2012 Ford Focus
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Power train is the leading concern among 3,801 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the highest complaint count among 19 Focus model years with reports.
Of the 2012 reports, 108 involved a crash and 15 involved a fire. 88 people were injured and 5 people died.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Fuel system, gasoline, storage, evaporative emissions, canisterJun 9, 2026
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012-2018 Focus vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under recall number 18V735. The Canister Purge Valve (CPV) may malfunction, causing the engine to stall unexpectedly while driving.
An engine that stalls while driving increases the risk of a crash.
Dealers will update the powertrain control module (PCM) software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 29, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S40. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on July 6,2026.
Campaign 26V369000 on NHTSA.gov
Latches/locks/linkages, doors, latchJun 8, 2020
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2011-2014 Fiesta, 2013-2014 Fusion, 2015 Mustang, 2013-2015 Escape and C-Max, 2012-2015 Focus, 2014-2016 Transit Connect, 2013-2014 Lincoln MKZ, and 2015 MKC vehicles. These vehicles were previously recalled and repaired under recalls 15V-246, 16V-643 or 17V-210, however the repair may not have been completed properly. A component within the door latches may break making the doors difficult to latch and/or leading the driver or a passenger to believe a door is securely closed when, in fact, it is not.
A door that is not securely latched could open while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the latch date codes to confirm if the repair was done correctly, and replace the side door latches if necessary, free of charge. Owners will also have the option to inspect their own vehicle's door latches and enter the date codes into a website to determine if the latches are correct. Owner notification letters were mailed on July 27, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S30.
Campaign 20V331000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, storageJul 5, 2019
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012 and 2017 Focus vehicles equipped with 2.0L GDI gasoline engines and 2013-2014 Focus ST vehicles equipped with 2.0L GTDI engines, previously recalled under 18V-735. The affected vehicles did not have the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) updated as intended. Therefore, the Canister Purge Valve (CPV) may malfunction, possibly causing excessive vacuum in the fuel vapor management system.
The excessive vacuum may result in an engine stall while driving, without warning and without the ability to restart the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Powertrain Control Module. Dealers will also check for fault codes and replace the CPV as needed. If the CPV is replaced, dealers will inspect and replace the carbon canister, fuel tank and fuel delivery module as necessary. The recall began July 29, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S22.
Campaign 19V515000 on NHTSA.gov
Fuel system, gasoline, storageOct 22, 2018
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012-2018 Ford Focus vehicles with a 2.0L GDI or 2.0L GTDI engine. The Canister Purge Valve (CPV) may malfunction, possibly causing excessive vacuum in fuel vapor management system.
The excessive vaccuum may result in an engine stall while driving, without warning and without the ability to restart the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Powertrain Control Module. Dealers will also check for fault codes and replace the CPV as needed. If the CPV is replaced, dealers will inspect and replace the carbon canister, fuel tank and fuel delivery module as necessary. The recall began August 19, 2019. Owners may contact Ford Customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S32. Note: Until the vehicle is serviced for this concern, owners are advised to keep the fuel tank at least halfway full.
Campaign 18V735000 on NHTSA.gov
Latches/locks/linkages, doors, latchSep 6, 2016
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2012-2015 Ford Focus, 2013-2015 Ford Escape and Ford C-MAX, 2015 Lincoln MKC and Ford Mustang, and 2014-2016 Ford Transit Connect vehicles. A component within the door latches may break, preventing the doors from latching and/or leading the driver or a passenger to believe a door is securely closed when, in fact, it is not.
A door that is not securely latched could open while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the door latches with an improved part, free of charge. The recall began on January 27, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16S30.
Campaign 16V643000 on NHTSA.gov
Exterior lightingAug 1, 2013
Ford is recalling certain model year 2012-2013 Focus BEV vehicles equipped with High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights, manufactured September 15, 2011, through May 6, 2013; and model year 2013 Focus ST vehicles equipped with High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights, manufactured February 16, 2012, through May 7, 2013. Due to a wiring incompatability, the front side marker lamps may not function. Thus, these vehicles fail to comply to the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Without the proper illumination of the side maker lamps, the vehicle may be less visible in night time conditions, increasing the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will modify the headlamp assembly wiring, free of charge. The recall began on August 16, 2013. Owners may contact the Ford customer relationship center at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's recall number is 13C04.
Campaign 13V335000 on NHTSA.gov
EquipmentOct 2, 2012
This recall involves aftermarket parts sold by Yakima Products, Inc. for use on model year 2012 and 2013 Ford Focus vehicles. This recall is being conducted by Yakima, not by Ford. Certain combined Q-Tower and Q128 Clip rooftop rack systems, part numbers 8000124 and 8000728, do not fully contact the door frame.
