2015 Ford Transit Connect Problems

What owners report

Owners of the 2015 Transit Connect most often describe problems with doors that will not latch or that open while driving, many of them tied to several door-latch recalls, and with a shifter-cable bushing that lets the van roll even when the lever is in Park. Complaints also cover the rearview camera going blank or distorted, and various body and trim failures such as sliding-door detents, a water leak into the front footwell, and rear glass breaking. Complaints cluster from low mileage (a few thousand miles) up to well past 100,000 miles, so the pattern spans the whole life of the vehicle rather than a single early-build window.

1. 1
   Latches, locks and linkages

   Door will not latch or opens while driving

   • 24 complaints (36%)
   • median 75,000 mi at 4.5 yrs old (16 state mileage)
   • 3 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2016–2024

   Complaints describe front and sliding doors that fail to latch, refuse to open or close, or swing open while driving, sometimes within the first few thousand miles. Several owners link the problem to door-latch recalls and say dealers had no parts or would not perform the repair; some report the door failed again after a recall remedy had already been applied. Owners often describe using tape or the child lock to keep a door shut in the meantime. Reported from under 10,000 miles through roughly 150,000 miles, across all model years of this generation.

   Recall 23V502000Recall 20V331000Recall 16V6430001 related service bulletin

   What to check: Open and close every door several times and check that each latches firmly; ask for proof that the door-latch recalls were completed and when. A TSB covers latch replacement and inspection for vehicles outside the earlier recall population.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Ford recall #16s30 was originally issued in january of 2017. Eleven months later my local dealer still does not have parts to fix this problem. I have tried contacting them at several different points, and I get nowhere. Why is Ford not making these parts available to dealers? My door latch is now inoperable on one side.”

   NHTSA complaint #11051055, filed 2017-11, 18,000 miles

   “After entering my vehicle while sitting in a parking lot, the driver's door wouldn't latch. I see that there are other complaints of similar failures, but the VIN decoder show no un-completed recalls on this vehicle.”

   NHTSA complaint #11252326, filed 2019-08, 99,000 miles
2. 2
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Shifter cable bushing separates; van rolls in Park

   • 9 complaints (14%)
   • median 99,398 mi at 5.7 yrs old (9 state mileage, few)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2018–2021

   Owners describe the shifter feeling loose or seizing, the display showing the wrong gear, the van rolling while the lever is in Park, and in some cases a no-start because the vehicle thinks it is in Reverse. Mechanics have found the bushing at the transmission end of the shifter cable broken or detached, with the cable hanging free. Two recalls cover this bushing, and a service bulletin describes the same incorrect shifter-position symptom. Mostly reported between about 70,000 and 160,000 miles, often noticed while parked or just after starting.

   Recall 22V413000Recall 21V3760003 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the shifter-cable bushing recall was performed; with the engine off, move the lever through the gears and confirm the cluster shows the gear you selected, and always use the parking brake.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Vehicle pulled in to park but it thinks it is in reverse, would not start this is the 2nd one of our fleet in 2 days that has the same issue, there must be a recall for this year and this shifter/cable issue, they want to charge us for both of these and I do not feel the same issue a day apart is possible coinsidence.”

   NHTSA complaint #11329400, filed 2020-06, 120,000 miles

   “Pulled into a parking space at son's school, turned off the engine. Waited for my son. Then car would not start. Display was saying I was in reverse. But, the shifter was in the park position. I was able to access the interlock override under the shifter, and move the shifter into all gears, but car continued to display reverse position and engine would not start. Tow company came and lifted the hood and noticed immediately the shift cable was completely detached. Had vehicle towed to my Ford dealership service department.”

   NHTSA complaint #11301076, filed 2020-01, 96,000 miles
3. 3
   Engine

   Overheating and engine oil leaks

   • 10 complaints (15%)
   • median 91,500 mi at 4.6 yrs old (10 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2017–2024

   Owners describe the check-engine light coming on, the engine running hot or overheating on the highway, and in some cases a cracked head or failed head gasket that led to engine replacement. Others report an oil leak or high oil-level readings and a strong exhaust smell in the cabin; one complaint describes a failing catalytic converter around 81,000 miles. A recall covers coolant loss leading to cylinder-head cracking on 1.6L turbo engines. Reported from about 37,000 to 190,000 miles, with the coolant/head-crack cases noted around 70,000-plus miles.

