Ford Focus Complaints

22,326 consumer complaints on file.

#11681407August 18, 2025
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the oil pump was losing pressure and the vehicle needed to be repaired. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was unknown.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11681072August 16, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Door lock and windows dint work properly. Transmission not working appropriately or at . Randomly says transmission overheating or won't go in reverse
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11680830August 15, 2025
POWER TRAIN
My 2017 Ford Focus has problems with the automatic transmission. It shudders and jerks so badly. It has even shut off on me in the middle of a 4 way intersection with the message “Transmission Fault Service Now” it was not safe. I could have been hurt, or worse. I had the transmission control module replaced, but it did not help. It continues to shift and jerk horribly. It’s hard to accelerate in speed as well.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11680860August 15, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Subject: Urgent Safety Concern – Transmission Failure on 2014 Ford Focus (VIN: [XXX] ) To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to report a critical and ongoing safety issue with my 2014 Ford Focus. The vehicle stalls without warning, pops out of gear, and frequently overheats regardless of outside temperature. These failures occur while idling at traffic lights, merging into traffic, and during regular driving conditions. This issue has placed me in dangerous situations daily—I've narrowly avoided collisions and have been forced to block traffic because the car will not engage gear for 5 to 20 minutes at a time. It is not safe for me to exit the vehicle during these episodes, and I am deeply concerned for my safety and the safety of others. I understand there may not be an active recall for this VIN, but the symptoms align with known issues related to the PowerShift transmission. I am requesting an immediate diagnostic review and assistance under any applicable warranty, customer satisfaction program, or technical service bulletin. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11680901August 15, 2025
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling); however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The check engine warning light was temporarily illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a certified mechanic, who was unable to determine why the warning light was illuminated. The mechanic cleared the system, and the warning light was no longer illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for the recall repair, but the recall repair was not performed. The dealer informed the contact that the recall repair could not be performed because the check engine warning light was not illuminated. The dealer advised the contact to return when the warning light illuminated again. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was approximately 20,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11680922August 15, 2025
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled while driving at various speeds and while idling. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The vehicle failed to restart and had to be towed several times. The contact stated while driving 70-75 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The vehicle failed to restart and was towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with oil pump and fuse failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V905000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The VIN was included in the recall. The contact was charged a fee for the repair. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 10,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11680969August 15, 2025
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20-30 MPH, the transmission started slipper while shifting out of 2nd gear with the message "Transmission Overheating" and the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local Auto Zone and a diagnostic scanner retrieved DTC: P090C and P207A. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 109,100.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11680507August 13, 2025
POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2014 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 30 MPH, the vehicle jerked, and the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended while depressing the accelerator pedal and the vehicle stalled. The message "Transmission Overheating - Stop Vehicle" was displayed. The vehicle was able to coast to the side of the road. The contact waited for 20 minutes to restart the vehicle. After several attempts, the vehicle restarted; however, the failure recurred a short distance afterwards. The contact coasted to the side of the road and restarted the vehicle. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The vehicle was not repaired due to the cost. The failure had progressively worsened. Most recently, the transmission overheated, and the contact had to pull over and wait for the transmission to cool down. Upon further investigation, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V523000 (Power Train). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHSTA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 168,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11680009August 12, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE, POWER TRAIN
My 2014 Ford Focus is having problems with the engine. For starters is several occasions the car will start and not turn off when turning the key to the off position, the car will still stay on. I took it to the automotive parts store and the guy there had me turn the key off and disconnect the battery and that seem to turn off the car. After they had my car scanned with a computer and found lots of issues with. Car stalls and had check engine lights and also a transmission warning light on making it difficult for the car to drive. Recently water dripping inside the vehicle passenger side when the AC is turned on. The car also doesn’t unlock the doors from the inside have to open it for the passenger side.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11680029August 12, 2025
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Starter has always been difficult but now key stuck in ignition and won't start either
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11679799August 11, 2025
POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle vibrated abnormally. No warning lights were illuminated. The contact stated that failure occurred most often after the vehicle was stopped at a traffic light or stop sign and then attempting to accelerate. The contact received notification of Customer Satisfaction Program: 14M02 (Transmission Control Module (TCM). The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed. The contact was informed that the clutch had failed. The dealer refused to repair the vehicle, stating that since the check engine warning light was not illuminated, the vehicle would not be repaired. The contact was informed to take the vehicle back to the dealer once the check engine warning light was illuminated. A month later, the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer. The vehicle remained at the dealer unrepaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 109,007.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11679967August 11, 2025
