The Ford Escape transmission lawsuit was dismissed on November 26, 2024, without any ruling on whether the 6F35 six-speed automatic is actually defective. A federal judge in the Eastern District of Michigan found that the nearly 4,000 owners listed in Jones v. Ford Motor Company had been improperly joined into a single mass action, and the lead plaintiff then voluntarily dropped her remaining claims.1Ford Authority. Ford 6F35 Transmission Lawsuit Dismissed2CourtListener. Jones v. Ford Motor Company Owners who were counted among those 4,000, or anyone else experiencing 6F35 problems, are free to bring their own individual claims against Ford.
Which Vehicles Were Covered
The lawsuit targeted 2009–2021 Ford Escape and 2010–2020 Ford Fusion models built with Ford’s 6F35 six-speed automatic transmission.3ClassAction.org. Ford Lawsuit Accuses Automaker of Concealing Fusion, Escape 6F35 Transmission Problems
Owners reported violent jerking, shuddering, delayed acceleration, gear slippage, bucking during acceleration, loss of power, and hard deceleration or clunking at low speeds. In some cases the transmission failed outright.3ClassAction.org. Ford Lawsuit Accuses Automaker of Concealing Fusion, Escape 6F35 Transmission Problems Repairs typically run $1,000 to $3,500, and a full transmission replacement can cost $3,000 to $7,000 depending on whether the unit is new, rebuilt, or remanufactured. Owners whose vehicles were outside the powertrain warranty paid those bills themselves.
Why the Case Was Dismissed
Judge Sean F. Cox never reached the question of whether the 6F35 is defective. He ruled that the case was structured as a mass action rather than a properly certified class action: the complaint listed roughly 4,000 names but did not treat them as a certified class or reference them individually in the body of the pleading. Litigating all of those claims together, he wrote, would be “impractical and unmanageable.”1Ford Authority. Ford 6F35 Transmission Lawsuit Dismissed
Ford moved to drop the 4,000 names, and the court granted the motion. The lead plaintiff, Gerkarrah Jones, then voluntarily dismissed her remaining claims on November 22, 2024. A final order terminating the case followed on November 26, 2024.2CourtListener. Jones v. Ford Motor Company No appeal has been reported. Judge Cox specifically noted that the 4,000 affected customers remain free to refile individually.1Ford Authority. Ford 6F35 Transmission Lawsuit Dismissed
Because the dismissal was procedural, none of Ford’s underlying conduct was tested. The allegations in the complaint, including that Ford knew about 6F35 problems as early as 2009 and issued a series of technical service bulletins that plaintiffs said functioned as “temporary stop-gap measures” rather than real fixes, were never adjudicated.3ClassAction.org. Ford Lawsuit Accuses Automaker of Concealing Fusion, Escape 6F35 Transmission Problems
What Escape and Fusion Owners Can Do Now
With the mass action gone, the practical path forward is an individual claim.
Individual Lemon Law and Warranty Claims
The complaint itself noted that 6F35 problems had already “sparked countless lemon law claims nationwide” before the mass action was filed.3ClassAction.org. Ford Lawsuit Accuses Automaker of Concealing Fusion, Escape 6F35 Transmission Problems Eligibility varies significantly by state and depends on the model year, whether the vehicle was purchased new or certified pre-owned, and whether repair attempts were documented while the manufacturer’s warranty was still in effect. Many of the vehicles covered by the dismissed lawsuit are older models that may fall outside warranty periods, which can limit lemon law options.4Lemon Law Help. Ford 6F35 Transmission Lawsuit: What to Know
The dismissed complaint had brought claims for breach of express warranty, fraud and concealment, and misrepresentation, invoking the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act along with various state consumer protection laws.5CaseFilingsAlert.com. Ford Accused of Concealment Those theories remain available to individual plaintiffs.
Ford Service Programs
Ford has issued service programs that cover some 6F35-related problems at no cost, and it’s worth checking whether your vehicle qualifies before paying for repairs. Customer Satisfaction Program 22N12 covers cracked flexplates in 6F35 transmissions installed in certain 2015–2018 Ford Edge, 2019–2020 Ford Fusion, and 2019–2020 Lincoln MKZ vehicles. Under that program, Ford dealers will inspect and replace the flexplate, transmission fluid pump, and torque converter at no cost within 10 years or 100,000 miles of the warranty start date, with partial coverage extending to 120,000 miles.6NHTSA. Ford Customer Satisfaction Program 22N12 Note that 22N12 covers the Fusion but not the Escape; Escape owners should ask a Ford dealer whether any other program applies to their specific model year and VIN.
If You’re in California
California owners bringing individual claims have a stronger procedural position than they did before mid-2025. In July 2025, the California Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision in Ford Motor Warranty Cases (No. S279969) rejecting Ford’s usual strategy of forcing warranty plaintiffs into arbitration by pointing to the arbitration clause in the buyer’s contract with the dealership.7Metropolitan News-Enterprise. Ford Motor Warranty Cases
Writing for the court, Justice Carol Corrigan held that claims under California’s Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act and the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act arise from statutory obligations, not from the sales contract. Because Ford and the vehicle buyers never entered into an arbitration agreement with each other, Ford cannot use the dealer’s contract to force arbitration. The court disapproved Felisilda v. FCA US LLC, a 2020 appellate decision that had supported Ford’s approach.7Metropolitan News-Enterprise. Ford Motor Warranty Cases For California Escape and Fusion owners, that closes off one of Ford’s most common routes to keep warranty disputes out of court.
What This Case Was Not About
The Jones dismissal does not affect Ford’s separate class action litigation over the 10R80 10-speed automatic transmission, used in 2017 and newer F-150, Expedition, Mustang, Ranger, Transit, and Lincoln Navigator vehicles.8CarComplaints.com. Ford 10R80 Transmission Problems It also has no bearing on the earlier PowerShift settlement, which involved a completely different transmission (the DPS6 dual-clutch) installed in 2011–2016 Fiesta and 2012–2016 Focus models.9Car and Driver. Ford Settlement Transmission Lawsuit Escape and Fusion owners with 6F35 problems are not class members in either of those cases.