2016 Ford Fusion: Engine died while driving
Common wear/failure (not a recall)
Symptoms
Owners of the 2016 Fusion report: engine died while driving. CarComplaints.com lists 14 owner complaints, average mileage 25,250 miles.
NHTSA has 556 owner complaints for the 2016 Fusion in this area. Examples:
- NHTSA complaint ODI #11773355 (filed 10/24/2026): “Engine failure due to a faulty design from ford motor company. coolant intrusion is the root cause due faulty engine design on the 2016 ford fusion 2.0 ecoboost engine.…”
- NHTSA complaint ODI #11773329 (filed 10/23/2026): “2016 ford fusion 1.5l ecoboost engine w/approx. 88,000 miles was just purchased from private owner on 10/7/26. on 10/17/26 the check engine light came on and showed problem with cylinder 1 and 4. car was running ruff, misfiring, losing power. safety issue for …”
Likely causes
Sources do not establish a single root cause; diagnosis is needed. Owner-reported fixes are listed below.
Fix, in plain English
Most common owner-reported solutions on CarComplaints.com: throttle body replaced (2 reports) needs whole new engine (1 reports) replaced purge valve (1 reports). Check for open recalls and extended warranty coverage with a dealer before paying out of pocket.
DIY difficulty: Pro
Internal engine work (lifters, oil consumption, fuel dilution diagnosis) requires engine teardown or dealer software/tests. (Our assessment.)
Cost
No sourced cost range: get a written quote after diagnosis.
Typical parts (search links, no affiliate codes)
AutoZone · O'Reilly · Advance · RockAuto
Sources
Page last updated .