuit are covered by a New Vehicle Limited Warranty, which covers repairs needed to correct defects in materials or workmanship of covered parts. Basic coverage lasts 36 months or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first. The powertrain coverage, which covers the transmission, lasts 60 months or 60,000 miles, whichever comes first.
However, owners of Ford Fusion and Ford Escape vehicles allege that their transmissions fail just around the time or mileage at which the warranty expires. When the transmission failure happens outside the warranty period, Fusion and Escape owners have to pay significant amounts of money to their transmissions replaced. According to the suit:
“Ford unlawfully induced them to purchase or lease their respective Vehicles by concealing a material fact (the defective transmission) and that they would have paid substantially less for their Vehicles, or not purchased or leased them at all, had they known of the Transmission Defects.”
With a high mileage comes an increased risk of internal transmission damage. The Ford Escape and Fusion owners listed in the complaint said they requested a permanent fix to their transmission problems, but have only received “temporary stop-gap measures” that put off inevitable transmission failure.
What if my Ford vehicle has a different transmission?
You may still have a lemon law claim, because California lemon law follows the defect and the warranty, not one particular gearbox. Some Ford vehicles use transmissions other than the 6F35, including newer 8-speed transmissions or hybrid CVT systems. While the symptoms are broadly similar, lemon law eligibility depends on specific model year, warranty status and repair history.
Most qualifying Ford lemon law claims involve:
- 2021 or newer vehicles
- Vehicles still under warranty or only recently expired (within the past year)
- Repair attempts occurring within the warranty period
If you have a 2021 or newer Ford vehicle with ongoing transmission issues that were not properly repaired, you may still qualify for a lemon law claim even if your vehicle does not use the 6F35 transmission.
What are my legal options?
Your remaining route is an individual claim rather than a group one. Because the case was dismissed in December 2024, affected drivers are no longer part of any group action against Ford, and legal action has to be pursued on an individual basis.
In California that individual claim runs through the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, the state law most people know as the California Lemon Law. It requires a manufacturer that cannot fix a covered defect after a reasonable number of repair attempts to buy the vehicle back or replace it, and it makes the manufacturer responsible for your attorney fees when the claim succeeds, so enforcing your own warranty does not come out of your pocket. Eligibility still depends on several factors, such as when the vehicle was purchased, whether it was covered by a manufacturer’s warranty and if any repair attempts were made during the warranty period.
To better understand eligibility requirements, see our California Lemon Law Guide, our Ford lemon law page and our lemon law FAQ.
Under current California law, a Ford lemon law claim generally must be filed within one year after the applicable express warranty expires, or within six years of the original delivery date, whichever occurs first.
If you have a 2021 or newer Ford vehicle with ongoing, unresolved transmission issues, contact our Ford lemon law attorneys by calling 833-208-8181 for a free consultation.
Get the Compensation You Deserve with Lemon Law Help
Our dedicated team of attorneys at Lemon Law Help can give your lemon law case the personalized attention it deserves. We have handled many California lemon law cases involving defective Ford transmissions, and we build each claim around the distinct facts of that vehicle and that owner. Depending on what the repair record shows, a successful claim can end in a buyback or a replacement vehicle, and in some cases additional damages on top.
Reviewed by Roger Kirnos, Managing Attorney, California State Bar No. 283163.
