10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
14 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
8 / 1
Average Mileage:
38,602 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.

Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2013 Ford Focus:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #373

Sep 162015

Focus

  • 37,000 miles
While driving my 2013 Ford Focus St my manual transmission's fourth gear failed after I heard a clunking sound coming from the transmission during light acceleration. Then three days later my third gear failed to engage as well. Currently I am on my second getrag six-speed transmission after my first one's second gear failed at 19K miles in a similar fashion.

- Catonsville, MD, USA

problem #372

Sep 202015

Focus

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. While traveling 25 mph, the transmission fell out from under the vehicle which caused the contact to stop immediately. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission mount failed and needed to be re-mounted. The vehicle was currently being repaired. The manufacturer was not aware of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

- Harper Woods , MI, USA

problem #371

Sep 162015

Focus

  • 48,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. While driving 45 mph, the vehicle made a loud abnormal noise and would not accelerate over 45 mph. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 48,000.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #370

Jan 072014

Focus

  • miles
When accelerating the car from a stop, the car will shudder often significantly making it difficult to move the vehicle. This happens every time. Have contacted Ford and had the ECU updated. This has not helped. Ford says they will replace the clutch as it is leaking fluid (on back order for months) but they have not stated that it will fix the problem

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #369

Jan 252015

Focus

  • 55,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced a complete loss of power while driving 60 mph. The check engine warning indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission failed. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and stated that they would continue to try to remedy the issue until the warranty expired. The failure mileage was 55,000. The VIN was not provided.

- Channelview, TX, USA

problem #368

Jan 222014

Focus

  • 16,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. While driving approximately 45 mph, the vehicle's speed reduced independently and the check engine warning light illuminated. The failure recurred multiple times. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. The mechanic replaced the clutch, the transmission was removed and sealed because of a leak, and the computer was reprogrammed; however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 16,000.

- Oconomowoc, WI, USA

problem #367

Aug 052014

Focus

  • miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. While driving at low speeds uphill or on an incline, the transmission hesitated as if the vehicle would stall. The vehicle was included in a manufacturer's recall related to the failure; however, the recall part was not available. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was not available.

- Matewan , WV, USA

problem #366

Sep 022015

Focus

  • 28,822 miles
On September 2nd while driving to work near the exit of the 22 fwy eastbound the vehicle started jerking and jolting severely with loss of power. I was able to exit and managed to drive in to the work parking lot. The car was towed to the nearest Ford dealership. Here is the report from the dealership: 15822 transmission control module reprogramming for overt tcm failure w. when I bought this vehicle brand new I told caruso Ford in long beach ca not long after that car jerks and jolts then hesitates, and every time I took the vehicle in for maintenance that the vehicle hesitates, jolts and jerks at times while driving. They kept telling me nothing was wrong. This car has had a defective tcm module since the day I bought it. On September 2nd my life was endangered on the fwy due to negligence by both Ford Motor Company and caruso Ford dealership. They know that there is a defective problem. I have read other complaints on here. I blame caruso Ford more on this problem because they have failed to listen to me and fail to do a proper internal check which put my life at risk. The car has been repaired by the other dealership near my work where it was towed at. I still don't know if there could be a more serious problem within the power train system later on..

- Long Beach, CA, USA

problem #365

Jun 282015

Focus

  • 48,000 miles
Was taking off from a stop ligh, vehicle shuddered enhine light came on and car slipped into neutral on its own. Has happened multiple times

- Katy, TX, USA

problem #364

Sep 032015

Focus

  • 60,000 miles
Driving on I80 West bound and my rpms shot up to 5,000/6,000. I proceeded to take my foot off the gas to let the transmission catch, however, when I put my foot back on the gas my rpms shot up again. My transmission had completely died. I had no ability to move forward. I managed to make it to the right hand shoulder from the left lane. I shut my car off once I reached the shoulder to see if that would help the problem. When I tried to start my car it would not turn on. I had dashboard lights but the car would not start. My car was still saying it was in drive when it was in park. My car ended up being towed to Ford and they told me I needed a new transmission control module and that they have had several focuses come in with this problem in the last two to three weeks, so they are now keeping this part stocked. This could have been a very dangerous situation given that I80 is a very busy expressway and my car died while I was driving it.