Without proper contact of the rooftop rack clip to the door frame, there is insufficient clamping pressure and friction. The system may slide off the vehicle when loaded with accessories, possibly becoming a road hazard to other vehicles or causing injury to pedestrians.
Yakima will notify owners, and Yakima or a Yakima dealer will refund the purchase of the Q-Tower and Q-128 Clip system. There is no replacement system available for the 2012-2013 model year Ford Focus. The safety recall began on October 15, 2012. Only vehicles equipped with the vehicle rack system are affected. This recall is being conducted by Yakima, not Ford. Owners may contact Yakima at 1-888-925-4621.
Campaign 12E035000 on NHTSA.gov
Visibility, windshield wiper/washer, switch/wiringApr 5, 2012
FORD IS RECALLING CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2012 FOCUS VEHICLES MANUFACTURED FROM AUGUST 1, 2010, THROUGH OCTOBER 18, 2011. A SEAL IN THE WIRING HARNESS CONNECTOR TO THE PASSENGER SIDE WIPER MOTOR MAY BE MISSING.
WATER OR OTHER CONTAMINANTS MAY ACCUMULATE IN THE CONNECTOR, RESULTING IN AN INTERMITTENT OR INOPERATIVE PASSENGER SIDE WIPER MOTOR, REDUCING VISIBILITY AND INCREASING THE RISK OF A CRASH.
FORD WILL NOTIFY OWNERS, AND DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND AS NECESSARY, CLEAN AND PROPERLY SEAL THE PASSENGER SIDE WIPER MOTOR CONNECTOR. ANY INOPERATIVE WIPER MOTORS WILL BE REPLACED. THIS SERVICE WILL BE PROVIDED FREE OF CHARGE. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON MAY 21, 2012. OWNERS MAY CONTACT THE FORD MOTOR COMPANY CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP CENTER AT 1-866-436-7332.
Campaign 12V149000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: other or unspecified
359 reports, newest first. Show all
Other or unspecified, Fuel/propulsion system, Aug 19, 2026
My complaint is for serious safety concerns on my 2012 Ford Focus and the handling of recall 18S32 and 26S40 by Ford Motor Company. My fuel tank is visibly deformed in the exact strap area described in the recall, and I have physical proof and photographs confirming this. On XXX, a Ford technician found deformation during dispatch by local dealer to complete Recall 26S40. When I brought the vehicle to Viva Ford in [XXX], service manager and his master tech confirmed problem. They began avoiding the repair of course. Called Ford and they gave the same horrible customer service. Insistent that there were no recalls. Escalated to BBB and Ford had the audacity to simply reply that because there were no open recalls they would not be moving forward with a repair. Ford issued recall because many Focus vehicles were incorrectly marked as “repaired” by recall 18S32 years ago and they were actually never even repaired at all. Ford has publicly acknowledged these “phantom fixes.” While 26S40 is only a software patch, it does not eliminate eligibility for a tank replacement. In fact, in the service manager at the dealership even sent me official Ford literature which I will attach that states a claim can be made for related repairs needed that stemmed from these original recalls. Because the original software fix was never properly applied, my canister purge valve likely stuck open for years, causing the tank deformation that falls directly under recall 18S32 and the subsequent 26S40 where the Service Manager and Master Technician have confirmed my problem. I have never received a fuel‑tank recall repair, yet my tank is deformed and unsafe because it can fall off from my vehicle while in motion and cause me to stall abruptly. This is the safety issue at hand. Both Ford and Viva Ford dealership are refusing to repair it despite evidence and recall criteria that match my vehicle’s condition. I am appalled at their avoidance to fix my problem. Thank you. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Steering, Vehicle speed control, Other or unspecified, Jul 25, 2026
The TCU/TCM has been going in and out of control. Sometimes it will work then others it will shut off. Speedometer won’t work, power steering won’t work, cruise control won’t work, etc. and when you do the transmission reset for it, it won’t work at all.
