2016 Ford Fiesta: harsh or hard shifting

5 of the 179 complaints about the 2016 Ford Fiesta describe harsh or hard shifting.

owner complaints: 5
of this car's complaints: 3%
recalls: 0

Is there a fix? 13 service bulletins cover this area of the car. See below

Harsh or hard shifting by model year

2019
1
2017
1
2016
5
2015
1
2014
8
2013
15
2012
4
2011
16

What owners say

Filed Jun 17, 2025 · Transmission · MD

Symptoms: No-start condition (wouldn't crank w/o jump); delayed or harsh shifting; lost power (stalled going up tiny hill). Warning lights: transmission malfunction - service now; check engine light. Our symptoms and warning lights are consistent with Ford's Fiesta Transmission Control Module recall, however the VIN for our car is not part of the original recall. We meet all of Ford's recall eligibility criteria: reported before June 30, 2025; vehicle is less than 10 years old; vehicle has fewer than 150,000 miles. By virtue of the symptoms, warning lights and meeting Ford's other criteria strongly suggest our VIN should be included in the recall.

Filed Aug 16, 2024 · Transmission · 135,000 miles · MN

The contact called on behalf of a customer who owns a 2016 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated the owner had brought the vehicle in complaining about a metal sound coming from underneath the vehicle as if metal was dragging. The sound was most prominent when turning the vehicle to the left or right. The contact stated that after inspecting the vehicle, the contact became aware that the sound was coming from the axle bearings. The transmission had failed due to the transmission gear due to the axle failure. The contact was aware of Technical Service Bulletin: 16-0129; the federal safety agency ID Number: 10109047 (Power Train) and Customer Satisfaction Program: 14M02 regarding the DTS transmission for rough shifting and the differential gears failing. The contact spoke with a dealer where it was confirmed that the vehicle was not included in the TSB or the Customer Satisfaction Program. The customer was referred to the manufacturer for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and confirmed that the vehicle was not included in the TSB or Customer Satisfaction Program. The manufacturer referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 135,000.

Filed Feb 3, 2021 · Electrical, Transmission · 45,000 miles · CA

I bought my 2016 ford fiesta with 31k miles on it. At the time I didn't research too deeply into the transmission issues these models have. Since my car hit about 45k miles I've experienced shuttering, jumping, clicking, and rough shifting or complete lack of shifting in the transmission while driving safely and normally. I've experienced my car dying randomly because the TCM is faulty and uses all the car's power even when the car isn't on. During a period my car was having lots of trouble turning over the engine to start. Had a bunch of vacuums and wiring replaced and this helped a bit with the car starting. Now it's at 67k miles and I'm completely scared to drive it. It never feels reliable given the faulty TCM, I've had to buy an extra portable car jump starter just so I can make sure I'll be able to drive home, and now I just want ford to buy it back. It's overall a faulty car that is foreshadowing a future of replacing something related to the transmission every 5k miles which is ridiculous and completely unaffordable. Please remedy this catastrophic issue ford!

Filed Aug 18, 2020 · Transmission · 3 miles · NJ

While driving to a traffic light before coming to a complete stop my car seemed to rev up after the shifting down then engine gets high when releasing brake and going about 15 MPH before coming to the next traffic light then the check engine light appears and is steady as I'm driving to work there is a "hard shift" while going about 15-20 MPH in city driving.. I was told verbally by a mechanic that my model car has had these types of issues such as:"automatic clutch" not performing properly in the past and my vehicle is out of warranty and not on the recall list

Filed Oct 17, 2016 · Transmission · 45 miles · FL

Clunk noise shifting from 1st to 2nd gear... I have experienced this from the day I picked up the car from the dealer on 9/29/16 (45 miles on car then).. I thought at first I imagined it or just needed to get used to this car since I had just turned in a 2014 lease car back to toyota so big difference in these 2 cars..