10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
14 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
8 / 1
Average Mileage:
38,533 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 #77

Oct 162013

Focus

  • 6,401 miles
After coasting around a corner at 30mph I pressed accelerator and the transmission started slipping and then caught and the car launched forward. It did this three times and now its making a grinding noise.

- Wanatah, IN, USA

problem #76

Jun 042013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 9,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while accelerating from a complete stop, the transmission began to slip gears in a jerking motion. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer three times where the computer system was reprogrammed on each occasion. The failure continued to recur after the most recent repair was performed. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 9,000....updated 11-18-13

- Roland, AR, USA

problem #75

Oct 152013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 20,000 miles
Car jerks alot! always jerking at low speeds and usually through gears 1-4. very unreliable in city driving and feels very unsafe. I totally regret purchasing this vehicle. Taken it several times to the Ford camelback in phx AZ and they just say its the way the manufacture built the car and how the car is able to save gas. Ford needs to recognize this problem and give Ford owners a break.

- Fremont, CA, USA

problem #74

Oct 102013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 9,000 miles
Was driving up my driveway which is fairly steep, the engine slipped out of gear (it's an automatic transmission) and started to roll backwards down the hill, the engine was revving/redlining as if it were in neutral. I quickly applied the brakes, and stepped on the gas. The car was still not in gear and continued to roll back, I applied the brakes again, and then the gas at which point the car shot forward, lucky that I was far enough away from the garage or any objects and remained in gear when I pulled into the garage. This same thing happened to me on flat ground in a parking lot one day. The lurch was less, but the car still shot forward faster than it should have, another instance where I was lucky that there were no pedestrians/cars/objects to run into. This car is dangerous and a liability.

- Clayton , NC, USA

problem #73

Aug 132013

Focus

  • 6,000 miles
When driving on residential roads, I often feel my 2013 Ford Focus stall or jerk. Often times there are glitches in the electrical wiring of locks and also in the radio. The door will stay locked after hitting the unlock button on the inside multiple times. The radio will not turn on, unless I turn off and re-turn on the car. As for the stalling, it often stalls when going anywhere from 30-65 mph.

- Stow, OH, USA

problem #72

Oct 032013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 8,012 miles
Traveling at 40 mph when suddenly transmission disengaged and car slowed and only revved. Stop at stop signed, tried to accelerate engine only revved then transmission engaged and car jerked. This continued the 3 miles left to my house.

- Amelia, OH, USA

problem #71

Jul 012013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 2,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the transmission manual internal shifting system failed, causing the vehicle to shudder at low speeds and when reversing. The dealer reprogrammed the transmission computer and cleaned the clutch however, the failure was not corrected. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 2,000 and the current mileage was 29,293. Updated 11/12/13 the consumer stated as of October 29, 2013, he is still dealing with the shifter shudder, when first starting out. Updated 11/18/13

- West Palm Beach , FL, USA

problem #70

Jun 132013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 1,000 miles
This car needs to be recalled. Took to dealer with problem about 1,000 miles. They acknowledged it has a problem and said they needed to keep it overnight. Then I find out all they did is reset the computer. That did not work and now at 7,000 miles the problem is getting worse. Engine hesitates and slips when starting accelerate and is worse around 30 mph when the engine shutters, rattles and jumps like I am riding on a horse. How can Ford sell a car that has a major flaw like this" I see hundreds of complaints similar problems. When is the government going to do something? I just wasted my money. I expect to get a good car with no problems but I get a new piece of trash. How can I get the car fixed or my money back"

- Daytona Beach, FL, USA

problem #69

Oct 022013

Focus

  • 1,000 miles
In October of 2012 I purchased a new 2013 Ford Focus SE. With less than 100 miles on the car I noticed a grinding noise when the car was shifting from 2nd to 3rd gear. I also noticed that the car would roll backwards in excess of two feet when engaging the accelerator from a still position on an embankment. The car was taken to the dealer and upon examination I was told that this was a "normal and expected" result with Ford new transmission. The vehicle now has 32,000 miles and the transmission is not only grinding when shifting from 2nd to 3rd gear it is also slipping!! while shifting from 2nd to 3rd gear the car now lurches! Ford service once again has the vehicle in an attempt to diagnose the issue. I would never recommend this car as in the past year it has been in the shop over 5 times with this issue and no resolve. These issues pose a safety risk to all driving this vehicle. Ford Motor Company needs to address these issues!!

- Belen, NM, USA

problem #68

Nov 132012

Focus 4-cyl

  • 203 miles
Ford Focus 2012-2013 have dangerous transmissions. Ford sells you an automatic transmission, but actually is a manual transmission with dual clutches and a computer. My car lunges, surges, luges, grinds, and doesn't accelerate properly, it is like driving a bucking Bronco. Ford initially said these problems would go away at 3000 miles once the car learns how I drive. Here I am 6 times into the shop 11,000 miles and Ford service manager finally admits the transmission is flawed and there is nothing they can do to fix it. He states the parts for the transmission were not make to speck and that's the problem. My car sits in my carport now because it hurts my neck to drive it....it jerks my head back and forth every time it decides to shift....if it does at all. I have had to pull over when getting on an los angeles freeways because my car cant decide what it wants to do and I am lucky not to have been hit. This cars transmission is horrible dangerous......it also rolls backwards on hills Ford forgets to tell you this until you bring it is. So, not only is this car a death trap, I feel like I was told I bought an automatic when I didn't its a manual. False advertising. When I buy an automatic I expect it to be an automatic. Ford needs to be responsible and get rid of these transmissions before someone is killed. Fyi also they say it gets great gas mileage but it is false I get maybe 20 in the city and maybe 30 on the freeway. There are thousands of us Ford Focus drivers out there that need Ford to step up and take responsibility for this faulty not made to speck transmission!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- West Hollywood, CA, USA