- Elwood, IL, USA

problem #363

Sep 032015

Focus 4-cyl

  • 52,725 miles
I just purchased a 2013 Ford Focus three days ago. Today as I was driving, I noticed that when I come to complete stop while driving, the transmission feels like it jerks and the acceleration feels slow. After doing research I seen thousands of buyers of the same vehicle complaining about the same problems I am. I really need some help as to what direction to go in. I am a single mother of a 7 year old daughter and I used all my money to purchase a reliable car and now I am dealing with these issues. The car is fairly new so it should be safe to say that it should not be having defective transmission problems, this is very dangerous. Unfortunately Ford isn't pressing the issue towards helping buyers with these issues. Please help and press a serious issue with recalling this vehicle. I represent many people who are upset after buying this vehicle. Thank you.

- Stockton, CA, USA

problem #362

Sep 022015

Focus

  • 17,003 miles
Stopped in stop-and-go traffic on a major highway, when I attempted to accelerate again the vehicle flashed a warning which said "hill start assist not available" and the engine died completely. I lost all power to the wheels and lost power steering, was able to coast to the shoulder, where the car would not start. All warning lights appeared to come on, including seatbelt, check engine, traction control, etc. The car indicated it was in "drive", in spite of the fact that I had the gearshift in park. It would not shift gears or allow me to start the engine. After sitting for 30-40 minutes waiting for a tow truck, the car suddenly appeared to function normally. I drove home, and 10 minutes later, while parallel parking, the incident occurred again: Backing into a parking space and attempting to pull back out, going uphill, the exact same sequence of events occurred ("hill start assist not available", loss of power and steering). This time the vehicle coasted backwards into another car. No injuries or damage. The 2013 Ford Focus cannot be trusted to be driven on the highway. I have read many reports online of other drivers having identical or very similar issues with hill start assist/transmission/traction control errors, loss of power, loss of power steering, and inability to shift gears or restart the car, with this error sometimes happening *while driving at highway speeds* resulting in loss of control of the vehicle. I do not feel safe driving this car. I feel less safe knowing that Ford with this problem waiting to happen are being driving every day by unknowing drivers. This is a safety issue of the highest magnitude. It is absolutely outrageous that Ford has issued no recalls.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #361

Aug 172015

Focus 4-cyl

  • miles
Brief description of the problem, driving the car home from work the engine revved up and alert flashed saying the stabilizer control had a problem, then another light flashed with an exclamation mark. The engine revved and it picked up speed. I was able to stop it on the shoulder of the road. Turned the engine off and put it in park. The shift lever was in park but the display said I was still in drive. The car would not re-start. I had the call emergency road service to have the car towed back to the dealership. I had just purchased the car three weeks earlier on July 22, 2015. Waited two hours in 100+ degree heat for the tow truck to arrive. The dealership states it was the tcm (transmission control module) that caused the problem. In researching the cars history I found out the car has had this same problem 3 times. It's only two years old with 42,000 miles on it. This is defective and should be recalled. I still don't have my car back, (it's been 10 days now). I feel this is a dangerous vehicle and I would prefer to have the problem resolved not just constantly repaired for the same problem. It's not safe to drive, this problem can re-occur at any given time.

- Unknown, AZ, USA

problem #360

Jul 242015

Focus

  • 80,000 miles
I was driving through town, a few seconds after taking off from the traffic light the light went out around my D gear and the car slipped into neutral, I put the shifter into drive where it locked up, I turned the ignition swith off and a minute later turned the car back on, the gear light reappeared and I drove it another minute till it happened again, I was able to get to a parking lot doing this over and over again.the car has been in the shop for one month now and cant seemed to be fixed, ,I could have been killed if I had been on a major highway..the engine does not seem to be affected by this problem...

- Micanopy, FL, USA

problem #359

Aug 012014

Focus

  • 20,000 miles
Shuddering, jolting, lurching, grinding of the transmission between 1st and 2nd gear. This had been the main issue, I went to Ford 6 times for this and it still has issues. Most recently, my car wouldn't go into 2nd gear and would rev very high and then slams into gear & has a very intense lurch forward. It has done this in intersections and pulling out onto bus highways. I went to the local auto parts store as the check engine light was on. The error code they received was "P0902 clutch actuator circuit low".

