Ford Edge Accelerator Surge?

hummmdinger

I'd like to start off that I'm not setting off an alarm or anything, but since I do auto claims for a major insurance company in Texas, I'm sending out this post because of a traumatic experience by one of our insureds. On 3-10-08 one of my insured's pulled into a parking space and just as she was to come to a stop, she claims her 07 Edge took off out of control with her foot on the brakes. She ended up striking a light pole and stopped back on the street she just pulled off of. I promised her that as part of my investigation into her claim was to see if any other Edge owners are having or have had the same experience.

The Ford service tech scanned the computers right after the tow truck dropped off the car from the scene. And of course no error codes were detected. The car has driven fine every time it has been moved from spot to spot at the body shop and service center. So unless there is a rash of other Edge owners experiencing an accelerator surge, this is either a very isolated occurrence or driver error.

Please respond if you know of any other incidents similar to this one.

Thanks.

Dennis

akirby

First I've heard. No doubt you already know that it's driver error - happens all the time, but kudos for at least checking.

tedsmom

The exact same thing happened to me this morning. I have a 2008 Edge that I bought three weeks ago. When I went to stop at a stop light, I stepped on the brake and the car wouldn't stop. I then realized the engine was roaring and the car was out of control. I stomped on the brake and it stopped, and I didn't hit the car in front of me, but it was a terrifying experience. I am taking it to the dealer tonight and I am bringing your post. This was NOT driver error and I will insist that they report it to Ford, as should you. Thanks for posting this here.

akirby

No, that's not the exact same thing. You were able to stop the car by applying the brakes.

Accelerators can stick, but properly functioning brakes will ALWAYS stop the vehicle no matter how powerful the engine or how high it's revving. Brakes can also fail.

But whenever a person reports that the car accelerated on its own and could not be stopped by the brakes, and the brakes are inspected and found to be working fine after the accident - it's driver error.

tedsmom

I know what you're saying, but this is the sequence of what happened - I put my foor on the brake and the car started to slow down. But then it started to speed up again and pull forward and I heard the engine revving. I pushed down on the brake and it still wouldn't stop, so I took my foot off the brake and stomped hard on the pedal again. At that point the engine stopped revving and the car stopped suddenly. It reminds me of when I had an old car and the accelerator pedal would stick and I had to put my toe under it and pull it back up, but this is a brand new car. I've been driving for almost 40 years and I have never had an experience like this. If I had my foor on the accelerator by mistake, I don't think I would have felt the car start to slow. Is it possible to press both pedals at once (I'm not a two-footed driver, though)? I really love this car and I'm not a hysterical female, but I want to figure out what happened.

hummmdinger

You are truly lucky to have been able to avoid an accident. It will be interesting to see what the Ford dealer finds. More than likely the computer scan will come up empty...I have been there.

This is most appreciated to see your post as the lady we insure is very credible and did crash as a result of her alleged accelerator surge :sick: . Unfortunately there will have to more incidents posted in the near future to back up these claims. As stated already, the car will have to tell us what happened and ours did not.

fordfavorite

I hope you successfully resolved this issue. I had what sounds like the exact same problem with my Ford Windstar in the 90s (don't recall the model year).
I too was accussed of "driver error." That was absolutely not the case. I was fortunate that my Ford dealership finally agreed to replace the entire brake system. Eventually I was contacted by the NHTSA requesting information as to whether my issue was resolved and if so how. I was told that seven other incidents had been reported.

mschmal

The brake peddle is higher than the gas so you were able to start to slow then when you pressed the brake peddle to the level of the gas peddle your foot was over to the right far enough to start to hit the gas peddle as well.

Once you adjusted your foot to stomp on the brake then you also adjusted your foot over onto the brake peddle and off of the gas.

If you were wearing any kind of sandal or flip flop, I would bet money that this is what happened. People don't realize how wide sandals and flip flops are compared to regular shoes.

tedsmom

After calming down and looking at how close the brake pedal is to the accelerator (and how big my feet are), I decided that is exactly what happened. My dealer was very willing to check things out, though, but I decided not to and have had no further problems. I really love the Edge!

andros1

I had the same problem while driving a 2008 Ford P/U at work. Two or three times it felt as if the accelerator had stuck as I was trying to brake the vehicle. The last time was at a traffic light with a Police officer watching me slide into the intersection. Not a good thing.

I called our garage and ask the manager if he knew of any recalls on Ford pick ups because of this problem. He said none that he was aware of but that I was the second person in the yard to have this complaint with Ford P/U's.

I believe what actually happened was that I was inadvertently pressing both pedals at the same time. My personal vehicle is a Chevy P/U, so I am use to the 'pedal spread' being much wider. I have never had this problem in my Chevy.

