This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
My 2013 Ford Fiesta SE hatchback has acceleration issues I believe will cause me to be in an accident. While accelerating into traffic the vehicle can down shift or "bog down", causing me to lose acceleration and nearly causing collisions. Had it not been for the defensive driving of the other drivers I definitely would have been in an accident.
This has been an ongoing problem over the past 12 months. This vehicle shudders and grinds when shifting through 1st to 3rd gears. The vehicle grinds sporadically while maintaining constant speed at low speeds and highway speeds. After coasting, the vehicle will grind and shudder during acceleration. The vehicle has failed to shift into gear on three occasions, one of these incidents nearly resulted in an accident. Most recently, the vehicle has been losing power, grinding, and shuddering for up to 5 seconds before the gear fully engages when turning or conducting U turns, which causes other motorists to nearly rear end my vehicle during heavy traffic. Ford has reprogrammed the transmission three times, without improvement, and informed me each time that they cannot verify a deficiency, and has not honored warranty replacement.
Vehicle shutters upon acceleration and feels like it wants to stall. When vehicle is turning to the left from a stopped position, the shuttering is extremely pronounced and feel like it will stall. When vehicle is driving up a hill, it will slow down, shutter, and feel like it will stall. Vehicle does not run smoothly, and will jerk forward during acceleration. Vehicle will not accelerate up to speed when entering highway, and almost causes me to get hit from behind as other vehicles and trying to get up to speed as well. When vehicle approaches approximately 35-40 mph, a chattering grinding sound develops, and sounds like it is coming from the front driver side engine area.
Merged onto highway. Car would not speed up to highway speed (65) and started jerking back and forth - seemed like transmission issue. Was in danger of being hit from behind by other cars. Jerking decreased in frequency and was able to speed up after about a 1/2 mile, but basic problem continued. Drove approximately 6 miles to dealership where I bought the car. Turned car off and went inside to talk to service technician. He got in the car with me and we drove it for a couple of miles. The problem did not recur on drive. I was told this was a typical problem and the remedy was to turn the key to off position and reboot the computer. I pointed out that this could not be done while driving on a highway! I was not informed of any relevant service bulletins or scheduled for any repairs.
My 2013 Fiesta is 1 year old with 12500 miles on it. When first purchased the transmission would drop out, typically on starting from a stop or accelerating out of a turn. I was told that the computer was learning how I drive. This did improve. As time has gone on however, I have noticed a shudder when accelerating from a stop or at low speeds. This shudder has gotten progressively worse with the transmission being bogged down and refusing to shift in time. The more I drive, the worse it gets, especially after the engine has heated up. It is like trying to learn manual, which I have tried! it feels like the engine is going to stall and die. This happens in stop and go traffic, with a continuous fear that my engine is going to stall in rush hour traffic. I bought a brand new car to eliminate the fear of getting into an accident because of poor car condition. Transmission issues with a 1 year old car are ridiculous. Please fix this problem.
- Westmont, IL, USA
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This has been an ongoing problem with the vehicle. I purchased car on November 10, 2012, and on November 13 heard a noise in engine. The car would jerk and surge on take off. I returned car to dealer who could not find anything wrong with car. The noise became louder, car began to shudder and surge more often during take off, and stick in reverse. I returned car to dealer on January 8, 2013, but the couldn't find problem. Over the next few months the noise became louder, car shuddered and surged, and began sticking in drive. I returned to dealer again on May 29, 2014, and dealer told me about transmission problems with Ford Fiestas. I picked car up on June 5, 2015 and drove short distance and all power to transmission went out. It eventually 'came back' and I was able to return to dealership. The problem was worse than when I took it to dealer in the beginning. This was a very scary situation because I was in the middle of rush hour traffic. I have had ongoing problems since I purchased car. It had 3 miles on it the date of purchase. I financed 21,049 to get car, and cannot afford to trade car in and go upside on payments. The car is a lemon! I have spoken with Ford 3 times about the matter. I am scared to ride in the car now. I need a car to go do work daily. Ford should recognize this problem and replace my car with a 'better' car. It is a shame that a large conglomerate like Ford can sell a 'lemon' and a consumer like me (single mom) with limited income has to 'take it." Ford should be held accountable. I have researched the problems and found supporting evidence to my case. I have contacted the attorney general's office in my state about the matter, and spoke with general manager at dealership. Ford has offered to extend my bumper to bumper warranty to 75,000 miles or 5 years (Nov. 2017) but I am still scared to ride in the car. It's dangerous.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate from a stop, the vehicle hesitated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was unable to diagnose the failure and stated that the transmission operated as normal. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 300.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate, the vehicle hesitated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the repairs were unknown. The vehicle was repaired but the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 1,000.
Harsh shifting of transmission, or other transmission shifting complaints/problems. Loss of power on initial take-off from a stop or from low speeds. The feeling of the transmission "slipping". harsh or delayed engagement of transmission "jerking" or "shuddering" upon take-off from a stop. Vehicle rolls backwards when on an incline. Vehicle loses power when on the interstate and you try and accelerate to pass another vehicle.
Harsh shifting of transmission, or other transmission shifting complaints/problems. Loss of power on initial take-off from a stop or from low speeds. The feeling of the transmission "slipping". harsh or delayed engagement of transmission "jerking" or "shuddering" upon take-off from a stop. Vehicle rolls backwards when on an incline. Vehicle loses power when on the interstate and you try and accelerate to pass another vehicle.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that while attempting to move into the next lane, the power steering assist failed and the vehicle jolted abnormally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times for the failure where a diagnostic was performed each time but to no avail and the dealer advised the contact that the transmission was operating normally. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 50 and the current mileage was 34,000.
