Ford Focus Complaints (2012)
3,803 consumer complaints on file.
- #11536075August 2, 2023POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle with the vehicle idling, the “Transmission Overheated – Pull Over” message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the clutch actuator inside the TCM had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where the vehicle remained. The contact was then informed that the vehicle failed to start, and the battery was replaced. The vehicle remained at the dealer unrepaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was advised to call the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 169,654.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11535272July 29, 2023FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
My car is often displaying a pending P1450 (unable to bleed up fuel tank vacuum) check engine light code. Whenever, I fill my car with gas, it take a few tries to get the car to start. My car has also lost power several times while driving without warning - and took a while to re-start. I had to have my fuel tank replaced as it deformed and leaked gas to the point where it was un-fixable. Car symptoms of not starting after being filled with gas and losing power at random times while in operation have not been solved with the replacement of a brand new fuel tank. The P1450 error code still continues to come up suggesting a purge valve problem that will be expensive to fix, in addition to the fuel tank that has already needed to be replaced.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11534744July 27, 2023ENGINE
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle hesitated. The check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to Advance Auto to be diagnosed and the mechanic retrieved unknown codes. The dealer was notified of the failure and an appointment was scheduled. The vehicle was not repaired. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer for an unknown transmission recall repair. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unavailable.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11534824July 27, 2023UNKNOWN OR OTHER
sudden loss of power. would not stay in gear. took it to the ford dealer and they had to replace the TCM.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11533666July 21, 2023POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:INTERNAL:CLUTCHES/BANDS, ENGINE, POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle seemed to shift into neutral and failed to respond. The check engine warning light was illuminated, and the service engine message was displayed. The contact pulled over to allow the engine to cool down. The vehicle was restarted and taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission control module needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the transmission failure caused the clutch to fail. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11533174July 19, 2023ENGINE, POWER TRAIN
Hello, This is what happened to my 2012 Ford Focus SE. First I noticed that after putting gas the car doesn't start I have to try it 1 or 2 times more. Second when the vehicle stops on the traffic light sometimes it gets difficult to get out because is not taking the change correctly, so I have to press the clutch so hard. Because of the car doesn't show up any lights or signal that told me that the car is having a problem I took it to the dealership, and they did diagnostic, and the issues are confirmed.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11531674July 11, 2023ENGINE
My car was hesitant to accelerate when both stopped and while cruising. When stopped, I would release the brake and the car would shudder and not accelerate. It would sit for a few seconds before going forward. When stopped on a hill, my car would roll backwards when I would release from the brake. When accelerating up a hill, my car would shudder and stop accelerating for a few seconds. Once, while on the Highway, I went to pass a car, getting into the left lane and pressing on the gas. The car did not go any faster but my RPM went all the way up. It was such a danger to drive. The service engine light would go on and off, but never be consistently on. When it turned on, it only stayed on for a day and then went back off. It almost caused a few accidents. When I took it to my local Ford dealership thinking it was the TCM, they told me the car needed a new clutch, levers, and slave cylinder.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11531506July 11, 2023STEERING
Power steering went out after a repair to the transmission control module.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11531357July 10, 2023ENGINE, FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while her son was driving approximately 40-45 MPH, the vehicle shut off. The contact stated that the brakes locked up. The driver was able to coast to the side of the road and apply the parking brake. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the fuel tank was deformed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and the contact was informed that the repair was not covered under warranty. The contact stated the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V515000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11530137July 3, 2023FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 40 MPH, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated after 2 hours, he was able to restart the vehicle and continued driving to his destination. The contact also stated that after refueling the vehicle the vehicle was difficult to start. The contact stated that the vehicle would then jerk intermittently while driving. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V735000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11529758June 30, 2023ENGINE, POWER TRAIN, ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle overheated while driving approximately 30-35 MPH and stalled in the middle of the road. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle only restarted after cooling down for 15-30 minutes. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact continued driving; however, the vehicle would not exceed 35 MPH. The contact stated that the failure occurred several times, and on some occasions, the vehicle was pushed to the side of the road with the assistance a Police Officer. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the dual clutch, slave cylinder, motor mount, purge valve and other unknown parts had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 140,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11529789June 30, 2023POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission downshifted to second gear. Additionally, the transmission failed to shift to reverse(R) as needed. The contact removed and replaced the TCM, and the vehicle operated as needed for an hour; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who informed the contact that the vehicle had a faulty clutch actuator. Additionally, the dealer informed the contact that because the codes that illuminated were not the same as those in Customer Satisfaction Program: 14M02 (Transmission Control Module) the vehicle could not be repaired under the warranty. The contact related the failure to the Customer Satisfaction Program. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure was mileage was unknown.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11529186June 27, 2023POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that she received notification of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V523000 (Power Train). The vehicle was taken to the dealer for the recall repair. The contact was then informed that the recall was completed and retained the vehicle however, the contact stated that while driving approximately 10 minutes away from the dealer at an undisclosed speed, she heard an abnormal sound while on an incline. The contact then stated that she allowed the vehicle to drift back into the street while shifted into drive(D). The contact stated that she depressed the brake pedal and shifted into reverse(R) and the “Pull Over - Transmission Overheated” message was displayed. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the TCM (Transmission Control Module) failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was currently at the dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 122,511.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11528640June 24, 2023POWER TRAIN, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, ENGINE
I'm wondering since there are so many complaints, even I am one of then, why isn't anything getting done. I'm paying out of pocket. Ford don't want to fix my car, 2012 ford focus sel. It's b.s. it's costing me alot of money. And I don't get reimbursed for nothing. I'm highly mad. I should sue ford company for not doing [XXX]. Thanks 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
- #11528512June 23, 2023POWER TRAIN, ENGINE
Driving down the road and all of a sudden the transmission starts jumping out of gear and back in gear, then light comes on stating transmission is overheating. Shut car off to cool transmission and car will not start back, after around an hour car cranks back up, but continues to jumping in and out of gear and light stating transmission is overheating stop for 5 minutes and relays clicking under the hood around the motor/ transmission.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11527634June 18, 2023ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
It wont go in reverse and comes out of gear transmission?
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11526797June 13, 2023POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while stopped at an intersection, a message illuminated to “Stop Driving Immediately” was displayed. The contact stated that the vehicle stalled. The contact had the vehicle towed to an independent mechanic who diagnosed the vehicle and determined that the Transmission Control Module had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle had been repaired. The contact stated that it was difficult to shift into drive(D) or park(P). Additionally, the vehicle was hesitating while shifting into gear. The contact researched online and related the failure to Customer Satisfaction Program: 14M02 Transmission Control Module (Power Train). The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 99,400.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11526713June 12, 2023ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The problem is with the transmission and dual clutch and electrical. My car shakes when still, doesn't want to go when I put on the gas, doesn't want to change gears. The electrical keeps going on and off and the fan goes on and stays on after I shut car off and get out and stays on. I took it to schicker ford on south kingshighway to get programmed and I got my car back it was worse.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11526362June 10, 2023UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The component is unknown and below is description. The car is stalling while accelerating and rushing forward when it does accelerate. At stop lights and when the car stops in traffic the vehicle is stalling. When the gas pedal is pushed to accelerate the stalling can cause a vehicle behind me to crash. After stalling, the acceleration causes the car to rush forward and it could cause my vehicle to run into someone in front of me. The vehicle was inspected at a dealership however I strongly believe their recommendations were not correct and that there is an easy fix for the issue above. They also claimed that it had nothing to do with the recall and did not provide information on the assessment about the recall. This particular recall does cause stalling so it is baffling to see that the dealership did not provide a written assessment on the report like they did for the door handles. I paid $150 for an assessment and around $200 for tow to bring the vehicle home after the assessment. The check engine light did come on and I took the vehicle to the dealership due to how unsafe the car was driving. I feared driving the vehicle and had it towed to the dealership for this poor assessment. I have not driven this vehicle in a year due to the unsafe driving conditions. I would like for the recall to be fixed and determine if that is causing the issue or not.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0
- #11525592June 6, 2023POWER TRAIN
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH and shifting gear, the transmission delayed while shifting to the next gear with the "Transmission Failure" message displayed. The contact stopped on the side of the road and shut off and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle started operating normally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the transmission control module (TCM) needed to be replaced. The contact was informed that the vehicle was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 13V523000 (Power Train). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but provided no assistance. The contact was referred to NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was 77,000.
- Crash:
- No
- Fire:
- No
- Injuries:
- 0
- Deaths:
- 0