I searched on line and see a pattern since at least 2002 where Ford pedals have been placed too close together, even causing recalls in some models. I guess the designers can not learn from past mistakes.

There will be accidents because of this problem and there will be law suits.

tabbyd

I have a surge of a different nature than the ones posted. When I press the accelerator, the car seems to die and then takes off. A real problem when you are trying to pull out in fast moving traffic. Any ideas? The dealership is replacing the throttle thing but I'm not sure that is the problem.

wwest

Google:

hesitation abolition wwest -dfg

lateralg

This post is certain to generate some flak, but if one person benefits, it's worth it.

Try left-foot braking. It's not for everyone ... some lack the discipline & coordination to do it properly. If you master it, you'll be a safer, smoother driver.

Slow-speed maneuvering is more precise ... parking is smoother & less likely to collide with something.

When I read of an elderly (sometimes not elderly) driver mistaking the gas pedal for the brake, mowing down pedestrians, crashing into a building, speeding uncontrollably backward out of their driveway, I have to believe that in all but a few cases, they were right-foot brakers.

I accept any rational flak.

stever

Well, a couple of three decades ago I was a left foot braker. I think driving a manual for a long time got me more used to braking with my right foot. There's something common-sensical, if not supported by any evidence, that says that using your right foot to brake automatically gets your foot off the gas.

Judging by the number of people you see driving along (and speeding up), with their brake lights on the whole time, there may be more left foot brakers out there than you think. But if you are standing on the brakes, that'll override a foot on the gas.

Now, if the pedals are too close to each other, that does cause problems.

wwest

"..standing on the brakes, that'll override a foot on the gas.."

Only if it's a RWD, or with FWD you're already at a stop, or almost so.

batwaves

In the last two months while getting firewood i and two friends have hit the brake at least a dozen times and caught the gas at the same time, it has led to a couple close calls, while pulling trees with cable. Yesterday (10-08-11) at six am we were in thick fog and at about 7 mph we went off the road, about the time i was thinking its gonna suck having to get pulled back on the road I hit the brake and of course caught the gas at the same time. What should of been a non injury-- no damage- pull me out of the ditch accident turned into a totaled F-250XLT. A big thank-you to the guy who invented air bags. This accident should not of went down the way it did.

bdyment

Glad no one was seriously hurt. Are you fellows related to big foot? I think it is time you practiced left foot braking.

akirby

This accident should not of went down the way it did

That's true. You should have stayed on the road.

wwest

With many brake pedal asemblies your can remove it and use a sledge hammer to straigten it so it's not so close to the gas pedal, Or you can saw off the right side of the wider pedals.

Mine are 10.5" D and I have the same problem even though I keep practicing placing my braking foot well to the left.

lateralg

RE: seeing people riding their brakes ... I've seen them too, but it's been a long time since I've seen one. Unfortunately, I'm sure they're still out there.

I consider "people you see driving along (and speeding up), with their brake lights on the whole time" a false argument against left-foot braking. The people doing this don't know how to left-foot brake, and shouldn't be doing it.

If citing an example of someone not knowing how to do something as an
argument for others not to do it, then none of us should be driving manual transmission cars ... because so many people don't know how to drive M-T cars.

Please take an objective look at the issue. Consider: A) Not everyone is capable of proper left-foot braking. If incapable, they shouldn't be doing it. C) Left-foot braking, for those who can do it properly, is safer and smoother.

I'll bet a lot of money that none of the pedal-position "accidents" discussed here involved left-foot brakers. And that none of them would have occurred had they been skilled left-foot brakers.

For more than two decades I've owned two cars ... one with manual transmission, one with automatic. I now have a Mazda 3i manual & an Edge Limited. I can hop out of one & into the other with no problems. It just takes an open mind, commitment, and practice.

akirby

So Gary - how do you left foot brake with a clutch? Or do you switch from left foot to right foot when stopped?

lateralg

Well Allen - never tried left foot with MT but I can see my legs forming a big "X", & me driving into something I didn't want to.

Pardon the pun, but my brain just automatically changes gear when I go from AT to MT to AT.