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #358

Sep 152014

Focus

  • 17,000 miles
I have brought the car to the dealership for multiple (4) transmission issues over the past year. The car has 25000 miles on it. The last time was July 17, 2015. When I picked up the car I was told it needed a new clutch but was okay to drive. I was told the clutch was back ordered 4 to 8 weeks but the car was okay to drive in its present state. The car continued to stutter at low speeds but I was told this was normal for this transmission. On July 31st the car began to stutter harshly and then completely stalled out in traffic in the middle of the road. The on board computer indicated a transmission failure. A second Ford dealership said they repaired the transmission but not the clutch that was previously indicated. They also said the car was safe to drive. It is not. It stutters harshly and can't be depended on to merge into traffic safely. As of today, it sits in my driveway waiting for a new clutch. I don't know if it will finally be repaired or if the problem will return. In my opinion this car is not safe and the potential exists for someone to get seriously hurt or even killed. I know of two other owners of these vehicles (Focus). Both are having the exact same problem. One of which is having her transmission repaired for the third time today. This is a safety issue.

- Cherry Hill, NJ, USA

problem #357

Aug 232015

Focus

  • miles
I was driving approximately 40 mph yesterday when all of a sudden the car started de-accelerating and came to a complete stop on the road. Fortunately I was in the far right lane and was able to pull into the median. The car was still on and all of the other power was on but when I pushed the gas, nothing was happening. I had an error light pop up that said "parking assist not available" and then another one about "hill assistance" or something like that. I had not attempted to use either of those functions. I turned off the car for a few minutes. When I turned it back on a bit later I was able to go another mile back towards home and then the same thing happened again. Luckily I was close to home so I waited again and was able to make it home. I brought it to the dealership this morning (had to stop twice on the way here for the same reasons as yesterday). They said the transmission module has to be replaced. I asked if this was a known issue and the service person said yes, it is and that some people received recall letters. I did not receive one. It's going to take about a week to fix and is covered under warranty. Apparently Ford is extending the warranty to 100K but I haven't seen that in writing yet. This is incredibly frustrating and scary. This car is only 2.5 years old! when I looked it up online and saw that there is a class action suit, I was shocked and dismayed. I'm worried I'll continue to have problems and that it will have no resale value.

- Scottsdale, AZ, USA

problem #356

Jan 012015

Focus

  • 40,000 miles
Car shakes and hesitates while trying to accelerate. Seems like clutch or transmission slippage. There is also some type of vibrating/rattling noise at the same time. Once the car shifts past 2nd gear it seems to be better. Bought the car with 35000 miles and didn't notice it right away. Slowly has gotten worse and the car now has 56000 miles. Something is not right.

- Alexandria, MN, USA

problem #355

Aug 132015

Focus

  • 35,714 miles
Bought this vehicle used with 34,869 miles on July 8, 2015. After having for about a week, noticed shaking, grinding noises, seems to be "missing" in the transmission. Took to dealer on 7/21/2015 and the reprogrammed the tcm. Vehicle still made same issues so I took to a different Ford dealer 7/27/2015 and they did the same thing. On 8/13/15 the vehicle would not start. Roadside assistance came out and jumped the vehicle to start and "faulty transmission failure" appeared on the dash screen. I attempted to take the car to the dealer but the vehicle would not go into reverse or drive. Called tow truck to take to Ford dealer that same day. The next day they claimed it needed a new transmission control module. As of today, 8/19/2015 - the car is still not fixed and is still in their shop.

- Sharpsburg, GA, USA

problem #354

Jul 312013

Focus

  • 5,000 miles
My 2013 Ford Focus has been in the shop 4 times, one of which took over month to get the part. My transmission is clearly faulty and whenever I accelerate to 20mph or 45mph my transmission isn't properly shifting. On 8/18 my transmission felt like it was going to drop out while I was on the highway in Michigan. This is after just receiving my vehicle back from Ford service within the last 7 days. I don't feel safe driving this vehicle at high speeds with a faulty transmission.

- Trenton, MI, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »