CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2016 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:
8 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
3 / 0
Average Mileage:
44,933 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 contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission was slipping. The contact was informed by his wife that while driving the vehicle stalled. While adding fuel the vehicle failed to start. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer where it was diagnosed with the clutch actuator, purge valve canister, and purge valve failure which needed to be repaired or replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified however, no further assistance was provided. The contact stated the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train). The approximate failure mileage was 86,000.
I-??ve had powertrain issues for going on 4 months now, I brought this vehicle in for repair soon as it started acting up. The clutch would slip and it didn-??t want to shift. It would jerk really hard if it did. And the rpm-??s would red bar and would get stuck in gear. I brought it into the shop and 2,500$ later they said it was fixed. 2 days later same issues, only worse.. now it wouldn-??t even reverse and was making extremely weird noises even while the car wasn-??t started or had the key in. You could literally just open the door and it would make weird clicking noises for minutes straight. Another 400$ later they said it was fixed for sure this time. 3 days later the car didn-??t even want to start. And when it did it still wouldn-??t reverse. I drove it home from work and it started to smell awful. Not sure what it was. While driving I heard a loud noise as if I had hit a brick wall-?? and my car jerked so hard I almost hit my head on the steering wheel. The transmission light comes on and I got stuck in the middle of an intersection and my car just shut off. I turned it back on and had to gas it to get onto the side of the road and I could only reach about 25mph max. Mileage is only 84K. 2016. I don-??t understand why this powertrain is giving me so many problems and is becoming a huge safety issue for me, as well others. Ford says there is no recall on it even though this has happend to so many others. I don-??t understand
The powertrain continues to have issues on my ford focus, specifically the transmission clutch continues to fail this occurred on 12-10-21 and previously had same issue with the clutch on 3-21-19 at 56, 949 mileage. Vehicle is available for inspection, my safety was put at risk because i was driving on freeway/expressway with cars going 65 mph and the vehicle clutch stalled and would not move forward in the middle of roadway endangering my safety in middle of freeway. The vehicle has been inspected twice by the same Ford Dealership. There were no warning lamps before my safety incident until after the fact where the check engine light appears. For these clutch issues ford says my vin does not qualify yet all these fords have the same issue and ford says im not eligible because my VIN which is ridiculous since they have even extended warranty repairs for 10 years or 100,000. I have attached my work repairs that document this same clutch ford issue. THE CONSUMER REQUESTED AN UPDATE.
Driving on the highway with cruise control on at about 60MPH, with no warning, engine revved to a high RPM with a near total loss of power. Message on the dashboard said to have the Transmission serviced. Car was brought to the dealer where they diagnosed that the Transmission Control Module needed to be replaced, and also the clutch needed to be replaced. Invoice attached. There is a Ford Customer Satisfaction Program associated with this problem that includes Focuses manufactured up to November 5, 1995. When they checked my car's VIN, they said it was not covered because my car was manufactured on November 11th 1995. This CSP is also attached. I believe that the actual number of vehicles affected is more than they have indicated in the CSP and that mine is also affected because it exhibited the same problem and was manufactured within 6 days of the cutoff. This is a dangerous situation that could have resulted in an accident. Luckily the highway was not very busy when it occured.
- Northport, NY, USA
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The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while his wife was driving approximately 25-30 MPH, between first and second gear, the vehicle started shuddering inadvertently. The contact stated that the failure had been occurring since purchasing the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the dual-clutch transmission needed to be replaced and that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train). The dealer also advised the contact that he would be responsible for the cost of the repair because the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but did not provide any assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 6.
Wed. 12/1/2021. Driving about 45 MPH suddenly when pressing on the gas pedal to accelerate there was no response it would just rev like it was in neutral. Then a warning light came on stating that the transmission was overheated and to pull over as soon as possible. At this point I am stuck in the middle of traffic and the accelerator would not respond because the transmission seems to be stuck in neutral not in gear so I could not control the speed of the car. I was able to coast over to the side of the road. I had to wait for about 15 minutes for the transmission to cool down and tried again. The same thing occurred about 15 minutes later. I was able to get off the road to a mechanic. The mechanic stated that the transmission was bad and needed to be replaced. This transmission only has 22,150 miles on it, the car was not driven that much. There is no way a transmission should go bad with such low miles. This seems to be a widespread issue from what I see online several other people with the same issue. Ford does not want to admit they have faulty equipment but the transmission problem is a safety issue. I almost lost control of the car. Thanks.
