CarComplaints.com Notes: You should probably steer clear of the 2012 Focus. Otherwise, you might not be able to steer at all.
The 2012 is the first Focus to offer Electronic Power Assist Steering (EPAS). It's also the first year with massive power steering failure. These things are not mutually exclusive.
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.
While driving the vehicle on the highway in a 55mph speedzone, the transmission would not shift gears, and then my car would not go over 35 mph. After taking it into the dealership, they simply said I was "driving the car incorrectly" and performed some kind of software reboot. Now, when traveling around town, my car (which is an automatic) sputters when changing gears after it is stopped like at a stop sign, red light, or in stop-and-go traffic, or going up steeper hills. It acts like it is a manual transmission when a gear is missed or its being choked.
Can't reverse. Does not shift gears properly. Randomly stops sending power to the wheels. Rpms bounce rapidly (high and low). Has happened in intersections and highways, putting me and others in immediate danger.
Aggressive jerking when shifting at lower gears during acceleration (multiple times per week; first occurrence in 2012) sudden, but temporary, loss of power with RPM spike during highway driving (like shifting to neutral). Has occurred while accelerating and merging from an on-ramp and while driving at steady highway speeds (~1-2 events per month; first occurrence in 2016)
When driving my vehicle on the highway, if I attempt to speed up to pass another vehicle it will lurch violently. One time it lurched forward and then stalled. Fortunately I was in the right hand lane and could pull over to the shoulder without incident, had I been in the middle or left lane it might have been a different story.
- Amityville, NY, USA
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I made a right turn out of a parking lot, put my foot on the accelerator and my car would not go any faster. I pressed harder and harder on the accelerator and my car still wouldn't go any faster. I pulled off on a side street to get out of the traffic and put my car in park. I ran the shifter through the gears, put my car back in drive and it still would not go very fast. I turned around and headed back to my house and drove as fast as I could which was about 5 miles an hour. I went back into the parking lot and put my car in reverse and it would not go in reverse at all. I put it in park, again I ran it through the gears, put it in reverse and in would not go backwards still. This is not the first time I noticed problems with this transmission. I have brought this car back to the dealer twice because of the transmission and twice they have made repairs on the transmission. I have only owned this car since October 2018. Both times I had it back at the dealer they claim to have changed some module in the transmission but yet I go to my fordpass account and these repairs have yet to be documented by the Ford dealer. I find this rather strange like they know I need a new transmission but won't replace it. There have been more times that I was driving down the road and when I accelerated and the engine just revved up but my car wouldn't go any faster. I find all of the situations I have been in with this car to be very dangerous and I am lucky there hasn't been a major accident. I haven't even owned this car a year and I owe more on it than what it's even worth. I can't afford to just go buy another car and it doesn't seem like the Ford dealer wants to do anything about how dangerous it is. Please help me!
Multiple issues car disengaged from transmission when on highway. RPM shot way up but car not engaging to transmission. Had to pull over (coast) to side of highway with no power train. Required major dps6 replacement at Ford dealer in park city Utah initially when purchased car would roll backwards when in forward gear, the car still does this and will all roll forward when in backward gear. Car still constantly stutters when moving forward from stop. Jerking motions. I called Ford customer to complain and advised. They told me nothing could be done in 2012. I asked to put on record 'the car rolls backwards when in gear' when on any incline. There is children in my neighborhood! another complaint logged 2/22/17 1-800-392-3673 with Ford. The tcm was repaired and a complete transmission overhaul was done in sunnyvale ca.
Bought the 2012 Ford Focus used in 2016. It shuddered when entering the roadway after stopping and also when going uphill. Dealer said the car had to get used to me as a driver. After many complaints, they did something non-mechanical to adjust it. Reprogramming, maybe. Once it was out of its limited warranty, they said it needed a new clutch kit, which was $1500. The shuddering stopped. Last month, shortly after leaving my driveway, the car jerked forward and the check engine light came on. I pulled into a neighbor's driveway to turn around and go back home and it wouldn't go in reverse. Had it towed to the dealer. The tcm was replaced. This month, I pulled into my driveway, put the car in park, went to take the keys out of the ignition and saw a message that said the car was not in park. Ok. the engine was off, I could remove the keys from the ignition. The gear shift lever was in park. The dashboard display said the car was in drive. I took my foot off the brake and the car started drifting down the driveway. I put the parking brake on. The car would not start. Had it towed to the dealer. They said the shift linkage had come loose from socket. This is the worst car I've ever owned. There is no warning that a problem is about to occur. The car just ceases to function. I'm very lucky that I was in my driveway, or close to home when the car died both times. I'm afraid to drive this car and have 2 years left to pay it off.
When going up hill the transmission slips and motor revs up and down. At very low speed when pulling into uphill driveway the car lurches forward. When stopped on a small hill you can slowly let pressure of brake the car will drift backwards like it is in neutral. When first starting out of a parking position the car will speed up with out any change in throttle position.
