2015 Ford Focus
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Power train is the leading concern among 1,030 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 7th highest complaint count among 19 Focus model years with reports.
Of the 2015 reports, 32 involved a crash and 4 involved a fire. 29 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
Power train, manual transmissionJun 9, 2026
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Focus and 2013-2016 Fusion vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under recall numbers 18V169 and 18V845. The clutch may fracture, resulting in damage to the transmission assembly and possibly a transmission fluid leak.
A transmission fluid leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components can increase the risk of a fire.
Dealers will update the software, free of charge. Additionally, dealers will inspect Focus vehicles and replace the clutch assembly as necessary, free of charge. Interim letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed August 5, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the remedy is available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S43. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on July 6,2026.
Campaign 26V376000 on NHTSA.gov
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
Equipment, electrical, engine block heaterJan 15, 2026
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Focus, 2013-2019 Escape, and 2015-2016 MKC vehicles equipped with a 2.0L engine. The engine block heater may crack and develop a coolant leak, causing it to short circuit when the block heater is plugged in.
An electrical short circuit can increase the risk of a fire.
Owners are advised not to plug in their block heater until the vehicle is remedied. Dealers will replace the block heater, free of charge. Owners will also have a alternative option to replace engine block heater element with a threaded plug, and remove the block heater electrical cord. Interim letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed March 6, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S01. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on January 16, 2026.
Campaign 26V011000 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, 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
Power train, manual transmissionMar 12, 2018
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2014 Ford Fusion vehicles equipped with a 1.6L GTDI engine and 6-speed manual transmission and 2015-2016 Ford Focus vehicles equipped with a 1.0L GTDI engine and 6-speed manual transmission. Also included are four 2017 Ford Focus vehicles that had clutch replacements with potentially affected parts. The clutch may fracture, resulting in damage to the transmission assembly and possibly a transmission fluid leak.
A transmission fluid leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components can increase the risk of a fire.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will update the Focus vehicles with software that detects and prevents prolonged clutch slip, and will replace the clutch, as necessary, free of charge. Owners of Fusion vehicles will have their clutch assembly replaced free of charge. The recall began August 3, 2018. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S07.
Campaign 18V169000 on NHTSA.gov
Latches/locks/linkages, hatchback/liftgate, lockSep 28, 2016
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2017 Ford Focus hatchback vehicles manufactured February 14, 2012, to August 26, 2016 and equipped with a manual transmission. The hatchback of the affected vehicles may be unlatched with a single press of the interior latch release button. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 206, "Door Locks and Door Retention Components."
With only a single press needed, the driver may accidently unlatch the hatchback, increasing the risk of injury to any unsecured passengers in the back.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Body Control Module with updated software, free of charge. The recall began February 10, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16C13.
Campaign 16V698000 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
Electrical system, ignitionJul 8, 2015
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2015 Ford Escape vehicles manufactured April 1, 2014, to June 12, 2015, Ford Focus vehicles manufactured June 17, 2014, to June 12, 2015, and Ford C-Max vehicles manufactured April 22, 2014, to June 12, 2015. In the affected vehicles, the engine may continue to run after the key or the START/STOP engine button is turned to off. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention."
If the engine does not turn off as expected, someone could move the transmission shifter out of park and the vehicle may move unintentionally, increasing the risk of a crash.
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will update the body control module software, free of charge. The recall began on July 27, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 15C06.
Campaign 15V436000 on NHTSA.gov
Representative owner complaints: other or unspecified
119 reports, newest first. Show all
Other or unspecified, Jan 1, 2023
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.
Other or unspecified, Dec 12, 2022
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.
Other or unspecified, Dec 8, 2022
Ive had this vehicle for almost 3 yrs and I've taken it to the Ford Dealership numerous of times. They have failed to repair ANYTHING that's associated with this particular model. I have been without transportation for a year now. I've had several break-downs that "I" had to come out of my pocket to repair. I really and desperately need help or some kind of reimbursement.
Power train, Other or unspecified, Nov 7, 2022
Overheating. Car stalling. Jerking of the vehicle while in motion. Pauses in between acceleration.
