CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2015 Ford Focus & its "Powershift" transmission has a defect trend where the car shudders when accelerating, especially when starting uphill.
Most owners have reported their Ford Focus remains driveable while the vehicle is still at low mileage, but the shuddering is annoying & unpleasant & may reduce the resale value of the vehicle.
However, owners of higher-mileage vehicles from earlier 3rd generation Focus model years report transmission failure & a host of other major & expensive transmission-related problems. Potential buyers beware.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 3
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
26,930 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 transmission system, specifically the clutch assembly, failed or malfunctioned. The Ford dealership conducted a diagnostic test and determined that the clutch assembly needed repair. To manage costs, I had the repair performed at AAMCO. Despite this repair, the issue was not resolved, and AAMCO later found metal shavings in the transmission fluid, suggesting internal transmission damage. Yes, the vehicle and its transmission system are available for inspection upon request. The malfunctioning clutch and potential transmission damage pose significant safety risks. A failing clutch can lead to the inability to change gears properly, which can cause the vehicle to stall or lose power unexpectedly while driving. This could result in a loss of control, increasing the risk of an accident, especially in high-traffic situations or on highways. Furthermore, the presence of metal in the transmission fluid suggests that there might be further internal damage that could lead to sudden transmission failure, further endangering the driver, passengers, and other road users. Yes, the problem has been confirmed by two different service centers. Initially, the Ford dealership diagnosed the issue as a stuck clutch and replaced the clutch assembly, but this did not fix the problem. Subsequently, AAMCO inspected the vehicle and identified metal in the transmission fluid, indicating a more severe transmission issue. Both these findings confirm that there is a persistent problem with the vehicle-??s transmission system. Yes, the vehicle was inspected by a Ford dealership (the manufacturer-??s representative), who diagnosed the clutch issue and performed the initial repair. Additionally, the vehicle was inspected by an independent service center (AAMCO), which identified metal in the transmission fluid, indicating internal transmission damage. There has been no inspection by the police or insurance representatives at this time.
I bought a brand new Ford Fusion in 2015 at Planet Ford Dallas. Since then, I have had my car maintained regularly at this dealership. However, my car has recently showed symptoms of intermittent loss of transmission. Then, I made an appointment on Aug. 19, 2024 and showed the recall letter to the dealership to request an inspection, but the rep refused to take a look at it, saying there were 20 people ahead of me and said the wait time for fixing TCM (the transmission control module) problem was at least three or four months. On Aug. 20, 2024, I called Ford Customer Relationship Center but could not fix this issue. I am very angry and frustrated because I trust Ford and its dealership will take good care of my car whenever I have my car maintained there. I believe fixing recalls is mandatory, so Planet Ford Dallas should fix it for me voluntarily. Why did they not notify me about this TCM problem and fixed it for me in the first place whenever they serviced my car in the past 9 years? If they had found this problem, I would not have to worry about the possibility of my car breaking down in the middle of the road anytime, not to mention the possibility of a car accident. Ford company should monitor its dealerships whether they fix Ford Recalls and if Ford customers still experience some problems because this is an issue of passenger's safety. Also, Ford company should notify Planet Ford Dallas about its poor performance and poor customer's satisfaction. If all dealerships work like this one, no customer will want to buy any Ford cars any more just like me.
It was mainly the clutch, apparently, but the work order includes a lot more. Yes, it is available for inspection. The car was difficult to control. It was slipping and was having trouble getting into gear. I was driving on a winding mountainess road, parts of it are along a cliff with a reservoir/lake below. Just my usual drive to work here in the Sierras. It go's without saying that others were put at risk since the car was difficult to handle. Yes, the car needs a new clutch and other stuff to the tune of $5,000 up. The car has less than 80,000 miles on it and has had two transmission replacements and a prior clutch replaced a little over a year and a half ago. I was unaware of these prior problems as the car was purchased by me one year and a month ago. The Ford Corporation was part of a class action suit and it was settled a few years ago, unfortunately, I did not own this 2015 Ford Focus at the time. No, the car has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, insurance representative. But, yes, by a Ford Dealership mechanic here in Sonora, California. The extended warranty for the clutch has expired on this car not that long ago. The extended warranty for the transmission has not expired. I wonder if the problem is the transmission since the transmission light came on but then I would'nt have to pay them anything. The independant garages around here won't work on this car. The first time the car engine light came on the car died. I went to the nearest repair shop and they put in a new battery but that was not the problem. So, the next day I'm driving to work on the winding mountainous road and a light came on, it said transmission overheating.