I do remember, just once, when driving MT car I wanted to slow & attempted to do it with the clutch. A bit of a thrill but no harm, no damage. That mistake is firmly embedded in my brain.

babbs3

Can anyone confirm or deny any problems with the transmissions in the new or 2011 Edge? I ask because I might consider a new purchase. I have had a 2010 Fusion (horrible trans. and sold back to
dealer) I now have a 2011 Escape with another trans. (but not as bad as the Fusion) that just does not shift properly(flares and revs. too much). The engine groans and does not seem to want to go (it's a 4 cyl. with 6 sp. auto). I only know one person with a new Edge but he would rather cut his arms off then say anything bad about a Ford so I need honest feed back. I believe that the Asian 6sp. transmissions are problematic but Ford will NEVER admit it and God knows they have had plenty of time to do it. Please be forthcoming with your reviews. Thanks

akirby

Actually it's the 6F35 transmission in the 2.5L and 3.0L Fusion that's somewhat problematic, not the Aisin units in the pre-09 models and the 2010+ sport. The Edge uses the 6F50 transmission and it does not have the same problems. I moderate an Edge forum and there are very few reports of transmission problems and none like the Fusion and Escape.

babbs3

Thanks akirby, that is good news indeed. I am so worried about the current trannys out there and I really don't want to leave Ford but having trans. problems just irks me to no end. I have had over 22 cars (some were very old) and NEVER had any trans. issues. Someone suggested that I buy a manual. I am too old to be wearing out my left foot at this stage. Driving is hard enough. I have had 6 sticks (when I was younger) and enjoyed them a lot, even though I wore out a lot of high heels I still liked shifting. Can you tell me what if any are the problems with the 6F50 trans? Thanks again for your input.

akirby

I think there was one problem where the tranny bangs into gear but there was a fix for that and it seems to have solved the problem (it wasn't widespread anyway). Most of the problems have been the PTU seals in the AWD unit but that seems to have also been fixed now.

lateralg

17,000+ miles on my 2011 Edge. Transmission has performed flawlessly. And I'm very sensitive to quirky shift quality.

babbs3

Thanks akirby. I know at 17,000 miles that if you had a tranny problem it woul have shown up by now. I hope that the F50 trans. is better than the F35 that Ford has been using on the Fusions and the Escapes. I have had two of the F35's and they both stink! How do you like the Edge for other reasons? Even if it's minor complaints. Thanks again akirby.

lateralg

Excellent vehicle. Great seats, quiet, good handling, plenty of power, excellent mile-eater on our annual 2,000 mile migration between AZ & MI.

Only complaint is the My touch & Nav system. The stylists & interface designers must have locked engineers and drivers out of the room when they released the package. IMO Its AWFUL.

But, a totally new O/S is supposed to be on its way in a flash drive. From what I've read, they've done it right this time.

Allen: Is there a forum that has feedback from owners that have the upgrade?

akirby

Yes Gary - all Edge owners are reporting excellent results with the upgrade so far. You can download it from syncmyride.com and install it yourself but you'll have to wait for the new SD card to get Navigation working again (if you have it). Some folks have received their packages already. It should fix SOME (but probably not all) of your design and performance issues.

Side story - my daughter totaled her 2012 Focus in November when she rear ended another car (her fault but everyone one is ok). We went looking for a new one and local dealer had one on the lot that was perfect. It was a SEL hatchback with only the MFT package. It only had 120 miles. Turns out an elderly couple bought it and traded it in one week later because they didn't like the MFT touchscreen. Of course they had never even opened the owners manual or tried to learn it. I guess we both won - we got a good deal on the Focus and they got a non-mft equipped vehicle.

lateralg

Sounds like a good deal on the Focus. How do you like the way it drives & handles?

I'll probably go with the download.
Not having the Nav. is no loss. My wife & I prefer my Garmin 1490.

akirby

I like it Gary, although I don't drive it very often. It is a little cramped for legroom but I might consider the ST version shortly. The sportiness and better fuel economy is tempting. I'm only getting 18 or less in my V6 Fusion. Then again I'd really like a F150. I guess I'm not the typical shopper!

kutehart

My dad and I both have '08 Edges. He put his car in for service yesterday for the very issue Babbs3 explained, engine banging into gear. It was a bad OSS sensor, according to dealer. I found this info about the part on another forum, if it helps:

P0720
Insufficient input from Output Shaft Speed sensor

Detailed Description
The output shaft speed sensor inputs a signal to the PCM, based on the speed of the output shaft of the transmission. The PCM compares this signal with the signal of the VSS or TCSS and determines correct tire size and axle gear ratio.

Possible causes :-
OSS sensor circuit short to GND.
OSS sensor circuit short to PWR.
OSS sensor circuit open.
Damaged OSS sensor.
Damaged PCM.


Diagnostic Aids
Verify sensor signal output varies with vehicle speed.



Output Shaft Speed (OSS) Sensor
The output shaft speed (OSS) sensor is a magnetic pickup that provides transmission output shaft rotation speed information to the powertrain control module.

The output shaft speed (OSS) sensor is mounted externally on the top of the transmission case. The PCM uses the output shaft speed (OSS) sensor signal to help determine electronic pressure control (EPC) pressure, shift scheduling and torque converter clutch (TCC) operation.