Other or unspecified, Sep 12, 2022
Ford Focus 2015 the does not shift to the next gear and I got stuck in the middle of traffic and had to push it to a safe spot in neutral. This car was Part of a Ford Recall buyback program. It has been at Car Max in Norwood Mass for months I was towed 4 times close calls with kids in the car. These cars are still being sold by CarMax mine can’t be fixed I am paying for a death trap
Other or unspecified, Sep 9, 2022
My 2015 Ford Focus power shift didn’t work correctly which caused the transmission to not work correctly and it stopped working and the fuel tank deform and the coolant reservoir doesn’t work good all the time and causes the car to over heat. Many times my safety was at risk with myself alone and with my children because the car would not go sometimes and could cause an accident. I was helped a few times my police officers when I was in the side of the road because the car kept having transmission problems. I took the car to the Ford dealership and they confirmed the problems and about the fuel tank deformation recall. Many time the check engine light would come up on the dash board. The dealership told me the car had to many problems and they could not do anything about it. Which are common problems on 2010-2016 focus models. My car has been at the ford shop for 4 months and they haven’t fixed it yet .
Other or unspecified, Engine, Aug 11, 2022
Car will not go in reverse and shakes vigorously when shifting gears. We think it is an issue with the transmission. I called multiple ford dealerships as focuses have known transmission issues with these exact symptoms, but they said they cannot take a look for weeks. They have a policy where they will give rental cars for these transmission issues, but they are pretending they are not sure what the issue is and will not take a look for weeks, leaving me without a car for weeks because ford sold me a defective car.
Other or unspecified, Aug 8, 2022
Body control module is bad. Car stalls in the middle of driving and doesn’t start back up for days
Other or unspecified, Jul 26, 2022
My sound system in my vehicle, OEM, started making loud crackling noises in my speakers. It comes at no warning at full volume. When I'm driving it may cause me to jump when it happens. I've already caught my self veering to out of control when it happens, because of jumping out of my seat. The only solution I have is to remove the fuse that supplies power to my center console. Now it is completely blank. No radio, backup assist, being able to use my phone through the vehicle to prevent accidents or have a clock for time.
Other or unspecified, Jul 14, 2022
The car feels like it's skipping when I try to pull out at stop signs and lights. Also does it when I'm driving. Feels like a gear slips or something
Other or unspecified, Jun 13, 2022
-RECALL TITLE: TRANSMISSION CONTROL -UNKNOWN -THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN CONFIRMED BY ARIZONA VEHICLE EMISSIONS --UNKNOWN -THE PROBLEM APPEARED ABOUT 3 YEARS AGO. IF FEELS LIKE SHAKING.
Other or unspecified, Jun 7, 2022
The CHECK ENGINE light keeps turning off and on, had a diagnostics test done and it came back, "TRANSMISSION FRICTION ELEMENT B STUCK ON", SERVICE INTERVAL LIGHT RESET PROCEDURE" the vehicle is a 2015 Ford Focus it has approximately 67,223 miles on it. we keep it maintained. it has been periodically shaking and jerking while driving and it tends to loose momentum as well. This started about a month ago. I have put in some gas treatments thinking it was bad gas. it gets better for a minute then gets worse. it has progressively gotten worse over the week.
Other or unspecified, Power train, May 30, 2022
Esta es la segunda vez que se arruina la caja de la transmisión voy caminando y no agarra velocidad voy en el freeway y no avanza no hace los cambios al tratar de rebasar, aparece una luz roja y marca motor. Hoy apareció una advertencia en el tablero que dice transmisión caliente espere 5 minutos voy en freeway do de me parqueo??? Fui a la agencia y no me han ayudado dijeron que debo dejar el carro por 3 meses.ahi parado con ellos repito es la segunda vez en 2 años y medio que esto pasa
Other or unspecified, May 16, 2022
1.) After getting gas the car wouldn’t start. It took several attempts over half an hour to get it to start. This happened a couple of of times before the next incident. 2.) While driving on I-35 at 70 mph the car stopped accelerating, like it were in neutral, the dashboard warning message said “VEHICLE NOT IN PARK”. Lights, radio, etc. continued to work at full power,. The car never started again, but gave faint sounds of attempting to turn over. This is dangerous because I and my fellow drivers doing 70+ mph on a popular hwy weren’t expecting a car to just suddenly stop without warning. Towed to Grand Prairie Ford. Told it’s likely a transmission recall issue. They have 3 other 2015 Ford Focus in their service lot with the same issue. Those cars have been waiting for 2 & 3 weeks since diagnosis and parts are still not available.
