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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:
0 / 1
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
41,300 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.

2015 Ford Focus fuel system problems

fuel system problem

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2015 Ford Focus Owner Comments (Page 3 of 7)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #81

Jul 082020

Focus

  • 52,915 miles

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

Went into a store, parked in parking spot, came out, got in car, placed car in reverse to back out of spot, car began to back up, then slowed down and stopped with engine still on, . I then placed car in drive, went forward, then attempted to back out again, car backed up, then slowed down again, then jerked really hard. After waiting for the cars parked on the right and left side of me to leave, I placed car in reverse again, it stopped again, I placed car in drive, car accelerated slowly, then gave a hard jerk again, and I was able to drive forward and make a complete circle, and drive forward out of the parking spot a half a mile home. Upon entering my driveway, car began to accelerate and stopped when I applied the brakes immediately. The car sat for 24hrs, I then tried to start it up, it started up, but when I placed it into reverse, it did not move at all.

- Metairie, LA, USA

problem #80

Jul 062020

Focus

  • 87,000 miles
Car stalls and turns off when slowing down or stopping at lights or stop signs I have almost been in two wrecks. This recall happened before I purchased this vehicle and the car company failed to give me information about recall.

- Petersburg, TX, USA

problem #79

Feb 052020

Focus 4-cyl

  • 88,116 miles
I have a 2015 Ford Focus that I got finance through marin county Ford, April 2017. I have taken may car to marin county Ford and recently hilltop Ford regarding the check engine light on and transmission problems. When I drive the car city/highway it shudders, has slow speed, shifting gears, running hot and will not go into reverse. I took my car back to hilltop Ford and they didn't fix the transmission. They broke the coolant tube and charge me to fix it. The issues have not being resolved as of May 21, 2020 my car is undrivable and I have to register it next month by July 7, 2020 as non operable. Hilltop Ford refuse to honor the recall on the transmission issues.

- 510-619-4941, CA, USA

problem #78

Feb 012020

Focus 3-cyl

  • 51,000 miles

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

My 1.0L Focus had a defective canister purge valve and suffered from stalling as described in NHTSA campaign 18V735000. The active diagnostic codes and local Ford dealer diagnosis confirmed the canister purge valve had failed. The only remedy was to pay for my local dealer to replace the canister purge valve out of pocket since my car was not included in the referenced recall. There are many other 1.0L Focus owners that have said their canister purge valves have failed and needed to be replaced in online forums..

- Overland Park, KS, USA

problem #77

May 182020

Focus 4-cyl

  • 94,025 miles
When idling for so long the car just died. I opened the door and the alarm went haywire. Then I have to wait 20 to 30 minutes before I can restart the car. Nothing will work after it does this until it's able to be restarted. It's been at the Ford dealership. They replaced transmission issue, said that should fix it, but it still keeps on.

- Escondido, CA, USA

problem #76

May 042020

Focus 4-cyl

  • 90,000 miles
Transmission- was denied service for clutch replacement due to mileage over 100,000. Though I filed complaint at 90,000 miles. Also, transmission leaks due to the faulty transmission. Unsafe due to possible fire hazard. Fuel- fuel tank was repaired by certified service dealer, since the repair I've been stranded 7X due to unable to get fuel. Half tank of gas traveling high speeds on interstate with traffic and car shuts off, I lose ability to control vehicle. 3X I've barely avoided collision. Single mom, one vehicle. Something has to give.

- Bernice, LA, USA

problem #75

Jun 012016

Focus

  • 30,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked, the contact attempted to start the vehicle however, the vehicle failed to start. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the vehicle was taken to automax Ford (3301 E central Texas expy, killeen, tx 76543), to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the fuel pump sensor and transmission sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact stated that several months after the repairs were performed, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer and the transmission sensor was replaced a second time. The contact stated that 11 months after the first repairs, the vehicle experienced the fuel pump failure. Additionally, the contact stated that after refueling, several attempts were needed to start the vehicle with the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact referenced the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 18V735000 (fuel system, gasoline). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 30,000.

- Las Vegas, NV, USA

problem #74

Jan 272020

Focus

  • 45,530 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number: 18V735000 (fuel system, gasoline). The contact stated while driving and making a left turn to oncoming traffic the vehicle stalled without warning. The contact stated that the failure was experienced a second time while driving at 55 mph the vehicle stalled without warning. The vehicle was taken to ed kenley Ford Inc located at (1888 N main St, layton, ut 84041) were the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of failure. The failure mileage was approximately 45,530.

- Layton, UT, USA

problem #73

Feb 142020

Focus

  • 5 miles
Car will not start...I was driving and the engine is acting like it needs fuel when there is gas in the tank. I had the PCV and coal.xanaster replaced except the gas tank Ford store says gas tank is not deformed...

- Silver City, NM, USA

problem #72

Dec 202019

Focus

  • 105,000 miles
Car would shutter than stop running while it was in motion. The oil light and battery light would come on. Only once the engine light came on. Then the car wouldn't start again for awhile, at least 20 minutes. This problem would keep on happening the longer the car had been on, for example, every time we had to stop, such as at a stop light on a city street, the car would shutter then shut off. Once, it had shut off on an expressway as I was about to go on an exit and it wouldn't turn on again for an hour.

