Vehicle report
Technical service bulletins are instructions a manufacturer sent its dealers about a known fault. They are not recalls and the work is usually not free, but they are the clearest signal of a problem the manufacturer already knows about.
SSM 46210
SOME 2010-2016 EPAS EQUIPPED VEHICLES MAY EXHIBIT STEERING RELATED NOISES. THE WORKSHOP MANUAL (WSM) DIAGNOSTIC PROCEDURES HAVE BEEN UPDATED IN SECTION 211-02. WHEN DIAGNOSING AND REPAIRING EPAS STEERING NOISES USE THE UPDATED PROCEDURES.
TSB-13-5-14
FORD/LINCOLN: ON SOME VEHICLES, WHEN ACCELERATING FROM STOP OR SHIFTING BETWEEN DRIVE/REVERSE AND/OR REVERSE/DRIVE, A NOISE IS HEARD LIKE POP, TING, CLICK, COMING FROM FRONT WHEEL AREA. MODELS 2011-2013 TAURUS, EXPLORER, FLEX, MKS, MKT. *PE
Complaint counts are reports filed with NHTSA, not failure rates. A common model collects more of them than a rare one that breaks more often.