problem #67

May 012013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 4,000 miles
Back in may my husband and I were traveling in stop and go traffic and noticed that my brand new 2013 Ford Focus SE was grinding and making horrible noises while shifting. Especially shifting in lower gears. As I remind you... this is an automatic. As of today this is the 4th time that it has been back to the dealership and still the problem is not fixed. The car continues to jerk and make mental on metal grinding noises. Today when speaking to the dealer I was told that a Ford engineer was looking at it and trying to fix it. Remind you that the clutches have already been replaced, the computer has been updated, and the computer has been reprogrammed. When I called today they said that they had to keep it over night. This is totally ridiculous and this is a new vehicle!!! of the almost seven months that I have owned the Focus it has sit in the shop a total of 20 days. Come on Ford!!!!

- Chase City, VA, USA

problem #66

Jan 022013

Focus

  • 200 miles
I recently purchased a brand new automatic Ford Focus 2013 and am very disappointed and angry. The first problem is the car tends to stall in 1st and 2nd gear, keep in mind it is automatic. Besides stalling it does not switch gears properly between first and 2nd. I almost got into an accident when it stalled while I was going up a hill. This car needs to be recalled immediately!

- East Brunswick, NJ, USA

problem #65

Sep 212013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 9,676 miles
Driving into work one morning, I was following behind another vehicle at a low rate of speed, almost to a stop when I then turned into a parking spot, pushed the gas pedal and the vehicle did not accelerate so I then pushed the gas pedal again and the vehicle surged forward at a much faster speed than usual and the vehicle slammed into the wall of the parking structure in the space I was attempting to park in. On other occasions before this, I had experienced hesitation while pressing down on the gas pedal but nothing like what happened the morning that the vehicle surged forward, hitting the cement wall in the parking structure.

- Pinckney, MI, USA

problem #64

Sep 012013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 5,500 miles
My car had to go in for service twice. The issue as I described it was that the car bogs down, shudders while trying to accelerate, makes a rattling noise, and shifts incorrectly into the wrong gear. They applied a software update on 9/14 that was supposed to fix the issue, but it did not. I brought the car in today and they indicate that the transmission is leaking into the clutch. They say to pick up the car and drive it for the 10-12 days it will take to get parts. They'll fix it later they say. They will not provide a written statement of the problems they have found, as I requested. Not sure if it is safe to drive, I would think that it is not safe. The dealer is walls Ford, 2 merrill St, salisbury MA 01952.

- Newburyport, MA, USA

problem #63

Sep 232013

Focus

  • 4,500 miles
Vehicle warning "stop safely now" appeared and the ev lost all its motive power and stalled. Repeated attempts to restart the vehicle failed.

- Los Altos, CA, USA

problem #62

Sep 212013

Focus

  • 1,350 miles
This applies to a Ford Focus electric, not a gasoline model. Was traveling approximately 30 mph when "stop safely now" indicator appeared. Vehicle slowed and came to stop within a few seconds while still in traffic lanes. I placed the car in park and switched the system off, then on again. It started normally and drove normally for approximately 50 miles while I went home. There is no apparent valid reason for the vehicle to stop itself. Under other circumstances this could have been extremely dangerous. Checking reports on the internet, it appears that this problem is very common, and many people have reported repeated occurances of this problem. Weather at the time was moderate (70 to 75 degrees F). This is a new car (two weeks old, approximately 1350 miles) while I don't suggest that the following are contributing factors, I list them because they were unusual for me and this may be helpful to reviewers looking for common circumstances: 1. the vehicle had been given a level 1 (120 volt) charge earlier in the day, bringing the state of charge from approximately 60% to 70%. this is unusual because I usually use level 2 (240 volt) charging. 2, the vehicle had been switched "on" with the air conditioner operating for about an hour but without driving anywhere. The problem occured shortly thereafter, after driving approximately two miles. 3, no other unusual circumstances were noted. Car drove normally before and after this incident.

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

problem #61

Sep 202013

Focus

  • 1,245 miles
This is for the Ford Focus electric. I was driving on a busy road going approx 50 mph when all of a sudden I lost power and had no acceleration a message came on the display that said stop safely now in red with a exclamation point inside a triangle at that point I was a hazard to other drivers as the vehicle was slowing down as I was trying to merge to the right hand side. I finally was able to stop and I turned off the vehicle. I let it sit for a minute and tried to restart and it would not, I tried a second time and it finally came up ready to go. I contacted the dealer and they advised me to take to the service dept in the morning. This was a safety hazard that needs to be fixed.

- Riverside, CA, USA

problem #60

Sep 192013

Focus

  • miles
Traveling at approx. 35 M.P.H. on county road, pull over safely light came on, unable to pull over immediately due to traffic, traveled a short distance in attempt to find a shoulder to pull onto, car died in a curve. No power at all.

- Alpine, CA, USA

problem #59

Sep 132013

Focus 4-cyl

  • 6,744 miles
This is regarding Ford Focus electric vehicle 2013 model. This is the second time it has happened. While driving it suddenly beeps and displays message "stop safely now" and car just stalls and stops running. Quite dangerous while driving. It has been to Ford dealership after the first incident and they were not able to diagnose the issue and after a couple of weeks that I got back the vehicle, it happened again. It is again in the service center of Ford dealership, but they still do not know why this happens or what is the fix. This needs to be addressed by Ford asap as it is a huge safety issue.

- Fremont, CA, USA

problem #58

Sep 182013

Focus

  • 1,024 miles
While driving at 30 mph, the car quit running and displayed "stop safely now".

- Seattle, WA, USA

Read the next 20 complaints »