2012 Ford Focus Engine Problems
- 349
- 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 349 stored complaint records:
- 7 indicate a crash
- 4 indicate injury
- 4 indicate fire
What owners report
- check engine · 24 records
- engine light · 16 records
- indicator illuminated · 12 records
- takata recall · 10 records
- engine indicator · 9 records
- failure mileage · 9 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 1–30k mi | 94 |
| 60–100k mi | 78 |
| 30–60k mi | 76 |
| 100–150k mi | 43 |
| 150–400k mi | 10 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Engine · Power Train
When accelerating from a stopped position, the transmission slips gears and the car lurches forward or stalls and then lurches. I have almost rear ended several cars on many occasions. The car also lurches backwards when in reverse. I have taken the vehicle in twice for service. It is in for service as i am submitting this report. The first time, i was told there were recalls completed on the vehicle. I never…
ODI 10692395
Engine · Fuel/Propulsion System
Feels as if the car is going to stall while slowing down. After taking off after a complete stop it shifts hard or shakes and sometimes makes a grinding noise. *tr
ODI 10630839
Electrical System · Engine
This is not the only issue, but this has been the most dangerous for me... For the past year, the car has lost transmission power while driving - i was on hwy 40 and the car just stopped working - twice i was in the middle of a busy intersection and the car cut off - i was at a near stop and the car stopped responding....this has been reported numerous times by others. The gas pedal just stops responding at all. The…
ODI 10761208
Engine
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. While driving 60 mph, the vehicle suddenly lost power and failed to accelerate. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine block fractured. As a result, the control module and the engine block needed to be repaired. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 150,000. The vin was not available.
ODI 10760823
Electrical System · Engine · Power Train
I own a 2012 ford focus se. I bought my ford focus in december 2012 from folsom lake ford located in folsom california. At 20000 miles i took my car in for its factory service and advised the transmission was not operating correctly. According to folsom lake ford their service department reprogrammed the transmission computer and ordered parts for the transmission'parts that would take a month to arrive, but never…
ODI 10671013
Engine
Engine malfunction message appeared on the message center. The engine then shutoff, losing power steering and power brakes. I coasted to a stop, the vehicle would not restart and had to be towed. This was the second incident with this same problem. First incident was eight days prior. Dealer stated it was fixed, but evidently not. *tr
ODI 10629871
Engine · Power Train
Had an issue with the vehicle suddenly shaking, shuddering violently, and being unable to accelerate beyond 40-35 mph. I would attempt to accelerate and it would operate as though in neutral. The vehicle would then kick in and rev up to 6-7000 rpm and still not accelerate. Then it would finally feel as though it had downshifted but would not go above 40 mph. I took it in to the dealership to be looked at. They…
ODI 10630061
Engine · Vehicle Speed Control
The car stopped accelerating while i was driving on 1-95 in new jersey at rush hour . I was able to pull over safely, resumed driving and the car repeated this over the next day. After a service by a ford dealer, the car ran smoothly for 10 miles then the problem re occurred and engine light went back on. Would not accelerate in reverse or drive. Definitely was not fixed. This is in addition to the constant…
ODI 10629703
Engine · Vehicle Speed Control
I was traveling from the route 128 highway exit ramp onto the interstate 95 going approximately 50-55 mph, as i rounded the top of the ramp i went to accelerate onto i-95 when i found i was slowing in speed/decelerating and found that i had no pick up with the vehicle. I was actually coasting ,the engine appeared to be on but i was unable to accelerate. As i coasted to the break down lane the check engine light…
ODI 10629505
Electrical System · Engine · Power Train
While driving my 2012 - manual 5 speed ford focus down the highway the car lost power. There was no indication that anything was wrong, but all of a sudden while in 5th gear at 70mph the car had no power to propel itself forward, at the same time the radio/entertainment system malfunctioned and turned off. Luckily, i was able to make it over to the shoulder and roll to a stop without an incident. Turned the car back…
ODI 10626252
Engine
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 30 mph, the engine stalled without warning. The vehicle failed to restart and was towed to an authorized dealer. The vehicle was currently being diagnosed. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 23,700.