My 2012 Ford Focus has had a transmission recall 3 times that I know of since I purchased it in 2012. 2 months after having the car it started stalling, stuttering and not accelerating. It was very scary to drive. I had the car serviced by the dealership 3 times for the same problem. Why are they selling these cars knowing the transmission is bad. Ive been having the same problem with this car for 7 years. It always seems like it is going to cut off while you are driving, it is not safe to drive because it is so unpredictable. My dealerdhip had a 30 day wait time to see my car. They are so busy repairing recalls. So now I have to rent a car while my car sits and wait. The car is paid off and I'm still giving Ford money to drive this car. It's over 100,000 miles on it and 7 years old. The repairs should be free since I've had the luxury of being inconvenienced over the past 7 years. Now here it is 2019 and I am having the exact same problem with this little Ford Focus of mine. People say that Ford stands for fix.or.repair.daily..... I now believe them. I want does to repair this problem under the extended warranty they gave me. I am so frustrated right now. I asked service to diagnose my car's problem and they say sure that will cost you $125 and then says we are the cheapest in town to diagnose. I said no thank you! I went to an auto parts store to have them diagnose my problem and it was free and it gave me a transmission friction a stuck on code P07A3. That is a power train problem. The transmission has issues. I purchased a lemon that does not have enough power to make lemonade😣😭😢😤😤😤😤😠😠.
My car shutters and shakes when I'm accelerating. Going from a dead stop is the worst. I've taken my car in and there is no resolution as of today. Ford knows of all of these issues and knew of them before my car was manufactured. My extended warranty runs out next month and will be on the hook for any future damages to my car.
Almost killed my self when lurched into intersection because clutch acted up, something it has done since night used. I trusted Ford, had no idea of transmission problems. Tranny has been done twice at Ford, no luck still bad. Mad as hell.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. While driving various speeds, the 'transmission overheating' message displayed and the vehicle would not properly accelerate. The vehicle was taken to Ford of ocala (2816 nw pine ave, ocala, fl) and the transmission control module was replaced. The failure was remedied, but eventually recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 80,000.
This car had multiple transmission issues and taken to Ford for expensive repairs that never sold the issues. The transmission would often hesitate when trying to accelerate. Other times it would leach forward while stoped. It was plagued with issues and after spending thousands at Ford with no resolution we sold the car so not to have to deal with it anymore.
Have been under a recall regarding the transmition on my 2012 Ford Focus for 7 years. Have been very patient dealing with the dealership. They've told me that the parts on back order, did a computer fix multiple times and told me to drive the car as is... stopped answering my calls etc... called Ford customer service multiple times and been told to go back to the dealership... called Ford customer service again today only to be told they will not stand behind their contracted dealer... I've been in multiple times too have it fixed and its been worse after each time. It's stuttering while driving, bunny hopping while accelerating, making grinding noises, it's almost impossible to drive up a steep hill due to this, is almost impossible to get into a freeway and get up to speed quickly enough to keep from getting hit. I've been rear ended due to the stutter... its not safe. Now after contacting Ford and the dealership for the hundredth time I'm told there's nothing they will do to fix this problem.
I own a 2012 Ford Focus SE that continues to display issues with the transmission. This includes delayed acceleration, jerking, and bucking. While I was driving on the freeway a couple of years ago the transmission control module failed resulting in the vehicle unable to shift properly. This endangered both my life and the lives of the other passengers in the vehicle. My Ford Focus has been in for service multiple times at different locations to include the dealership purchased from. The vehicle has been serviced both under the original warranty and the extended warranty and still displays issues with the transmission. I am having a hard time understanding why there is an extended warranty if even after I continue to explain what is happening with the vehicle the dealerships are not able to solve the problem. My concern is my safety and what Ford Motor Company plans to do. You ask for a date as to when this happened but it has been ongoing since I purchased the car in 2012. I look forward to hearing something other than the same lines I have heard for the past 7 years regarding my vehicle.
The 2012 Ford Focus has had transmission problems for years. We have taken the vehicle to the dealership numerous times only to have issues return in 6 to 10 months. There is no fix for this issue. This vehicle rolls backwards when stopped, shudders and shakes during acceleration, inability to move forward on an incline, and vibration during acceleration. When taking it in for repair I was told the warranty extended and there would be no worries about having the car fixed in the future. Unbeknownst to me this was the case until we reached 100,000 miles. We have felt trapped in this car due to the fact that it has limited value as a trade in or as scrap. Recently, the car would start but would not shift into gear. While on the road it would drop out of gear and the shift would be frozen. I would have to coast to the side of the road and through a series of turning the car off and on it would eventually work. Over the course of short trips (5 to 10 miles) we had this happen on several occasions over the course of our drive. The car was taken to a local car repair shop and they referred us to a Ford dealership. At this point we decided to invest no more into this automobile. It now sits in my driveway and cannot be driven on the road.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. While driving 45 mph, the vehicle stalled and would not restart. Also, the check engine indicator illuminated along with the gear that was selected. The vehicle was towed to the contact's home. The contact's father linked the vehicle up to his diagnostic machine, which indicated that the transmission needed to be reprogrammed. The contact called chenoweth Ford (1564 E pike St, clarksburg, wv 26301) and was informed that there was no recall for the failure; therefore, the contact would have to pay for the repair. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and did not assist. The failure mileage was 71,100.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Louisville, KY, USA