   Recall 17V2090002 related service bulletins

   What to check: Check coolant level and condition, look for oil residue around the turbo and engine, and ask whether the coolant/cylinder-head recall applies to the VIN and has been done.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “While driving at normal speed a warning sign. Came on 'engine fault get service now. The van began to shake. I pulled over, turned off engine. A few minutes later it started normally and seemed normal for 2 weeks. (hospital side road) today, while driving home it happened again 3 times (country road) . We had to pull off each time and cut engine off. Gas pedal went soft -inoperable. Very dangerous -our safety is at stake.”

   NHTSA complaint #11343954, filed 2020-08, 110,000 miles

   “Under normal driving the vehicle got real hot ,and over heated. The water and oil levels where at the proper levels. The engine head cracked or blew the head gasket . Towed to Ford they had to replace the engine. This happened on the highway, going home. The next day the vehicle would not start. There is a safety recall # 17s09, out on these vehicles, but my VIN # was not on the list. Yet lm have the same issue. Luckily we caught it before it got hot enough to catch on fire.”

   NHTSA complaint #11123285, filed 2018-08, 70,112 miles
4. 4
   Body and structure

   Sliding door detent and water leaks in the body

   • 14 complaints (21%)
   • median 115,000 mi at 7.0 yrs old (9 state mileage, few)
   • 2 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 2017–2024

   Owners report the passenger-side sliding door detent breaking free so the door slides shut on its own when parked on a grade, and a sliding door that came off its track. Others describe water entering the cabin, including a leak through the windshield and water dripping into the front passenger footwell, and rear glass that shattered while closing a door. Reported from about 37,000 to 135,000 miles, often noticed when parking on an incline or in rain.

   Recall 20V2600001 related service bulletin

   What to check: Open the sliding door on a slight incline and see whether it holds open, check the footwell carpets and headliner for dampness, and look for the panoramic-roof recall work if the van has one.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The rear passenger side sliding door fell off the track and fell off the vehicle, while the door was being closed. I originally reported difficulty to the dealership shortly after purchasing the vehicle around 2016. I asked the dealership on multiple occasions to fix the door sliding issue. I was told there was nothing they could do to fix it. The door was always difficult to open and close. 6/25/24, the door fell off the vehicle while it was being closed.”

   NHTSA complaint #11597058, filed 2024-06, 122,959 miles

   “The vehicle was sitting parked curbside while our daughter was in school and on a break, I went to move the car closer and when I shut the driver's door, the back glass shattered and fell to the street.”

   NHTSA complaint #11034208, filed 2017-10, 27,000 miles
5. 5
   Back-over prevention (rear camera)

   Rearview camera blank, distorted or intermittent

   Mentioned in 5 of 60 sampled complaints

   Complaints describe the rearview camera showing a message that it is unavailable, going to a black screen, activating on its own in forward drive, or cutting in and out. Some owners report repeated camera replacements or a fuse that blows after a few trips, leaving no image when reversing. Several reference the camera recall but say the remedy was not yet available. Reported from roughly 65,000 to 150,000 miles in this sample, with several owners saying the problem was long-standing.

   Recall 25V572000Recall 26V6500002 related service bulletins

   What to check: Put the van in Reverse and check the display for distortion, inversion or a blank image; ask whether the camera recall and any related customer satisfaction program were completed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I am submitting this complaint to report an unresolved safety recall and the inability to obtain a timely inspection or repair, which I believe places me and my family at increased risk of a crash. My vehicle is a 2015 Ford Transit Connect. The vehicle is subject to Ford Safety Recall 25S89 and NHTSA Recall 25V572, concerning a failure of the rearview camera system. The rearview camera on my vehicle frequently displays a message stating “Rear View Camera Unavailable, Contact Ford Dealership” and then goes to a black screen. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11716171, filed 2026-02

   “The fuse associated with the rearview camera of this vehicle has consistently blown over the last few years leaving the backup camera inoperable with no image on the dashboard display. The lack of a functioning backup camera results in the loss of a view directly behind the vehicle which could result in an accident. A warning stating that rear view camera is unavailable and a dark display occur when the fuse is blown. The rearview camera fuse blows often typically only after a few vehicle trips. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11448092, filed 2022-01

Buying note. Check that the door-latch, shifter-cable and rearview-camera recalls were completed on the specific VIN, since several owners report repeat failures or unavailable parts. Test every door latch, the gear display in each position, the backup camera image and the cooling system before buying.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.