Other or unspecified, Apr 24, 2022
Violent shaking, not starting , feels like it’s switching gears while driving. Was told may be clutch b actuator motor , started as soon as purchased car and has worsened. Rpm randomly revving
Other or unspecified, Electrical system, Mar 17, 2022
1. Fluctuating fuel gage. 2. Car stopped while driving on highway multiple times. 3. Rough Idle and hard to start. DTC code P1450 is displayed. I went to the Ford dealership for 18S32 Recall and I was charged over $ 400 for recall to be performed. I did show them the Safety Recall Notice-18S32. There was not a crash but I went from Middle lane on GSP to right most lane and a nice lady slowed down to let me pull over to the shoulder. This could have been an accident. How can Ford dealership refuse to perform this recall and charge customers over $ 400? I will have to scan and upload the bill tomorrow.
Power train, Other or unspecified, Mar 7, 2022
When moving forward from a stopped position, the front tires shake/stutter which requires you to let up on the accelerator and move forward at a lesser speed to stop the shaking/stuttering. Also while the engine is warming up, the transmission is slow in changing gears, and in some cases it doesn't feel as if they change at all.
Other or unspecified, Nov 29, 2021
I financed this car with Wii Auto in Arizona , I have had work done multiple times trying to fix the problem and nothing Wii auto mechanic or Ford dealership can figure out the problem. Every time I get my car out the shop and spending all this money “to fix the problem” my car does the same thing. My car will shut off while I’m driving because it thinks it’s over heating. I’ve had my battery replaced, fuel pumps/modules replaced, coolant tank replaced, everything they can thing of. I haven’t drove my car in months and I’m still making payments because when I try and talk to the dealership they basically say oh well, the car in my eyes was sold to me as a lemon my car has been in the shop more times than I can think. I have all the paperwork and I feel so helpless because every time I try and talk to Wii Auto they just brush me off like it’s not a major problem. I almost lost my life in this car because it shut off while I was driving in the freeway. I’ve even gotten loaner cars from this dealership when they were “working on my car” and they’ve done the same things like shut off on me or even almost cost me my life because the back tires were literally coming off the car. I’m in need of help. I’m tired of making payments on a car I haven’t even got to drive. I had to literally go and financed a whole Different car from a different dealership because Wii Auto won’t help.
Other or unspecified, Oct 5, 2021
The door latch on my driver side rear door just stopped working and it won’t shut at all.
Other or unspecified, Sep 28, 2021
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. The contact stated that she had discovered that her vehicle had been placed under NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V735000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The contact took the vehicle to a dealer; however, upon return of the vehicle, the contact stated that the vehicle stalled while driving home at 35 MPH. The contact stated that the check engine warning light had illuminated the instrument panel and that the vehicle eventually restarted after multiple attempts. The dealer was notified of the failure and an appointment was made to have the vehicle serviced. The failure persisted and the contact had the vehicle towed to the dealer. Once the vehicle was back in the possession of the dealer, they informed her that due to the size of the fuel tank, they could not repair the vehicle. The contact was given an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was 66,844.
Power train, Other or unspecified, Sep 14, 2021
While driving to work, my transmission started to slip. On the freeway, if I pressed the gas pedal, my car would NOT go faster. Instead, my engine would rev to almost redline and my car would continue to coast, but loose momentum. Once the transmission downshifted to a lower gear, then the transmission would begin to work. Once I got into the City, I almost rear ended someone when the transmission surged. I was pushing the gas through an intersection, and suddenly my car lurched forward, the tires squealed, etc. I had to slam on my brakes to avoid slamming into the car in front of me.
Other or unspecified, Sep 4, 2021
The vehicle is slow to move when put into gear, (or from a stopped position on the road), and then suddenly lurches forward. This has been reported to several FORD car care centers but they do nothing about it and expect the driver to "adapt" to the way the car handles. This can cause an accident when making a turn from a stop because there is no acceptable predictability of it happening.
Other or unspecified, Aug 27, 2021
RPM jumps when pedal is not pushed. Car has issues going into reverse. TCM issues.
Other or unspecified, Jul 5, 2021, crash
I hit a deer, lost control of my vehicle and rolled it twice. None of my air bags deployed and my 911 assist never dialed 911.
Other or unspecified, Apr 19, 2021
MY CAR IS STALLING WHILE IN MOTION AND AT A IDLE. IT WILL STALL AFTER SITTING IDLE FOR ABOUT 15 MINUTES. I HAVE BROUGHT IT TO A FORD SERVICE CENTER AND THEY REFUSED TO FIX THE RECALL BECAUSE THE DIAGNOSTIC MACHINE DID NOT SHOW A CODE WHEN THE CAR WAS HOOKED UP TO THE MACHINE.