ODI 10626063
Engine · Power Train · Vehicle Speed Control
The car goes into neautral with no warning loose all power and three months later it does not go into reverse and lost gears we had to pay out of pocket someone going to get hurt this car needs a recall on transmission before someone gets hurt bad there is so many complaints on transmission. *tr
ODI 10660689
Engine · Power Train
This was the first time my service engine soon came on. The transmission was slamming into every gear. I was stuck in 3rd gear revving at approximately 3500 rpm going 30 mph. I was able to drive the car home. The day after i took into spikes ford where the problem was then fixed on 08-11-14. I picked up the car and drove home. 2 hours later as i'm entering a highway to go to wal-mart, the car lurched forward, rpm's…
ODI 10640883
Engine · Power Train · Vehicle Speed Control
Car stutters and does not shift. Severe shaking and loss of cruise speed is effected. The car does not accelerate properly and seems to lose speed while driving. I am scared to let my daughter drive this car and only have owning it for several months it has been in the shop once and going back again. There is no apparent fix for this problem and they will not do anything about it. The clutch was replaced and…
ODI 10638220
Electrical System · Engine · Power Train · Steering
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. The contact stated that the vehicle accelerated slowly on occasion. Other times, the rpms would race and the vehicle would jerk forward. The dealer stated that the body control module needed to be replaced. The contact stated that the dealer was not able to reprogram the computer to install the new part and had to re-install the old part. The manufacturer was notified and the…
ODI 10641774
Engine · Power Train · Service Brakes
The vehicle doesn't automatically shift properly. It doesn't shift up when it should and revs up badly. The same thing happens when i go down large hills. It shifts down and it shouldn't, so the engine revs and i have to put it in neutral when going down hills. Further, when i am parked on a hill, it rolls back a bit before stopping. Lastly, the bluetooth microphone is dying and sounds terrible on the other end. *tr
ODI 10618082
Engine · Power Train · Vehicle Speed Control
At random times the car will just shut off leaving a coasting vehicle down the highway, or leave you stalled out in the middle of an intersection. If you leave it sit for 30min-1hour it may restart. If you press the accelerator it was not respond. After a couple minutes the vehicle will recover from a rough idle and try to lunge forward even when vehicle is in park. Problem: transmission control module. *tr
ODI 10633469
Engine
Vehicle does not start when key is turned. Electrical systems come on but engine does not crank. Engine finally starts normally after multiple attempts to turn the key (20+) and then runs fine. This problem usually occurs after the car has not been used for several hours, i.e. Being parked in the garage overnight or after a shift at work. Once the car starts, it can usually be turned off and then start again without…
ODI 10618413
Electrical System · Engine · Vehicle Speed Control
My car was in the shop about 4x's in 1 month. Issue began driving about 45 mph. Went to accelerate felt a sudden jerk & nothing. Look down to see my drive light flashing & am steadily decreasing in speed with no way to accelerate, like in neutral. I luckily was able to get out of oncoming traffic, put the car in park which began to flash. Accelerated a couple times to be sure it responded before driving but the…
ODI 10617777
Engine · Vehicle Speed Control
Driving on the highway when car did not want to accelerate and suddenly accelerated. Motor light turned on. When taken to get checked,motor light was off and. Was told others have been experiencing the same. This is the second time it happens. *tr
ODI 10609468
Engine · Steering
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. The contact stated that while driving at 50 mph, the power steering became difficult to turn and the engine stalled. The contact also stated that the vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the power steering pump needed to be replaced and the pcm failed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure…
ODI 10615331
Engine
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate, the engine would rev but the vehicle would not accelerate. The vehicle was able to restart and operated as normal. The contact stated that the failure occurred on multiple occasions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who recalibrated the tcm but the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, who was…
ODI 10618136
Electrical System · Engine
The first incident occurred while in traffic on the interstate highway during rush hour evening traffic. I had to come to a stop on traffic in a construction zone due to traffic at a point where there was moving traffic in lanes on either side of my vehicle. The car was running as normal, no lights came on (nothing to alert to an issue), however, when i went to accelerate my car would not engage the transmission. It…
ODI 10618523
Engine · Power Train · Steering
On two occasions the vehicle stopped running while in motion. In incident 1, this occurred at highway speed (65 mph) and incident #2 in local traffic (15 mph). In both cases all power was lost including the acceleration, power steering, etc. After incident 1, the car restarted and driven to the dealer - extensive repairs were made "to the transmission" (per the dealer). In the second incident after dealer repairs…
ODI 10611194
Engine · Power Train · Suspension
I purchased a 2012 ford focus less than a year ago and have had trouble ever since. I have had my car in repaired once for the transmission issues accelerating and coasting. My car is shaking and hesitating with any type of acceleration. The car is making a clunking noise when driving, turning corners and braking. I am beyond disappointed with the quality of the 2012 focus. I dropped my car off at the dealer and…
ODI 10598340