Other or unspecified, Engine, Jul 11, 2026
On XXX I received email from CARFAX regarding my vehicle recall "26S40 PCM REPROGRAMMING FOR FUEL TANK DEFORMATION”. I contacted Ford Cutter Hawaii answering spoke with [XXX] over the phone regarding the recall, she asked me to forward the email then she after she read the email she dismissed the information as not reliable as it came from Carfax. She will only follow up if I got recall notice in the mail. XXX my car stalled in the middle of freeway and got towed. At the time the reading of fuel is low but not empty. The car started and only run for 1-2 seconds before it died again. That is very similar symptoms described in the recall information: "Safety Risk THIS MAY RESULT IN AN ENGINE STALL WHILE DRIVING WITHOUT WARNING OR WITHOUT THE ABILITY TO RESTART AND CAN INCREASE THE RISK OF A CRASH.” End of complain. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Other or unspecified, Jun 20, 2026
Group 1 Ford of South Austin, TX refused to perform door latch recall unless we purchased additional parts and service out of pocket. The door will not latch and flies open even at slow speeds.
Other or unspecified, Jun 16, 2026
Vehicle stalls while driving at low speeds and during acceleration. The engine loses power unexpectedly in traffic and may shut off completely while in motion. RPMs increase without corresponding acceleration and the vehicle fails to shift or respond normally. Check engine light is on with fuel/emissions-related codes. Fuel gauge is inaccurate and vehicle has unexpectedly run out of fuel even when gauge showed remaining fuel. The vehicle also hesitates, jerks, and feels unstable when stopping or turning. These issues have been present since shortly after purchase and have continued for approximately one year. Vehicle is unsafe to operate due to risk of stalling in traffic.
Other or unspecified, Jun 12, 2026
For months in 2025 the car fan would continue to run for several minutes after the engine was turned off. I took the car in a two times to diagnose and couldn’t replicate . I sent video of the fan running even after short trips and in cold weather. Finally after catastrophic cooling system failure was the faulty fan module diagnosed. It was a safety issue because cooling failure causes car to stop operating properly. I was returning from the airport so the engine was cold. After a massive bill did the cooling fan module get diagnosed and replaced on May 16. There were not any safety recalls for faulty fan module. Hopefully this is reimbursable and others can have a safety recall.
Other or unspecified, Apr 12, 2026
The Powershift for the transmission is the issue. Got two notices about a software update and followed through with updates. When done my Ford dealership said they couldn’t do anything else and that I was just going to be like it was. I never received any more recalls or even a Class Action letter! I recently called Ford motor headquarters and they found my information and could not confirm any additional recalls to me or the class action letter that was sent to me and said that they would NOT DO anything for me! No goodwill — Thisissue from this area continues and I very concerned for my safety! Need help.
Steering, Other or unspecified, Jul 3, 2025
The Power Steering shut down suddenly while I was driving it. I am [XXX], and certainly did NOT have the power to turn the wheel like it needed. If there had been fast moving traffic at that time, I could have been hit and severely injured, Why hasn't this been recalled yet? The problem has been confirmed by an independent service center. I had to go there when my power steering intermittently came back on because it was only 6 blocks away from my house and I didn't dare try to drive it to a ford dealer which was 12 miles away. I'm not positive about the light coming on, but I believe I saw a circle with an "i" inside of it I was too stressed to notice completely, when I was trying to control my car. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Power train, Other or unspecified, Jun 16, 2025
Unknown
Other or unspecified, May 17, 2025
Transmission problem
Other or unspecified, Apr 29, 2025
TCM needs replaced. Car does not have reverse, stalls and overheating.
Other or unspecified, Engine, Forward collision avoidance, Apr 3, 2025
The TCM on the transmission needs fixed they said i could get a rental car.
Other or unspecified, Nov 25, 2024
Brought into Ford dealership for recalls to be done and when I picked my car up, no recalls were performed
Power train, Vehicle speed control, Other or unspecified, Aug 23, 2024
On highway with my 18 month old and as a cat merged on ramp I signaled and moved to left lane. I had to move and quickly so that another fast car would not hit me in the rear end where my baby was seated in car seat. In only the 3 seconds I had to make decision which hit would be better for me and my child, my car stuck in the lower gears and I could not speed up to move out of way or pass vehicle parallel my car was losing speed rather than gaining when I pushed in gas to floor
Other or unspecified, Aug 13, 2024
UNKNOWN. I am aware of at least 2 recalls on my vehicle and took it to Long McArthur in Salina to have the recalls fixed in late summer 2023. As of this date, Long McArthur has not notified me the parts have come in to fix the recalls properly and I am still driving unsafely with many check engine lights on constantly and my vehicle making odd sounds. In summer 2023, Long McArthur said the parts were hard to come by and on back order and told me to highly consider buying a new vehicle.
