2012 Ford Focus Power Train Problems
- 1,052
- Owner complaint records in our dataset
Records are owner complaints, not a measured failure rate.
Owner complaint recordsComplaint records reflect reports in our dataset and do not measure how frequently the problem occurs across all vehicles.
Among these 1052 stored complaint records:
- 27 indicate a crash
- 11 indicate injury
- 3 indicate fire
What owners report
- Automatic Transmission · 4 records
- Clutch Assembly · 3 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 1–30k mi | 330 |
| 60–100k mi | 243 |
| 30–60k mi | 239 |
| 100–150k mi | 96 |
| 150–400k mi | 20 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Power Train
We bought my wifes focus with about 22k miles on it in june 2013. Since then we've brought it in 4 times to have the transmission "shutter" fixed. As of today the problem still exists but it isn't bad enough for them to fix it again. It mostly shutters from 1st to 2nd gear reaching upwards of 2800 rpm. Just shy of their 3000 rpm requirement. The car will shake and sometimes make a clunk and we're told to keep…
ODI 10903229
Power Train
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. While driving 55 mph, there was a knocking noise coming from the transmission. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission bar needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 44,000.
ODI 10915965
Power Train
I have no clue why these vehicles (including the 2011 focus, and 2011 & 2012 fiestas) have not been officially recalled. I have now taken my car in 8 times for transmission issues. I have had the clutched replaced twice (25k miles apart between 2 amd 3) and had the computer rebooted 3 times. The cars shutter, shake, stall, have a poor response (especially if you need to floor it for safety) and nothing! I contacted…
ODI 10903596
Engine · Power Train · Vehicle Speed Control
My daughter was driving the car at a very high speed, the vehicle died suddenly, and she was forced to "glide" into the median. Took vehicle into dealership, and was told the trans module is on a "replacement program", and that the module is on back order. I was told that i could rent a car because there is nothing i could do. Most importantly, when i reminded the gentleman this was a safety issue, i was told that…
ODI 10899582
Power Train · Vehicle Speed Control
While traveling home from work, my car stalled briefly on main street. I immediately pulled into a parking lot to get my car out of the street. I turned it off and back on and resumed driving. I made it to my destination and got in the vehicle to drive again and the car would run go anywhere. The ford dealership said to bring it to their shop for a diagnosis. I was on the way to take my 2012 ford focus titanium to…
ODI 10899264
Power Train
My son and i were leaving a store in my 2012 ford focus and had just backed out of a parking space and i put the car in drive. The car rolled backward just an inch and lunged forward and we felt a "bump". Got out of the car at that point to see if i had hit something or if something was under the car-there was nothing. Got back in, buckled up and tried to go and the dash lit up with "transmission malfunction" i…
ODI 10903616
Electrical System · Power Train · Unknown Or Other
At 58,000. Horn started to work intermittent, now it does not work at all. What next? Already had work done on tranny. Every thing seems to be computer related. It also surges at start up at stop.
ODI 10906735
Power Train
At 9829 miles (11/2013) noticed transmission slipping, jerking, crunching and clutch pac and seals replaced and tcm recalibrated. At 16839 miles (8/2014) brought in for hesitation and shudder and told nothing wrong. At 29324 miles (2/2016) brought in for losing power and surging forward and clutch pack replaced again. At 33k miles car would not move forward in middle of stop and go traffic on coronado bridge.…
ODI 10896922
Engine · Power Train
Ford has a transmission with dry clutches. This transmission has stranded many people in very unsafe situations. The transmission just stops working while driving. Many complaints have people left in the traffic lanes and the cars simply will not move. Fortunately for me i was not on the freeway, but on the feeder to the freeway, and the car just stopped moving. The engine rpm's dropped like it was running out of…
ODI 10897025
Power Train · Unknown Or Other
I was driving on a city street travelling 50 mph when my car started to stall. I hit the gas and my car jerked and stalled again. Then my car read a message that said "transmission malfunction service now." once i was able to get to a safe location, i parked my car and it made some funny sound almost like a clunking noise. This is not the first time my car has stalled out and had transmission issues. This is…
ODI 10893649
Power Train
The transmission shudders and frequently does not shift properly (automatic transmission) and has even failed to apply power when pulling into traffic risking a collision by not accelerating properly. The transmission also failed once while on a hill causing me to roll backwards and nearly caused a collision with the vehicle behind me. After i hit the brakes to stop the rearward roll, i tried to accelerate and the…
ODI 11242289
Power Train · Steering
Lurching and uncontrolled shifting occurs with the transmission. It has left me stuck in the middle of a left turn because it doesn't shift correctly. Now i ran off the road while exiting a freeway because the power steering turned off in the middle of the turn. This has now happened 6 times randomly. It gives me a power steering fault. I have come close to being the cause of 3 accidents because of these two issues.
Crash reported · 1 injury
ODI 10907220
Power Train
While driving on freeway, transmission failed to provide power upon acceleration
ODI 10893152
Power Train
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. When the accelerator pedal was depressed, there was an abnormal severe vibration in the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to fairway ford ([redacted] greenville, sc 29607) where it was diagnosed that the clutch was defective and needed to be replaced. The year before, the vehicle was serviced under an unknown ford customer satisfaction campaign for the same component. The…
ODI 11024637
Latches/Locks/Linkages · Power Train
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. Upon coming to a stop, the gear shift randomly shifted from drive to neutral without warning at any rate of speed. The contact checked the gear selector several times, which indicated that the gear was in drive; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The contact later received notification of nhtsa campaign…
ODI 10915958
Power Train
This has been an ongoing problem. The transmission in my ford has stopped functioning and left me sitting on the side of the interstate many times. I have been lucky in that i have only been stranded in a traffic lane once. I have taken it to ford and gone through the same things that so many people have already stated: first they blamed it on insufficient electrical grounds, then they charged me $200 to reprogram…
ODI 10899074
Power Train
I purchased this car used in may of 2015.. I immediately noticed the car running shaky and attributed that to bad fuel. It was intermittent and would come and go. May 2016, my husband, son and i are traveling to his track championship and were stopped at a red light. The light turned green and my husband stepped on the gas to accelerate. The car jerked us all forward hard and would not accelerate with cars honking…
ODI 10898208
Power Train · Steering
I purchased a used 2012 ford focus hatchback in october 2012 that had 29,000 mile on it at the time. I drove the vehicle up to 39,000 and the power steering failed as i was initiating a left turn across traffic. I looked down to see the power steering assist fault error message. The car was out of warranty at that point, and i was out 2,000$ in repairs. I have seen that ford has recalled other vehicles for the same…
ODI 10892962
Electrical System · Electronic Stability Control · Power Train
I purchased the car from ford dealer used.transmission acted up after a month took in in and they said it would cost me 200.00 to look at it.i purchased the 2 year extended warranty,but would still cost me that .i left ,a few month later the car would not move and transmission light came on .my insurance towed the car at that time the dealer kept my car for a week ,charged me 500.00 for cables to the battery.1 week…
ODI 10891964
Power Train
Transmission control module failed. Car was not responsive to gas pedal. Would not reliably accelerate, would not reliably brake.
ODI 10894243
Power Train
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced excessive shuddering and delayed acceleration when the accelerator pedal was depressed. The failure occurred without warning. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission clutch motor was defective and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The…
ODI 10926808
Power Train
I bought a 2012 focus in 2015 with 14,690 miles on it. After a couple of weeks i noticed problems with the transmission but tried to think positive and say it can't be. As the days and weeks went on it got worse and worse the cranking noise the lack of acceleration and deceleration, the shuddering, etc.. Then i get a recall letter from ford motor stating there's a recall on the transmission and if affected have…
ODI 10888843
Power Train · Steering
2 major issues: transmission would sudden drop out of gear while driving. Several times i was on the highway and it would drop into neutral, leaving me no way to control my vehicle. This was fixed with a ford warranty extension and replacement of the transmission control module (tcm). Now, at 74000 miles, i am having a malfunction of the electronic power steering (eps). Usually right when i start the vehicle and am…
ODI 10887974
Power Train
My son and i purchased this vehicle used. We had no previous information about all the problems this make and model have had. The cars transmission went out at around 98,067 miles. 07/20/16. Well exactly 600 miles and $2400 dollars later it went out again. Ford has told us that they will not purchase the car back or pay to fix it properly. My son is to leave next week and will be driving from indiana to seattle. If…
ODI 10903729
Power Train
Car always shudders when accelerating from stationary zero mph. This car has a sel option and is driven only in automatic transmission. I have never used the sel option! The shudder causes sloppy acceleration delays from zero starts, lights and stop signs, just like a manual shift being driven by a driver unskilled clutch/shift coordination. The same thing occurs when braking for a light, then at low speed, the…
ODI 11003830