I was stopped at an intersection waiting on traffic. Finally got a small gap and hit the accelerator to proceed into the middle of the intersection, it clattered, then hesitated and would not go. After about 3 seconds, which felt like eternity when you cars coming towards you on both sides, it finally went. No accident, but way too close for my comfort. I've had this car at the dealership four different times for this same problem. They have reprogrammed the transmission every time but it still does the same thing. About four weeks ago I was on the highway and the car lost complete power, acted as if it were in neutral. I have filed a complaint with Ford but they say it is within their tolerance. I bought this car for my daughter but I am afraid to let her drive without me. When I finally have to give this car to my sixteen year old daughter, and she loses her life because of this transmission, is will not be tolerable.
-while driving my car I noticed a grinding sound in the transmission as I tried to accelerate when I pulled off. Not only did I hear a grinding sound, the car also started jerking as if it was going to stall out. I returned the vehicle to the dealer where I purchased the car. They said that the drove it and couldn't find anything wrong. My car was returned and I continued to drive it even though I was not pleased with the results. It was my belief that I was ignored because I was a female. After continued grinding and stalling becoming worse especially when I would pull out in traffic I again took the car to the dealer and the kept the vehicle for several days and gave me a loaner car which consequently was the same car that I had and the loaner car sounded just as bad as my car. When I picked my car up they mechanic said that the sound I was hearing was normal for the type of transmission that I had which was a high performance transmission and that's how the clutch worked. The third time I took the car in was on 4-19-2014 after I was almost hit by a car after going into traffic and the car began to sputter repeatedly for 10-15 seconds. The salesman said that there was nothing that the could do because that is how the car runs and it meets all federal guidelines. I am concerned that it shouldn't take someone losing their life for this situation to be resolved. I feel that this needs to be investigated before it truly becomes a deadly matter.
Harsh shifting of transmission, or other transmission shifting complaints/problems. Loss of power on initial take-off from a stop or from low speeds. The feeling of the transmission "slipping". harsh or delayed engagement of transmission "jerking" or "shuddering" upon take-off from a stop the more persons are in the car and A/C turned on, the worse the problem.
I purchased my 2013 Ford Fiesta from a dealership in may of 2013, in October of 2013, my not even 6 month old car, started to make grinding and crunching noises in the engine and the transmission was slipping. I called the dealership and took it in. They replaced the transmission and after 8 weeks, I picked it up. The noises were gone, but quickly came back a couple months later, I kept getting told it was normal, but it has gotten worse. I am trying to work with my dealership now to quickly get this resolved. I am also only getting 25 mpg.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that while driving and making a left turn, the speed suddenly decelerated and would not respond when depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission malfunctioned. The transmission computer was reprogrammed and no further information was provided to the contact regarding the repair. The contact stated that the vehicle continued to experience the defect after teh repairs. The manufacturer was notified and no solution was offered. The failure mileage was 6,500.
Bought my Fiesta new off of the lot in 2013. Transmission has always been loud. Called service center to report and was told that was normal for the type of transmission I had. Starting at about 15000 miles, car started to hesitate when trying to go into 1st gear. Also car sputters if trying to pick up speed for passing.
I pulled into a parking space, immediately put the car in reverse, still had my foot on the brake, started to move my foot to step on the gas and the car lurched forward. The lurch was strong enough to go over a speed bump. I was able to stop the car (it had gone approximately 10 feet). I put the car into drive and was able to drive forward out of the area. It started to do the same thing again yesterday but I was prepared for it and slammed down on the brake stopping it. Reverse is a long way from drive so I am not sure what is happening. I had the car into the dealer where I bought the car earlier because of the loud grinding noise coming from the front left side, first they told me it was a cable then they told me it was the transmission and nothing to worry about, that the noise was normal. Also the car rolls back on even the slightest incline and you have to keep your foot on the brake or you will hit the car behind you. The transmission does not seem to be operating correctly, slipping or something. I now have a note in the car and whenever I put it into reverse I am monitoring it because I would like to know exactly what is happening and at what point. It happened so quickly the first time that I was more in shock than anything else and just relieved that I was able to stop it and that it caused no damage to anyone or anything, even the car itself.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate from a complete stop, the vehicle hesitated and the transmission slipped. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was stated that the vehicle was functioning normally. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was not available.
Bought a 2013 Ford Fiesta brand new and I have had nothing but issues with it. It feels like something is getting caught when I try to accelerate and then when it does accelerate it jerks, and grinds and all sorts of other noises. When I am in stop-go traffic it feels like it is bouncing up and down and at points I am being jerked in my seat along with the car. Going up a hill is the worst of all because it makes noises and sounds/feels like it is going to stall- sometimes just trying to get up a hill feels like I am trying to drive through thick mud. I have taken it back to Ford several times and they tell me it is nothing. One time the lady who was scheduling the appointment told me that her car does it but it is normal and something that you have to get used to because of the transmission. When I get my sheet back after I have had it in the shop they barely and vaguely acknowledge how they checked the problem and state they couldn't find anything. There is no way that it is normal to be apprehensive when driving your brand new car because you are not sure that you are going to be able to accelerate in time to pull out into traffic.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Elmhurst, IL, USA