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the failure persisted. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission after finding metal shavings inside the transmission fluid. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 105,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11679525August 9, 2025
POWER TRAIN, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The car failed to start, it did not recognize it was in park. After trying to start my car with the keys it failed. My safety is put at risk, my car failing to recognize which gear shift it is in causes malfunctions while I am on the road, especially since I drive long distances at high speeds. I had a Master Technician review and preform a diagnostic on my vehicle and the codes formed for this test matched hand in hand with TCM issues under the TSB. After this, I went to the dealership to discuss this issue and the only thing that came of it was informing me that I was not eligible for a recall due to my VIN, even if I have all the symptoms under the TSB for my Ford Focus 2016. Since my car failed to start I was not able to bring it to Ford and have it tested, especially after asking if it is eligible and they insisted that it was not. No warning signs from the dashboard appeared on my vehicle to inform me of this issue. I travelled to meet with family and did not end up using my vehicle for a few days and when I tried to start my car, it would not engage. The only warning sounds I would consider a correlation before the problem would be a clicking from the starter pre-firing when I opened the door, and while the car was off.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11679362August 8, 2025
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, POWER TRAIN
I own a 2012 Ford Focus with approximately 51,000 miles. The transmission warning light came on, and I was informed by a repair shop that the transmission control module (TCM) and gears need repair. This vehicle uses the PowerShift dual-clutch transmission (DPS6), which has been the subject of a class-action lawsuit and multiple extended warranties due to widespread failures. The car exhibits jerking, delayed acceleration, and loss of power, which create dangerous driving conditions, particularly when merging into traffic or crossing intersections. Ford informed me I am outside the warranty period and refused to assist, despite this being a well-documented, recurring safety issue for which they have admitted fault in other cases. I am reporting this issue because it poses a serious safety hazard, and I believe the TCM defect should be subject to a mandatory recall. Ford is shifting the burden of a known manufacturing defect onto consumers, and this needs to be addressed before someone is injured.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11679422August 8, 2025
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at 45 MPH, the RPMs became drastically elevated, and the vehicle shut off unintendedly. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled over, and the vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to the residence, and after three days the contact attempted to restart the vehicle, and the vehicle started without hesitation, and the check engine warning light was no longer illuminated. The vehicle was driven to the local dealer to be diagnosed; however, there was no cause for the failure found. The vehicle not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 40,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11679158August 7, 2025
ENGINE, POWER TRAIN
It is my transmission problem, there is an engine light on and the shifting is very rough and it also jumps gears, i know ford had a recall for this problem i believe it should be under warranty it is the TCM
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11678763August 6, 2025
POWER TRAIN
Transmission slipping. I was waiting to turn into my apartment and as I went to turn, my gear slipped where i was stuck in on coming traffic. Found out that there is a lot of ford focus having the same issue with transmission.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11678873August 6, 2025
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at a roundabout at 20 MPH, the "Transmission Overheating - Please Pull Over to a Safe Location" was displayed, and the contact pulled over for 30 minutes for the transmission to cool down. However, after restarting the vehicle and attempting to drive, the contact noticed that the transmission was slipping between 1st and 2nd gear. The contact proceeded to pull over and the vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was diagnosed, and the contact was advised that the dual clutch assembly and the fuel rail pressure sensor were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 109,007.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11678881August 6, 2025
ENGINE
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that upon attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle failed to crank as intended. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the head gasket, resulting in damages to the engine. The contact was informed that the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 93,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11678722August 6, 2025
ENGINE, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
2016 Ford Focus, VIN: [XXX] Power Train: Automatic Transmission: Control Module (TCM) This complaint details a recurring and severe safety defect in our 2016 Ford Focus. The vehicle's Transmission Control Module (TCM) has failed twice, resulting in sudden, complete loss of power and dangerous stalling incidents at highway speeds. In January 2023, at approximately 8,000 miles, the vehicle suddenly lost all propulsion while traveling on a highway. We were forced to execute a dangerous emergency maneuver across lanes of traffic to reach the shoulder. A Ford dealership diagnosed a failed TCM which had, in turn, caused the clutch to burn out. In July 2025, after only 7,000 additional miles (total vehicle mileage ~15,000), the identical, catastrophic failure occurred again. The vehicle once more stalled without warning on a major highway, creating another life-threatening situation. The diagnostic codes confirmed the same TCM and clutch failure, proving the issue is a persistent, underlying defect and not a random occurrence. This failure is entirely consistent with the widely-documented defect in Ford's Powershift (DPS6) transmission. This problem has been the subject of multiple national class-action lawsuits and is detailed in thousands of other consumer complaints filed. The repeated failure in our low-mileage vehicle underscores that this is a predictable and systemic design flaw that makes the vehicle inherently unsafe. We attempted to address this critical safety failure directly with Ford Motor Company. Our concerns were met with dismissal, and despite being issued a case number, Ford has failed to respond to our calls registered letter. This vehicle is unsafe to operate. We are filing this complaint to implore the NHTSA to launch a formal investigation into this defect. The repeated, sudden loss of power presents an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death to occupants and other motorists. We believe a mandatory recall is urgently required. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATI
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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