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CarComplaints.com Notes: Ford changed a lot of things for its 3rd generation, just none of them were a good idea.

The transmission tends to hesitate and jerk when accelerating. The new electronically-driven power steering can fail suddenly and without warning. Even Ford's SYNC can be a headache. Actually, scratch that last one — it's always been a headache.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
14 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
8 / 1
Average Mileage:
37,884 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.

2013 Ford Focus drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2013 Ford Focus Owner Comments (Page 16 of 51)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #713

Jul 052019

Focus

  • 149,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Vehicle was in motion on highway when the transmission lost all power and I could not accelerate, happened in a construction zone and put my safety at an extreme risk. Vehicle also shudders when accelerating every time and sometimes begins to accelerate as I am coming to a stop while my foot is off of the gas pedal.

- Racine, WI, USA

problem #712

Aug 252015

Focus

  • miles
Since we bought our 2014 Ford Focus it has had a "bucking"with the transmission also when I have accelerated hard to move into traffic it will act like its in nuetral then slam into gear when we took our car in for a recal it was brought up to the service clerk and we were told its what they do and there was nothing they could do our car is now out of warranty

- Inwood, WV, USA

problem #711

Apr 302018

Focus

  • 84,000 miles
Car simply stalls randomly while in motion, streets or highway. Transmission shakes randomly while accelerating mainly while shifting from 1st to 2nd gear, mainly in city streets car apparently goes to neutral great randomly while the stick is in drive position, both city streets and highway.

- Auburn Hills, MI, USA

problem #710

Apr 012017

Focus

  • 20,391 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Brakes are erratic, often feels as if car may not brake in time then shudders on acceleration, slips, jerks, hesitates, suffers delayed accelerstion, delays in downshifting. Stalled just after turning at an intersection, engine simply did not switch on. Electrical circuit drained battery. Inaccurate fuel gauge indication / distance to empty, high fuel consumption.

- Naples, FL, USA

problem #709

Oct 222017

Focus 4-cyl

  • 112,000 miles
The contact owned a 2013 Ford Fusion. The contact stated while driving at 45 mph, the vehicle began to shake and the contact stopped the vehicle. As she began to drive again, the vehicle began to stall and was hit by another vehicle. The air bags deployed upon impact and the vehicle was destroyed. The contact had minor injuries, however, the other driver claimed to be injured but her injuries were not disclosed. An ambulance went to the scene and treated the contact and the other driver was taken to the emergency room. A police report was filed. There was no diagnose given for the vehicle failure. Al serra auto plaza 6167 saginaw rd, grand blanc, mi 48439 (810) 694-5600 and the manufacturer were made aware of the failure; a recall had been associated with this vehicle's VIN; NHTSA campaign number 18V735000 (fuel system, gasoline). In addition, the contact mentioned that the vehicle was taken on 6 occasions to 3-4 different dealers where the vehicle hesitates while driving and stalls was said to be a normal function of the vehicle. The contact also mentioned that the failure occurred on several occasions. The failure mileage was 112,000.

- Grand Blanc, MI, USA

problem #708

Jul 192016

Focus

  • 77,000 miles
I took my vehicle in for service at my local Ford dealership due to the transmission shuddering and not accelerating while driving and informed my advisor the transmission is now slipping more often, unexpectedly and more severely and is becoming a real danger while acceleration. This is another instance of several that I have had to have the transmission recalibrated or clutch replaced. During this occasion, I was told the parts needed to be ordered and would be another 6-8 months before the transmission can be serviced and fixed due to having no parts. I don't want to put my 6 month old daughter in danger by driving the car and since the car. When asked for a loaner car until the parts come in I was told Ford could not do that and my only remedy was to wait for the parts to come in. After escalating the issue to Ford leadership through email, my transmission was serviced within the week. However the transmission still shudders and slips upon acceleration.

- Howell, MI, USA

problem #707

Jul 162019

Focus

  • 70,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Daily occurrence. It speeds up on it's own. It loses power in intersections and while merging. It sometimes doesn't respond to attempted acceleration. It shutters so bad, and I can't predict what it will do. It's been happening for years, and the dealership says Ford has no long term fix. I was almost hit.multiple times because it stopped accelerating. I almost hit others multiple times because it accelerated on its own. It's been happening since 17000 miles when I bought it.

- Millersburg, PA, USA

problem #706

Jun 182014

Focus

  • miles
The engine and transmission stutter when taking off.

- Frederick, MD, USA

problem #705

Aug 062018

Focus

  • 44,615 miles
When trying to accelerate from a stop, there is a major hesitation/lag. Experience shuttering when accelerating from a stop. Engine revs, but transmission will not engage. Stalled in middle of an intersection when tcm failed. Multiple occasions. All paper work has been attached. Tcm replaced and clutch replaced many times.

- Yorkana, PA, USA

problem #704

Jun 042019

Focus

  • 70,000 miles
I have had to take my vehicle to the shop many times because the transmission surges and loses power. The dealer says they just reset the computer. But a few days later the issues return. Then the dealer says there is nothing wrong. The issues continue. I am afraid that I will get hit in an intersection because the car loses forward drive.