- Edinburg, TX, USA

problem #71

Dec 052019

Focus

  • 65,000 miles

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

After having a recall done in December of 2018 for the canister purge valve, or know as recall 18S32 all that was performed was a reprogram and nothing else. A year later my vehicle is experiencing the same problems as before, the vehicle only has 65K miles on it. I contacted multiple Ford dealerships as well as Ford's corporate offices and was told that I would have to come out of my own pocket for any repairs that needed to be done regarding the problems I'm experiencing, because recall 18S32 was already performed on my vehicle. After fueling up and starting my car the car will almost stall out, as well as trying to stall when sitting at a red light or stop sign. I'm also experiencing a lack of power when accelerating. My obd scanner comes up with a fault code "P1450 unable to bleed up fuel tank vacuum". a lot of people are experiencing this problem even after getting the recall 18S32 performed on their vehicles. It seems like a temporary solution was put in place and unfortunately many people are suffering from it, I would like to see Ford release a permanent fix to a potentially very dangerous problem!

- Zephyrhills, FL, USA

problem #70

Dec 102019

Focus

  • miles
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. While driving 40 mph, the check engine warning indicator illuminated. Landmark Ford Lincoln (12000 sw 66th ave, tigard, or 97223, (503) 639-1131) was contacted and diagnosed that the cpv failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The contact referenced NHTSA campaign number: 18V735000 (fuel system, gasoline). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact to call NHTSA to file a complaint. The failure mileage was unknown.

- Tiger, OR, USA

problem #69

Dec 162019

Focus

  • 60,000 miles
Sticky canister purge valve

- Tigard, OR, USA

problem #68

Dec 062019

Focus

  • 112,000 miles
Each time you put gas into the vehicle it will not start for several minutes. The engine keeps trying to start but it will not kick over. Also the car has stalled while being driven down the highway and it has taken several minutes to start back. The dealership where I bought the car replaced a sensor in the gas tank however this did not fix the problem. After doing much research I have learned that Ford had a similar issue with the 2.0 liter Ford Focus

- Morganton, NC, USA

problem #67

Sep 092019

Focus

  • 64,000 miles
Recall notice was 'software' update to detect hardware issue. No issue detected. The hardware that had issued failed 2 weeks later. Ford states that the recall was completed and cannot open. The equipment (canister valve) that the recall was created for failed.

- Las Vegas, NV, USA

problem #66

Oct 042019

Focus

  • 68,000 miles
Had recall service done for fuel tank deformation issue or so the dealerships says. But after I the car back it seems to be running great but 5 miles down the road it stalls on me and fails to crank when it did it wouldnt continue to run or idle for long before stalling again. After 30 mo S or so of priming fuel pump and retrying and letting set. It cranks up and runs fine. Recall needs to be further researched or dealership needs to be investigated for fraudulently claiming to complete recall procedures and not doing so.

- Clayton, GA, USA

problem #65

Nov 102018

Focus

  • 70,000 miles
The contact owned a 2015 Ford Focus. While driving 35 mph, the vehicle began smoking without warning. The contact pulled the vehicle over and the smoke and flames became more rampant. The contact called the fire department and had the fire extinguished. There were no injuries and a police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to an independent tow yard and the whereabouts of the vehicle were unknown. The insurance company conducted an investigation of the incident and retrieved the service records of the vehicle from chapman's northeast Ford (9371 roosevelt blvd, philadelphia, pa 19114, 866-577-2408). The contact was informed by the insurance claim adjuster that the fire was caused by an engine block. The vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 18V735000 (fuel system, gasoline). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed her that the vehicle had been salvaged and was not included in a recall. The manufacturer was contacted and did not assist. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

- Philadelphia, PA, USA

problem #64

Sep 062019

Focus

  • 101,205 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. While driving 60 mph and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to accelerate. The contact stated that the check engine indicator was illuminated. The contact was able to park on the side of the road and the vehicle stalled. The contact could smell fuel entering the cabin of the vehicle. The contact stated that the transmission ready warning message was illuminated. The contact was able to drive to his destination. In addition, the contact stated that the fuel gauge was not providing the correct fuel measurement. The contact associated the failure with NHTSA campaign number: 18V735000 (fuel system, gasoline). The vehicle was taken to russell and smith Ford (located at 3440 S loop w, houston, tx 77025, (713) 230-8368) and an independent mechanic. The contact was informed that the emission valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 101,205.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #63

May 012019

Focus

  • 41,500 miles
The contact owns a 2015 Ford Focus. While driving on the highway, the engine stalled, the vehicle lost acceleration, and gradually slowed down until it was guided to the side of the road. Also, after the vehicle was refueled, it would not immediately restart. The vehicle was taken to haasz automall of ravenna (4886 oh-59, ravenna, oh 44266, 330-296-2866) where it was diagnosed that the O2 sensor needed to be repaired. The failure was repaired for $500; however, the failure recurred while driving away. Nick mayer Ford (6200 mayfield rd, mayfield heights, oh 44124, (440) 449-1000( was contacted and stated that there was an unknown recall regarding the fuel tank. The contact paid $200 for a diagnostic test, but no failure was found. The failure recurred and the contact filed a complaint with either one of the dealers or the manufacturer. The contact was provided a loaner vehicle from the haasz dealer. The contact took the vehicle to another unknown Ford dealer and was informed that nick mayer Ford should not have closed the recall for the fuel tank because there was still an issue. The recall would need to be re-issued in order for the vehicle to be repaired. The contact was currently waiting for the manufacturer to apply the recall back on her vehicle. The failure mileage was 41,500.

- Newbury, OH, USA

problem #62

Aug 012019

Focus

  • miles
My can used to get 400 plus miles when the has tank is full. Now it gets less and study get less when I fill up. When I step on the accelerator the car sound like air rushing in and the RPM's rev up way to high. This been going on for a few weeks. This happen while driving the freeway, highway, and the neighborhood streets.

- Houston, TX, USA

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