2012 Ford Focus: engine overheating

Filed Sep 29, 2026 · Transmission · FL

Transmission overheating warning light Transmission clutch stuck open recommended to change out “actuator A” but did not solve. Clutch fork needs replacement

Filed Jul 16, 2025 · Transmission · 195,000 miles · FL

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving 35 MPH, the vehicle jerked and the transmission unexpectedly downshifted. The contact was able to pull over to the side of the road. The message "Transmission Overheating" was displayed, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact turned off the vehicle and waited until the transmission had cooled down. The contact was able to restart the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 195,000.

Filed May 6, 2025 · Transmission · MN

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the message “Transmission Overheating – Pullover and Wait 5 Minutes Before Continuing to Drive” was displayed. The contact stated that the vehicle jerked while driving at various speeds, the transmission failed to shift properly. The contact stated that while attempting to accelerate from idling, the vehicle jerked abnormally before accelerating. The contact stated that occasionally the RPM became elevated; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the Transmission Control Module (TCM) had failed and the dual-clutch system, A and B, was faulty and needed to be replaced. Additionally, the seals on the transmission had failed, causing transmission fluid to leak from the transmission. The contact was informed that the TCM, dual-clutch system, and seals need to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and provided the contact with a reference number for the call. The manufacturer referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Apr 29, 2025 · WV

TCM needs replaced. Car does not have reverse, stalls and overheating.

Filed Aug 27, 2024 · Transmission · NH

the transmission is stuttering/slipping when accelerating. it's dangerous when getting onto the interstate trying to get up to highway speeds of 70mph and your transmission isn't shifting the way a automatic transmission should shift. then when letting off the gas and gradually applying the breaks the transmission will downshift to many gears and increase your rpms dramatically, and then sometimes when you think your car should downshift going down a steep hill the car seems to stay in a high gear which then your car picks up speed and you have to heavily use your breaks to slow down hoping your car will downshift to a lower gear to help slow your car down to the safe speed limit. Ford says they'll have to diagnose the car first to see if it's the transmission control module. if it's not then I gotta pay $200.00 for the test. I find that [XXX] cuz im not getting the warning on my console about my transmission acting up or overheating. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed Jul 12, 2024 · Transmission · MO

There’s a recall for my transmission but my clutch which is also the cause of my transmission failing and overheating and also stopping in its own in the middle of traffic is a major safety issue that Ford says they don’t have a program for and stated that they can’t fix my transmission due to in the recall it doesn’t mention clutch being repaired. I have the paperwork stating that I need my transmission rebuilt but Ford couldn’t do it due to the clutch not being in the recall but of course I was out of $200 just to get a diagnosis and risk the chance of driving to the Ford company and back home to get my car diagnosed which my car stopped on me once going to the Ford dealership and had to pull to the side due to transmission overheating safety popping up on my dash and saying wait 5 minutes. Today 7/12/24 after picking my car up from Ford I had to manually reset my transmission in order to drive back home which is what I’ve been previously doing every since having this problem my car dash alerted me that my transmission was overheating within driving it for only 2 minutes and just automatically shut down on me in the middle of the intersection. There’s no way for me to put my hazard lights on due to car shutting I had to hurry up and jump out of my car to direct traffic to go around me. Had to wait at least 10 minutes then reset my transmission and tried driving back home but again my car shut off without warning me this time. I feel like Ford isn’t any help when it comes to an issue like this cause this really is a safety issue what if the car behind he wasn’t paying any attention and crashed my rear end even though they’ll be at fault. What if this situation would’ve happened on the highway when traffic is really busy going 70 miles per hour? This is something that needs to be added in the Ford recall program as well with the transmission. Now I’m stuck w/out a car with no job due to not having a reliable person to take me to and from work while my car won’t run

Filed Jul 2, 2024 · Transmission · 199,152 miles · MO

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated the while driving at various speeds, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. Additionally, while attempting to drive uphill, the vehicle rolled backwards. During the failure, the message "Transmission Overheated" was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the clutch was faulty. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 199,152.

Filed Jun 12, 2024 · Transmission · 165,000 miles · MA

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate, the "Transmission Overheating," message was displayed, after which the vehicle inadvertently lost motive. The contact was able to pull over to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to be restarted. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the clutch packs. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 165,000.

Filed Apr 17, 2024 · Transmission · 112,000 miles · GA

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle was unable to properly shift gear. Additionally, the transmission began to lose motive power. The message that the transmission was overheating was displayed. The vehicle was able to restart after 30 minutes. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed as a failure with the transmission control module and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the dealer stated that the shift module also needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 112,000.

Filed Oct 24, 2023 · Engine, Transmission · 110,000 miles · MD

The contact's son owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35 MPH, the transmission started slipping. The vehicle was not shifting into the intended gear as designed. The transmission warning light was illuminated. The engine overheated and pull over safely messages were displayed. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that a radiator flush, spark plug replacement, tune up, and a transmission flush needed to be performed. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the clutch and transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact about a buyback and then referred her to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

Filed Sep 5, 2023 · Acceleration, Transmission · 146,000 miles · UT

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while at a stop light, the accelerator pedal was depressed, but the vehicle failed to respond. The message that the transmission had overheated was displayed. The contact was able to push the vehicle off the roadway. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission control module needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the part was on backorder. The parts arrived and the transmission control module was replaced, but the failure recurred. The dealer informed the contact that the clutch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and informed the contact about an Extended Warranty coverage. The failure mileage was approximately 146,000.

Filed Aug 2, 2023 · Transmission · 169,654 miles · OR

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle with the vehicle idling, the “Transmission Overheated – Pull Over” message was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the clutch actuator inside the TCM had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer where the vehicle remained. The contact was then informed that the vehicle failed to start, and the battery was replaced. The vehicle remained at the dealer unrepaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was advised to call the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 169,654.