In August 2023 Focus would not accelerate smoothly while in traffic. Check engine light turned on. Vehicle would not go into reverse. Diagnostic scan negative with personal scanner. Took to transmission shop. Actuators replaced per diagnostic check $880. TCM ok. Slipping on acceleration continued with RPM to between 5-6 on acceleration. Took vehicle back to shop and actuators resynched with TCM. I received Ford Recall for defective TCM module dated September 2023. Ford evaluated by local Ford repair shop. Diagnostics performed. Recommendation was to replace clutch assembly $4100. Was charged $200 for diagnostics. Ford diagnostic report states: Description-U0073 Control module communication bus A off Failure type-88 Bus off Status-28 (Not current DTC) *Fault previously detected, not currently present* My concern with this info is if the fault was detected there is still fault! Am concerned that the faulty TCM and actuators caused issues with the clutch assembly and do not feel safe operating my 8 year old Ford due to skipping while accelerating in traffic. Vehicle one owner with 70,000 miles. No accidents and am young senior driver-age [XXX]. I can forward repair shop documentation. Thank you for your review and look forward to your recommendation. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Transmission had randomly started to jerk and then stopped accelerating. Left me stranded on the side of the road on a 5 hour trip and when I turned it off and back on it would move very little and I could hear grinding noise from the gears. I had to get a tow truck which cost me 1.5 k to tow back to my house
I bought my car off of a friend who bought it pre-owned certified from a local ford dealer. The car had 59,000 miles on it and had the transmission already replaced by ford (the second transmission on the vehicle under 60,000). After having the vehicle a year I was driving home and the clutch in the transmission got stuck and the car would jolt me forward and when I would come to a complete stop it would skip me forward and jolt me, I also experienced the car not being able to move uphill. My situation was very dangerous and happened all of a sudden with no warning signs of a check engine light or symptoms of the car before. If I didn-??t stop so far away from the other vehicles at stop lights I could have been very easily pushed into another vehicle, as well as other vehicles possibly hitting me when my car could not shift into gear. I was extremely disappointed due to the fact my car was at 80,000 miles and the transmission in the vehicle had already been replaced once before, this is also not a cheap fix and costed me close to $2,800. The transmission shop that fixed my issue told me this is the most common issue with the 2015 Ford Focus and that he-??s repaired multiple with the same issue at moderate/low mileage.
This car was previously recalled for issues with the clutch. After -??repairing-?? the clutch the issue has returned. Dealer refuses to pay for repairs as the repair warranty has -??expired-??
I-??ve been having issues with my automatic clutch transmission since I-??ve bought this vehicle. There has been numerous repairs done but the company tells me they aren-??t responsive on covering another. It causes the car to jerk when accelerating aggressively and has almost caused a wreck. It has been confirmed by the dealership. No warning signs with this. First started to appear a few months after buying the vehicle and then upon repair the issue would return I few months after the fact and the dealership would not help.
Service engine soon light came on, repair shop said I needed a tune up and could still drive ok. Broke down. Got that done and still engine light on so transmission fluid changed too. Now repair shop says it-??s the transmission and clutch assembly that the dealer recalled and fixed a few years ago. I-??m stuck with payments still and no way to get the $5000 the dealer days it will cost to fix this. Car value is the same. Everyone I-??ve talked to has said this is a bad year-??s model and will continue to break down even after fixing. Can you offer any advice? Thank you!
2015 Ford Focus, 67,000 miles would jerk, shudder & shut off completely, it would not accelerate or reverse half of the time. Stops in the middle of no wear.. the engine light would come on for a few days then go off and come up again.. the music stopped working& the RPM-??s would go pass the 6,7 or 8 at only 10-15 miles & jerk while goin forward.. a safety problem would pop up -?? transmission overheating stop safety -?? my air would blow hot some days and it would smell like something burning.. confirmed by dealership it-??s the clutch.. no warnings for these problems besides jerking / not accelerating at a reasonable speed and safety problem stating to -?? stop safely transmission overheating -?? &a burning smell & 2 safety recalls for the clutch & TCM with extended warranty. Warranty would not cover for the clutch problem they stated.
My car I believe is transmission problem I just paid Ford to fix my car for $784 do to the care just completely stopped while driving and it shut down while driving and wouldn't restart. I have the receipt showing what the problem was suppose to be. Now 3 weeks later while driving the car I noticed it loses speed while driving and sound as if it want to cut off. I have a code popping up as PO3A7. I don't understand when my car was diagnosis this didn't pick up I'm thinking ford have know of the different problems with the engine or transmission and its began to be at the expense of the customers.
After getting gas my 2015 ford focus takes several times to start after getting gas & lugs/spitters when taking off. It has also dies at red lights & stop signs, & even while driving a few times, it starts back up but won't go & the more you push gas, the faster it dies. Then, out of the blue, it'll just start running fine again. This happens often & it's very scary & dangerous & costly as well. It also has a problem with something killing the battery even when the car is parked through the night. This may be 2 separate issues, but both are concerning & have stranded me numerous times for hours at a time. And the stalling issue has almost gotten my mother, my baby, and myself killed several times by stalling in traffic.
Smells like gas especially after adding fuel and when idling with either defrost or heat on. Causes head ache, shortness of breath, blurred vision, light headed, and fainting while operating vehicle. I was lucky I fainted while stopped at a red light so the driver in the vehicle next to me assumed i had over dosed called 911 but when he came to see if i had a pulse and to turn my vehicle off he noticed the oder as he was opening the door and i came to so he told 911 operator i was not over dosing.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Washington, DC, USA