Power train, Other or unspecified, Jul 12, 2024
There’s a recall for my transmission but my clutch which is also the cause of my transmission failing and overheating and also stopping in its own in the middle of traffic is a major safety issue that Ford says they don’t have a program for and stated that they can’t fix my transmission due to in the recall it doesn’t mention clutch being repaired. I have the paperwork stating that I need my transmission rebuilt but Ford couldn’t do it due to the clutch not being in the recall but of course I was out of $200 just to get a diagnosis and risk the chance of driving to the Ford company and back home to get my car diagnosed which my car stopped on me once going to the Ford dealership and had to pull to the side due to transmission overheating safety popping up on my dash and saying wait 5 minutes. Today 7/12/24 after picking my car up from Ford I had to manually reset my transmission in order to drive back home which is what I’ve been previously doing every since having this problem my car dash alerted me that my transmission was overheating within driving it for only 2 minutes and just automatically shut down on me in the middle of the intersection. There’s no way for me to put my hazard lights on due to car shutting I had to hurry up and jump out of my car to direct traffic to go around me. Had to wait at least 10 minutes then reset my transmission and tried driving back home but again my car shut off without warning me this time. I feel like Ford isn’t any help when it comes to an issue like this cause this really is a safety issue what if the car behind he wasn’t paying any attention and crashed my rear end even though they’ll be at fault. What if this situation would’ve happened on the highway when traffic is really busy going 70 miles per hour? This is something that needs to be added in the Ford recall program as well with the transmission. Now I’m stuck w/out a car with no job due to not having a reliable person to take me to and from work while my car won’t run
Other or unspecified, Mar 18, 2024
While driving car trying to stall in middle of traffic.
Other or unspecified, Latches/locks/linkages, Feb 22, 2024
The door ajar light illuminates on the dash even though the door is shut, the door ajar shows it is the driver side back door. With that warning I'm unable to lock the doors while inside the vehicle and the doors do not lock when putting the vehicle in drive from park or unlock when putting the vehicle in park from drive. I'm also unable to use the door handle lock and unlock sensor on the outside of the driver door.
Other or unspecified, Dec 11, 2023
we had a recall and Ford Motor frauded us three times. we brought our car in for ford focus transmission module in 2021 to get it fixed wihtin greico Ford the ten year and they made us pay 176 to hold the part put us off for two years telling us no part on back order and then they called us said they had it and gave it away in a day as we were five hours away after making us wait two years and taking money from us they refuse to give us back our money and then we took to anohter ford dealer sarasota ford and they frauded us and just reset the old defective part and now they saying sorry to late now i demand something done we shjpuld have it markled as not fixed the recall it is outstanding they lied and we never got it fixed and they l;ying saying it was fixed and they just reset the old defective part they frauded us
Other or unspecified, Dec 8, 2023
Sometimes when I start the car it shifts into next gear slowly. It may begin with a vibrating or jerky motion.
Other or unspecified, Sep 10, 2023
Transmition control module on my 2012 ford focus sel Broke on a road trip leaving me with 1,3,5 gear only , and online it says this is a common issue considering you NEED a transmission to drive I feel this should be something that gets a recall
Other or unspecified, Sep 7, 2023
Not even a month ago my car started jerking when taking off like hard enough to practically put you through the windshield. It almost stalled on me at a stop sign. I have the customer satisfaction program 14mo2 letter from Ford about my TCM replacement. But I believe it is the power shift dual clutch in transmission that’s having the issue.. I called Ford today because the dealership I want to take my car to wants to charge me $4000 if it’s not the TCM. Apparently there have been issues with the powershift clutch transmission and that the coverage that they had to fix that issue has expired years ago. I cannot drive it out of my small town for fear of it breaking down on me. I found out the TCM had been replaced in 2016 and I’ve only had this car six months to seven months tops and it only has 75,000 miles on it. It revs up real high and does not shift gears properly. I am afraid to take it out on a highway or anything afraid it might cause an accident and Ford told me they will not fix it unless I pay for it if it’s the powershift dual clutch. I thought ford was supposed to fix any transmission issues whether under warranty or not. These safety issues could get someone killed!
Other or unspecified, Jul 27, 2023
sudden loss of power. would not stay in gear. took it to the ford dealer and they had to replace the TCM.
Other or unspecified, Engine, Jun 18, 2023
It wont go in reverse and comes out of gear transmission?
Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Jun 12, 2023
The problem is with the transmission and dual clutch and electrical. My car shakes when still, doesn't want to go when I put on the gas, doesn't want to change gears. The electrical keeps going on and off and the fan goes on and stays on after I shut car off and get out and stays on. I took it to schicker ford on south kingshighway to get programmed and I got my car back it was worse.