10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 1 / 0
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 4 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 38,004 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
Fuse box is filled with dirt. Apparently it's an issue on 2011 Fiesta. I was not informed by Ford about the issue. They had some type of recall on that: Tsb 17B16. I am the original owner. The car shuts down occasionally on idle, while driving in the city. Very sudden, "clean" shutdowns. No rough idle. Quite often I would not realize that the engine is down until I press accelerator and there is no action. It is out of the blue. Dangerous in traffic!
- East Point, GA, USA
There was an active recall on my 2011 Ford Fiesta hatchback ses that I aquired from an auto dealer but not from Ford. Took it to Ford when I later found out about the recall on door latches and went to have the latches fixed and later that day the front passenger window pops off track and my window on the drivers side has issues with going up and down. The Ford place said that in order to fix the windows it would cost $100 dollars to fix and they swear up and down thst they didn't work in the doors but the had to replace the latches. The windos wasworking fine until I took it to shaffer Ford.they said in the shop that there was a recall on the transmission clutch and the control module but it seemed to shift fine and I now have a wrench light and not the oil light beside the wrench one but another one and the transmission malfunction alert comes on in the display. My girlfriend is pregnant and when it jerks when I come to a complete stop it pulls the car seat tight on her belly and everytime it hurts her. I believe it's a safety issue and my only means of transportation. If I knew about this car before I stated the finance, I would of purchased something else. Just wanted to say thank from all us folks who got the Ford Fiesta. They are junk. I hope
- Oakland, MD, USA
"takata recall had the vehicle approximately one week purchased from a private. I stopped at a stop sign and car died on me and left me stranded at a 4 way stop. I tried to get vehicle started and it started briefly and died on me. I was frantic as I am an older lady with my grandchild that was scared to death. I was pushed off the road by a concerned citizen who helped us push 2011 Ford Fiesta off the road. I had the unit towed and had motor replaced. The car still will not run and I have gone through all my saving on this piece of junk. It is now at a Ford dealership and they still are scratching their head and cannot fix unit. It is located at halliday Ford Lincoln incorporated, 1700 columbus ave, Washington court house, Ohio, 43160, telephone 800-358-3673.
- Greenfield, OH, USA
To whom it may concern, my name is [xxx] and I am writing this complaint about a 2011 Ford Fiesta SE I purchased at a private dealer on July 1, 2016. The car started running very strange after a week I experience very ruff rides. So I called Ford company in mcdonough ga. The person I talked to said that it was on recall and for me to bring it in, I did. They kept it over night to update the transmission and other problems causing me to pay for a rental which I felt should have been paid by the dealer or Ford Motor Company. I did ask the dealer if they knew the car was on recall and they said no! I ask question after question, the owner even drove the car himself and said that
- Stockbridge, GA, USA
My car had the transmission control module reprogrammed on 06/06/16 and is having the same issue as we speak 8/24/16. The car jerks, doesn't accelerate properly and is doing what it wants, very unsafe as it doesn't want to shift and jolts when it does. It's almost like its stuck in gear. This car has been nothing but problems and I'm irritated that this was repaired 2 months ago and the problem clearly isn't fixed. I'm pregnant and am very dissapointed that Ford can allow a problem like this to continue without proper resolution and safety for its customers.
- Johnstown, NY, USA
My 2011 Ford Fiesta SE will not start. Electrical issues, PCM possibly. When you try to start the car all lights flicker, battery is fine and continues to attempt to start even after the key is turned back in non-starting position. The radio and usb/charging ports don't work either. This potential repair is going to cost me more than this thing is worth. Ford shouldn't sell crap. I bought this car because I needed reliable safe transportation not to have a money pit with no transportation and a loan. I literally just spent $1000 at a garage for maintenance and it wouldn't start when I went to pick it up yesterday. Now the Ford dealership is guessing pm! I shouldn't have to pay for this, Ford should recall the PCM and fix the electrical or stop ripping people off with garbage.
- Johnstown, NY, USA
Took my car in twice for the tcm and it's even worse. Shuddering, electrical failures, loss of engagement while driving, and worst of all Ford is denying me service until I put another 1,500 miles on the car! not sure if this is even legal. Trying to press for a lemon law now.
