CarComplaints.com Notes: Even though the first model year of a major redesign should typically be avoided, Ford did a good job & the 2008 Ford Focus doesn't appear to have any major defects.
That said, the following model years of this 2nd generation Focus (2009-2011) do appear to be slightly better.
2.9
hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
49,578 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
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.
The contact owns a 2008 Ford Focus. While attempting to close the front driver side door, the door failed to latch. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the latch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown. Updated 10/05/16 updated 12/06/2017
Door latches continue to have problems. We have had them repaired by dealer twice now and the rear door latches are broken again now for the third time! this is a serious safety concern since rear passengers cannot quickly or safely exit vehicle in case of emergency!
Driver door latch reinforcement. 2001-present ? many failures thin pot-metal piece that operates door latch fails possibly hindering emergency workers from accessing occupant.
The contact owns a 2008 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the rear driver and passenger side door handles fractured and the rear doors could not be opened from the exterior of the vehicle. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer where the dealer stated that the door latch needed to be replaced. The contact did not replace any of the door latches. The failure mileage was 96,000.
The contact owns a 2008 Ford Focus. The contact stated the doors latches began sticking making unable to be opened. The contact took the vehicle to a dealer who replaced the door latch but that did not correct the failure. The contact had continuously taken the vehicle to the dealer to have the latch replaced. The contact called the manufacturer regarding the latch and was informed to lubricate the latches, but that has not remedied the failure. The manufacturer also informed the contact that since the road was made of gravel it could also have caused the latches to fail. The contact stated that if a child was left inside the vehicle it would be impossible to get to get inside the vehicle and the only option was to break the window. The contact stated that the failure was a safety concern. Updated 10/25/10
- Floodwood, MN, USA
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The contact owns a 2008 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the door latches were sticking which made unable to be opened. The contact took the vehicle to a dealer and they replaced the door latches but that did not remedy the issue. The contact had continuously taken the vehicle to the dealer to have the latches replaced. The contact called the manufacturer regarding the latches and they informed the contact to lubricate the latches but that has not remedied the issue. The manufacturer also informed the contact that the gravel road can also cause the door latches to fail. The contact stated if a child is left inside the vehicle it's impossible to get in the vehicle and the only option is to break the window. The contact stated this is a safety issue and the manufacturer needs to do something about it. Updated 10/21/10. Updated 10/25/10
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Brown Deer, WI, USA