- Walls, MS, USA

problem #703

Oct 152018

Focus 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 64,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. While driving approximately 65-70 mph, the vehicle independently shifted into neutral without warning. The contact was unable to place the gear shift back into the drive position. The vehicle was towed to beach Ford (located at 2177 Virginia beach boulevard, Virginia beach, va 23452, 855-802-4534) where it was diagnosed that the power train control module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 57,714. The VIN was not available. Consumer 25 Jan 2018 car not shifting properly. New clutch assembly installed under warranty at 42,930 miles by beach Ford, 2717 virgnia beach blvd, Virginia beach, va 23452 mileage at time of incident was 57,714 the VIN is listed above. This is the 2nd transmission repair completed on this vehicle. The first repair was the replacement of the clutch assembly because of poor shifting. This was done under warranty on 25 January 2018 at beach Ford in Virginia beach, va. The mileage at that time was 42,930. One final note. Many articles written about these transmission problems consistently cite no imminent danger caused when the car goes into neutral since the vehicle can still steer to the side of the road. However, the sudden loss of power caused by the shift into neutral could be catastrophic in a passing or maneuvering situation. These transmissions are terrible.

- Fort Eustis, VA, USA

problem #702

Apr 012017

Focus

  • miles
Car was sold to me from drive time, I went back and forth with for service many of times with slipping transmission issues. I had to do a repossession on the car do to Ford not wanting to buy it back I have documentation of all this.

- Farmville, VA, USA

problem #701

Jun 172019

Focus

  • 74,000 miles
Dps6 transmission shutter has been attempted to be repaired 4 times. Was told the last time that it should be a permanent fix. It's starting to shutter yet again. Every time I'm told it's okay and have to fight to get it repaired. This worries me as entering a highway via on ramp when you need to build up speed and it shutters it can be very dangerous.

- Wells, ME, USA

problem #700

May 252016

Focus

  • 28,114 miles
My vehicle uses the dps6 automatic transmission. I have had software updates applied twice, and the clutches replaced twice (May 2016, October 2018). I have also had the transmission control module replaced once (April 2017). All of this has been under an extended warranty, but I am concerned about the future, when the extended warranty runs out. At the moment, the transmission is behaving normally. After the last set of clutches were installed, I was instructed to "drive like a 16 year old". that is: To drive aggressively, to prevent the problem from happening again. Doing so would mean I would be unable to achieve the mpg anywhere close to what the car was advertised as achieving. My answer to the "when did this happen?" question is the date of the first replacement of the clutches.

- Plymouth, MI, USA

problem #699

Mar 152019

Focus

  • 12,000 miles
Vehicle has repeatedly had transmission issues coming in a variety of forms. At times I will be unable to accelerate, with my pedal to the floor, while the car seems to 'coast' and with no explanation. Other times I have had the vehicle's alert lights come on with a warning the transmission has overheated and to pull over 'immediately.' This is difficult to do when on a 55 mph zone or on the highway; the inability to accelerate has led to multiple incidences pulling into traffic or attempting to merge where vehicles have had to swerve or stop because I am in their way. In daily driving, there is a constant shudder that makes me believe the vehicle will fail at any moment. This vehicle was the daily driver of my wife and we were forced to lease another vehicle because she did not feel safe. It has been in for a multitude of repairs and requires more. However, no dealership is able to schedule an appointment or provide a loaner, even though it is supposed to be a covered repair. I exceeded my warranty to have it entirely covered simply because no dealer could schedule me. The problems began in 2013 and have persisted since, to this date. The most recent safety-related matter occurred on a winding two lane road a month ago where there was nowhere to pull over safely and the car threatened to shut down due to the transmission overheating

- Waterford, MI, USA

problem #698

Oct 012018

Focus

  • 70,000 miles
When starting from a stopped point the car sometimes struggles to go. Sometimes while driving the vehicle shuddders for shifting.

- Lancaster, PA, USA

problem #697

Jan 222019

Focus

  • 80,000 miles
"takata recall" initially the car started shaking and making terrible noises. After parking it, the car would not go into reverse. It was towed to a "dealer" facility where they did some "repairs" on the transmission.....$600. The car was transferred to me and I have experienced a loss of forward power several times. After a short wait period it will start. I have been involved in an accident.....pulled onto the 4 lane one way highway and lost power....bam. The car also has the "shudder" issue while idling.. it feels like the engine will stall.

- Harrison Township, MI, USA

problem #696

Jun 152013

Focus

  • 50 miles
Continued problems with transmission shake and shudder during acceleration for a stopped positions, such as red lights, stop signs etc. Also shake and shudder when accelerating coming out of a left or right turn. Shake or shudder most troublesome when trying to accelerate quickly to merge on a busy road with a short access/ramp. It has been occurring since I purchased the car in 2013. Dealer says they have "tried " "software updates" but no improvement or changes, noticed.

- Brighton, MI, USA

problem #695

Jul 012019

Focus

  • 74,000 miles
Transmission does not accelerate at times and disengages during driving. Tranmission does not shift properly has shaking condition when starting from a stop.

- Royal Oak, MI, USA

problem #694

Jul 022019

Focus

  • 95,000 miles
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. While driving various speeds, the vehicle lost acceleration and stalled without warning. The contact drove to jones Ford (5757 rivers ave, North charleston, SC 29406, (843) 744-3311) where it was diagnosed that the clutch needed replacing. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 95,000. The VIN was unknown.

- Hardeeville, SC, USA

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