- Ephrata, PA, USA
I reported to sterling mccall on 8/18/14 at 5:50 P.M. the problems that I have been having with my 2011 Ford Fiesta. I also reported the customer satisfaction program 14M01.0N 8/20/14at 7:19 a.M. I brought my vehicle into sterling mccall. Sterling mccall refused to fix the problem. I reported to legacy Ford on 9/5/14at 4:05 P.M. to [xxx]. the problems that I have been having with MY2011 Ford Fiesta. I also reported the customer satisfaction program14M01. On 9/11/14at 6:59 P.M. I brought vehicle into legacy Ford. They gave me a rental car at 7:15 P.M. on 9/12/14 legacy Ford refused to fix the problem. I filed a case [xxx]-5211951 with the customer relationship center at 2:15P.M. I brought my 2011 Ford Fiesta to Firestone for a diagnostic on 12/4/14. The find was that the article supersedes tsb 11-9-2 to update the issue statement and service procedure. I brought it to legacy Ford again on 1/14/15. And legacy Ford refused to fix my 2011 Ford Fiesta again. Then on 1/17/15 my car was in a accident. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
- Richmond, TX, USA
Car cannot be driven in snow. If trying to start from a complete stop in 1" of snow, the traction control will cut power to the wheels, leaving you stuck in place. This is very dangerous as it can leave the driver stuck in the middle of an intersection as happened to me today. Ford has since added a way to disable the traction control, but this model year is extremely dangerous in the snow.
- Rochester, NY, USA
Issues with the transmission since I bought the car sputters dies wont start shifts into neutral on its own dangerous car its not safe Ford knows and wont fix it. I have had the battery changed to fix the issue to no avail and the shift solenoid to no avail dealer cant fix it what can be done to make the car safe.
- San Marcos , TX, USA
The traction control on my 2011 Fiesta is a death trap. There is no option on my specific car to disable the system. In mild snow or slush, the vehicle loses all power to the wheels as soon as tcs engages. I got stuck at the bottom of my driveway. Today, 2/14/14 I was nearly killed when the car got stuck in 4" of snow & was partially in the lane of a busy roadway (I was attempting to turn into the parking lot to my place of employment). My fiance' & our 8 yr old son (who is a factor 9 hemophiliac) were screaming and scared to death as the car was helpless to move away from oncoming traffic. This is an issue that later year 2011, 2012, & 2013 models have the option to turn off this function however there is no way to add this feature to my car. If I or my family are injured due to this issue I will sue Ford & NHTSA for allowing this vehicle to be sold with this kind of safety problem.
- Levittown , PA, USA
My boyfriend went out to start my car up and warm it up for me... it would turn over...then after trying again it started. I went out to go to work and went to back out of the drive way and my car would not go in reverse. I then put it in drive and moved up a little and then proceeded to back out and then when I went to put it in drive again it would go any where.it was like the gear go stuck. I had to have my boyfriend push my car back into the driveway.I then called jones junction where I purchased the car and had it towed into their shop because I had coverage on it for repair for them to call me and say there is nothing wrong with my car. I did some research myself and found that this has been an issue with the 2011 Ford Fiesta transmission electronic controls. I'm furious that any dealer would inform me that there is nothing wrong with the car and because no repairs were being done I had a towing bill of $185. I was stuck out in the middle of the road on a icy day and could have been easily hit by another vehicle. The gears locked up and would not go in drive.I hope and wish that Ford will resolve this matter on these cars before it causes a injury or a someone's life. I will be contacting the Ford dealership this morning.thank you
- Baltimore, MD, USA
2-3" of snow, car would not move no power to wheels in middle of intersection, no way to disable traction control! complained to Ford at various levels and got no satisfaction basically telling me "too bad".
- Spring Grove, PA, USA
The contact owns a 2011 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that the traction function was used while driving 5 mph uphill however, the traction function could not be disengaged. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. The approximate failure mileage was 7,000.