I have been having nothing but problems with my Ford Focus transmission. And it-??s 2016. I-??ve only had it for about 4 years and it-??s not working again. Ford said it was the clutch.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle shuddered upon the depression of the accelerator pedal without warning. The contact has had the dual-clutch transmission replaced five times under warranty; however, after each repair, the failure would return. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 21,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving, the vehicle was shaking and shuddering without warning. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission dual-clutch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired three times however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to NHTSA for assistance. The contact stated that the failure mileage was related to NHTSA Campaign number 18V169000 (Power Train) however, the VIN was not included. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, there was an abnormal sound coming from underneath the vehicle. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, diagnosed, and repaired; however, the failure persisted. The contact was unsure of what part was replaced. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V169000 (Power Train). The vehicle was previously repaired under the recall however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while attempting to accelerate from a stop, the vehicle would shake, vibrate, and shudder. Also, the vehicle would roll backward although the transmission was in the drive position. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the transmission was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The local dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 25,000.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while the vehicle was stopped at a traffic light with the accelerator pedal being depressed the vehicle started to jerk. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact towed the vehicle to an unknown local dealer and made them aware of the failure. The contact was able to drive the vehicle back to his residence. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The contact then took the vehicle to DeLacy Ford (3061 Transit Rd, Elma, NY 14059, (716) 668-1200) to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the clutch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired but was pending repairs. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 67,000.
While driving the transmission will start to jeck. When I start to go after being stop at stop sign, it will start to jeck BAD it will shake the whole car. Had it at the Ford dealer THEY said it didn't read high enough to be repaired, something about only 75 needs to be 200. Which to me is [XXX]! THE CAR NEEDS TO BE FIX. He said the only good thing I still have 40000 miles before my warranty runs out THAT'S NOT FUNNY. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving, the vehicle hesitated and failed to shift gears properly. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH, the RPM revved up to approximately 2,000 to 3,000 RPM and then back down to 2,000 RPM. The contact spoke with the dealer and was informed that the failure might be caused by the clutch actuator motor. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact was made aware of a Customer Satisfaction program however, the vehicle was not included. The contact was referred to the NHTSA for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 64,000.
The transmission slips and jerks at 4000 rpm's from acceleration and transmission does not go into reverse sometimes and over heats after 2 minutes of driving. It's available to be looked at. The car would not accelerate in the middle of driving on the highway. Just revs over 5000 rpm's. I took it to a transmission shop and they said it was the clutch which was going to be $3,000 to fix. My husband and my children have to experience the whiplash it gives you from the hard shifting. Also have to push it backward in neutral just to go anywhere because it has no reverse most of the time. There is a warning message on the dash that says transmission overheating wait 5 minutes and the check engine light is always on. They first appeared at 87,000 miles and it is horrible on gas I need to pay 20 dollars every 2 days just to go to work and back which I'm only work 15 minutes away. I have called my dealer no call back. I have called ford no call back. I even called the warranty place cause they sent me a notice and they said to call my dealer but they never called back
This a update from my first complaint on 03/18/2021 with Tracking # 11403675.Since than the The shutter in the Transmission is still there and the rpm will hit at 4000 before it shift in first gear.so i bring to the dealer on 05/04/21 for this problem. they told me there was no problem with my car because they could duplicate the problem with the transmission. so i leave the dealer unhappy drive home stop at a red light it turns green I step on the gas and it stated to shutter again. PLEASE HELP. Thank you
I have never had a problem with this car. It was running fine and just shut off completely driving on the freeway. It was jump started to restart. No check engine lights and temperature was good. I had the battery and alternator tested and they were good. It happened several times trying to get home. It would start right up after sitting for about 10 min. The left hazards are the only ones that work when this happens, nothing on the right side.
The contact's daughter owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while her daughter was driving 10 mph, she heard an abnormal sound and the vehicle seemed as if it was not in gear. An unknown warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the transmission had failed, and the clutch actuator motor needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to take the vehicle to the dealer for diagnostic testing. The vehicle was taken to the dealer however, the dealer informed the contact they could not diagnose the vehicle because the vehicle was not covered under the customer satisfaction program. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage 70,000.
The upper management of Ford at the time should be ashamed of themselves for seriously damaging the reliability reputation of the Ford Focus between the model years of particularly 2012 to 2016 by introducing into the setup a dry dual clutch transmission that they did not already have a quality backup plan to just in case the complaints started piling up about the supposed manual feel of the transmission. The drive-ability of the 2016 Ford Focus SE HB I make payments on is at best a D level experience. I, too, am plagued by the regular occurrence of the shuddering between the 1st and 2nd gear along with the spiking RPMs that follow immediately after when the shuddering transpires. It seems almost as if the 2nd gear is coming in on the 1st a little too soon, which would factor in an obvious failed effort on transmission calibration. In general, the shifting performance is unnerving and quite embarrassing when you have passengers. If you are like me and have one of these vehicles with this transmission type, good luck on getting a true fix in this Power-Shift setup. It is possible to improve the driving conditions with third party tuning if your strategy will pair with the tuning device (another issue of discussion for Ford); otherwise, one needs a complete, conventional transmission installed in hopes of getting rid of this issue in its entirety if an automatic transmission is your preferred preference. In summary, the Ford Focus SE I have is the 2.0. liter, and it appears that Ford has discreetly excluded this liter from the recall, warranty work in general. In other words, you will likely have an incredible hard time getting a Ford dealership to acknowledge the problem or replace your clutches unless you pay for it. To fully remedy this situation, Ford should be required to buyback all of these poorly calibrated transmission cars from current owners and those still for sale on the American market.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Rockford, OH, USA