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 contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the rear doors failed to lock and unlock and were inoperable. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who stated that a module needed to be reset. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to NHTSA. The failure mileage was approximately 145,000.
The contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the rear driver's door would not lock and the rear passenger door would not unlock. Ed mullinax Ford (8000 leavitt rd, amherst, oh 440011, 440-296-3021) stated that there was no recall on the vehicle. An independent mechanic was contacted and quoted a repair cost that was less than the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 101,000.
The contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact noticed that both passenger side doors, the rear driver side door, and the exterior door handles malfunctioned. The door handles could not be used to open the doors. The rear driver and passenger side doors would not unlock properly nor would they unlock when using the key fob or attempting to manually unlock the doors. The failure occurred multiple times. The dealer stated that the rod that was securing the locks needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred multiple times. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 46,000.
2009 Ford Focus 4 door, the driver side door will not open from outside. The door locks do not work all the time and you will get locked in and have to crawl over the seats to get out. The problem is that there is only one key hole on the driver side but it does not unlock the other doors so you cannot get in since the door only opens from the inside if it is unlocked. You cannot manually unlock the front doors but you can crawl over the seats and pull up the rear door locks or climb out the windows. Ford has not issued a recall on this and I see several people with the same problem. This is very dangerous especially if there is an accident and you cannot get the doors open. I guess it will take a death before Ford will do something about it. My son has to keep the doors unlocked so he can get into a passenger door and open the inside latch to get into his car. I got locked in and had to crawl over the front seats to get out since I thought he was joking. We have the door panel off and door lock assembly out so now I am on the hunt for repair parts. The handle seems to be in working order but the latch is not. We lubed it but it keeps locking up and you cannot open it up to see what's wrong with it. I think Ford wants people to spend a fortune to fix the problem or just buy a new car that you can't afford.
There have been numerous incidents where I can not get my doors open because the doors will not unlock. I have had to crawl out of another doors a number of times. I am worried that if there is an accident I may not be able to get out.
- Socorro, NM, USA
Search CarComplaints.com for these popular complaint phrases...
The contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the passenger side door was unable to be unlocked when using the key fob or when attempting to manually unlock the door. The failure recurred intermittently and affected each door in the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing where the technician advised that the door lock actuator needed to be replaced. The vehicle was taken to the dealer on several occasions. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue but did not offer any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 25,000 and current mileage was 55,000.
The contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the front passenger side door could not be unlocked using the remote. The door could only be opened from the inside of the vehicle. The rear passenger side would not open from the outside or inside. The vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnosis but the failure could not be diagnosed. The vehicle had not been repaired. The failure and current mileages were 53,000.
The contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the passenger side door was unable to be unlocked when using the key fob or when attempting to manually unlock the door. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to diagnose the failure but advised the contact that they would spray water and apply dried lube as a temporary remedy. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 13,200 and the current mileage was 15,500.
The contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. While parked, the contact attempted to unlock the doors with the key fob and manually using the key, but the doors would not unlock. The contact was able to open the passenger side door after several attempts. The failure recurred intermittently and usually when the weather was warm. The contact had also become locked inside the vehicle on several occasions as a result of the failure. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The technician replaced the lock on the rear passenger side door however, the failure continued after the repair. There were no further repairs performed. The approximate failure mileage was 15,000.
Door locks randomly malfunction. The key to the driver door will not turn. Front doors can only be unlocked by the inside door handle. The rear doors cannot be manually unlocked. Rear doors are unlocked by pressing down on the lock peg and using the inside lock switch on the front door to first lock and then unlock, let off the lock peg and toggle the switch again. Discovered this trick after many wasted trips to the dealership. One rear door latch was replaced but, the problem continues with it. After the warranty ran out (36K), I filed a complaint with the dealership. I was then told that this is a known defect but, it is not a recall item and it would cost about $200/door to fix. This is can be a serious matter if an accident were to occur.
The contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the doors could not be unlocked from the interior or exterior. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer, where the door regulators were replaced. The failure continued. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact back to the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired a second time. The failure mileage was 28,000 and the current mileage was 48,000. Updated 09/27/11 updated 09/30/11
2009 Ford Focus SE. Bought new July 2009. Multiple problems with power door locks not unlocking from inside/outside w/key, remote, handles. Warranty work, 3 times in past one (1) year on door locks. Latest 7/15/11. Safety concerns of being trapped in vehicle. Constantly being told by Ford techs. Road dust causing malfunction. Have owned and driven many other makes/models of Ford cars/trucks w/ power locks on gravel roads without problems. Only this car has this problem. 1st. Front passenger door had lock assembly replaced.wouldn't unlock inside or outside. 2nd. Left back wouldn't unlock inside or outside. Door lock adjusted by Ford tech. So far both working ok. 3rd. Trapped outside car. Finally unlocked w/ remote after many attempts. Key in outer lock wouldn't unlock door. Now it's the driver door that has to have the lock assembly replaced and is scheduled to have this done.also have complaint of original new tires (hankook P195/60/R15) wearing out and had to replace at 21,000 miles on 7/09/11. Ps. tire pressure sensor is a useless device.
Power door locks do not unlock and stay locked not able to get them to work correctly. I believe this to be a safety issue due to the fact that if you needed to get out of this vehicle in an emergency you would not be able to.
My granddaughter owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The door locks and latches do not work. It was taken in twice to be fixed. The dealer said it is from dust and they would have to pay $900 to upgrade the locks and latches. This concerns me greatly because I am very worried that if there was an accident my grand daughter would not be able to get out of the car.
The door lock actuators on the vehicle failed to unlock the door. This is dangerous in that driver and passenger are unable to engage or disengage the lock in a timely manner, resulting in delays with ingress/egress of the vehicle.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Cuba, MO, USA