- Winona, MN, USA
Vehicle: 2011 Ford Fiesta, manual trans., fwd. Road conditions: Snow covered 1-2", no ice underneath, no slush buildup. Incident: At stop sign waiting to turn left onto road. Oncoming traffic in either direction is thru, no stop. No oncoming traffic. Accelerating across two lanes to turn left- divided 4 lane municipal road 40mph speed limit. Midway across road, front wheels began to slip, traction control activated and removed power. Car stopped in middle of road. Was unable to move vehicle in 1st/2nd/3rd gear without traction control removing power. In first instance, oncoming traffic had to stop while I exited vehicle and pushed vehicle into median where traction was found. This happened twice. After second occurrence, determination was made to only turn right to not place self at risk of accident. Follow-up research: Early production Ford Fiesta are incapable of deactivating traction control. Later models do and in the 3rd printing of the owners manual it is recommended to turn off traction control in snow or mud. This action would allow wheels to spin to pavement and generate sufficient traction to maintain or begin vehicle motion. Additional information: Above research was obtained by discussion with Ford technical support/engineering. They also advised that it was not possible to retrofit my vehicle with the capability to deactivate traction control. I have had vehicles in the past of similar weight/powertrain/profile which were equipped with one-touch buttons to disable traction control when in the appropriate situations. These cars were very capable in 1-2" of snow with the traction control disabled. I have advised Ford that I intended to provide this report to NHTSA and they likewise said they intend to self-report it as well. Recommendation: I believe this to be a safety issue that needs to be addressed by whatever means NHTSA has available.
- Waldorf, MD, USA
Early year 2011 models of Ford Fiesta do not have the ability to disable the elec. Stability control known as advanctrac for driving in icy conditions. While driving up a hill with snow and/or ice cover the front drive tires started to spin slightly. The engine automatically reduced power immediately to both wheels until all forward momentum ceased. At this point the vehicle started sliding backward down the hill with no control since there was no power to the wheels. This was extremely dangerous as the hill had a steep drop-off on one side and trees on the other. I was able to drive our 2010 Ford Focus and our 2001 Chevrolet Blazer up the same hill at that time with no issues or hesitation. A similar event has occurred on a level road where the snow is deep and the vehicle has come to a stop. If both tires start to spin, power is reduced to the drive wheels and the vehicle is effectively stuck. This is especially dangerous at slippery intersections. If the vehicle had a disable function for the advanctrac, the car could easily be driven out of icy conditions such as these. There is no information in my owner's manual (1st printing) on this condition. In later manuals (3rd printing which can be downloaded) Ford has provided a manual shut-off through the multifunction display. This option does not exist on my vehicle's multifunction display. Early 2011my Ford Fiestas should be recalled and updated to fix this dangerous condition.
- Manchester, MI, USA
Early model 2011 Ford Fiesta are not equipped with defeat-able traction control. Late model 2011 and all 2012 models have a menu to disable the feature. Moderate snowfall. Approximately 4-6 inches. If vehicle is stopped because of traffic, or a stop sign or becomes stuck in the snow it is not possible to turn off the traction control feature on the vehicle to get moving again or to get un-stuck. The traction control is so aggressive that the wheels will literally not turn if any slip is detected. This forces the driver to exit their vehicle and push the vehicle or shovel down to the pavement, or wait for a tow truck. Either way the driver is exposed to traffic in inclement weather. You can sit in the car and hope no one hits you while you wait for the tow truck. Or you can get out and shovel or push and hope that no one hits you. I have attempted to contact Ford customer service, whose answer is that it is defeat-able and they cite a page in the owners manual that doesn't exist in the early model year Fiesta's. the dealership also attempted to give me the same answer. I had to show them that the page of the book they were citing was a later printing. Exiting your vehicle in a snowstorm or just after a snowfall is a very serious situation. Even staying in your car blocking traffic in a snowstorm or after snowfall is a serious and dangerous situation to the general public. Ford needs to correct this problem for all early model year 2011 Fiesta's. Ford has already acknowledged an oversight without saying it by putting the feature in latter built 2011's and all 2012's. as the snowy season approaches I am faced with the same dangerous situations that I thought Ford may fix on their own. I need your help.
- Otsego, MN, USA
- Hurst, TX, USA