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)
2012 Ford Focus transmission complaints
Page 3 of 49: complaints 41 to 70 of 1,448, newest first, as owners wrote them.
On highway with my 18 month old and as a cat merged on ramp I signaled and moved to left lane. I had to move and quickly so that another fast car would not hit me in the rear end where my baby was seated in car seat. In only the 3 seconds I had to make decision which hit would be better for me and my child, my car stuck in the lower gears and I could not speed up to move out of way or pass vehicle parallel my car was losing speed rather than gaining when I pushed in gas to floor
Transmission becomes jerky and fails to shift.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered and stalled. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission clutch bearing needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to an unknown class action lawsuit. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to call the federal safety agency Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 55,000.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle was serviced under the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 18V735000 (Fuel System, Gasoline), and after picking up the vehicle, the vehicle shifted into park and inadvertently stalled, almost causing a rear-end collision. The contact also stated that the navigation system and the lights were not working as needed. The vehicle was taken back to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure; however, no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.
The vehicle shudders Jerks and feels like it shifts hard I’ve been doing my research I just bought a car with a defective transmission year 2012-2018 I would like it repaired it’s not fair that I’ve spent all my money on this car and it’s a lemon by ford
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
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.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated that the transmission hesitated and then jerked into the intended gear. In addition, the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed clutch failure. The contact was informed that the clutch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was advised to contact the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 70,000.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to be restarted but the vehicle was unable to be shifted into gear. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the clutch. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the federal safety agency Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 124,000. The VIN was not available.
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.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while attempting to start the vehicle, the vehicle failed to start. The contact stated that when the vehicle was started and the gear shifter was in reverse, the vehicle would not reverse(R). In addition, the check engine warning light had been illuminated before and remained illuminated after the transmission replacement in June 2023. The contact stated that the transmission had been replaced by the previous owner also. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed transmission clutch and actuator and the transmission clutch and actuator needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 200,000.
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.
My 2012 Ford SE stalls out between First, second and third gear whenever I am accelerating to 40mph. The Transmission error continues to pop up after driving for a long period of time. Whenever driving 50 mph to 70 mph as soon as I release the gas pedal, the car goes into neutral stall out & whenever I press down on the gas pedal nothing happens and I have to pull over & Turn the car off and turn it back on to reset the transmission computer. If I don’t do that and I press the gas pedal again, the car would jerk and I have to pull over immediately and the car off. I cannot press full on the gas pedal because the car would not accelerate at full speed. Whenever I put gas in the car, it won’t start right away. It would jerk and choke just to start up. It takes me a couple attempts to start the car after putting gas in order for it to start and go. Whenever I’m finished driving and turn the car off, it makes it clicking noise in the engine area for about 2 to 5 minutes and it won’t stop and it only happens when you open the front doors or when the car is completely turned the car off. Whenever I put a full tank of gas or a half tank , the car would not dry properly install out on the highway or street I can’t drive at normal speed because I don’t know when the car is gonna stall out before it hits 1,2 or 3rd gear, which makes it very dangerous to drive on the highway.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving from a complete stop, the vehicle shuddered and hesitated to respond upon depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission clutch was slipping. The dealer determined that the clutch and the levers needed to be replaced, as per Ford TSB Number: 16-0109. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 47,000.
The contact's daughter owns a 2012 Ford Fusion. The contact stated that while driving at high rates of speed, the "Pull Over Transmission Clutch Hot" message was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed with a defective transmission and the contact was given an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for further assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that upon the start of the vehicle, the "Engine Malfunction, Service Now" message was displayed on the instrument panel. In addition, the "Parking Aide Malfunction Service Required" message was displayed on the instrument panel when the vehicle was shifted into reverse(R). The vehicle also stalled upon the depression of the accelerator pedal after coming to a complete stop with the check engine warning light flashing on the instrument panel. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic and replaced the battery, starter, and spark plugs; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the independent mechanic and the contact was informed that the transmission control module (TCM) was defective. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and transferred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle started to shudder, prompting the contact to pull to the shoulder of the roadway. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the clutch, requiring a replacement clutch. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 89,000.
The transmission is experiencing intermitnet slipping and hesitation. When attempting to take off at a stop light on an inclined road the car rolled backwards before transmission engaged & I was able to proceed. No warning lights or messages are present.
I have reported before my vehicle is and has been cyber attacked. This time around my horn has been disable. They turn on the radio, they turn on the light lights of the vehicle, they turn on the radio, they turn on the ac/heat control. If I take it in again, they are going to tell me nothing is wrong. This is very dangerous for me as a driver. I cannot drive a vehicle without a horn. I NEVER heard from you guys on the last report I made. Not sure how this one is going to help. This Ford vehicle is dangerous! If you can please assist, I would appreciate it. Thank you!
Shuttering, shift slipping, wont move
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the transmission experienced a loss of motive power, causing the vehicle to decelerate and the vehicle failed to properly accelerate. During the failure the message "Transmission Malfunction, Service Now" was displayed. The cause of the failure was not yet determined, and the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.
The transmission module, and Transmission. While on freeway with my family car shut off while driving. Yes , Yes , No there were no warning signs until after the jerking and shaking started after 39 days then the engine light came on. After that a that the sign said transmission over heating pull over and let car cool down. what was most scary is that it shut off while driving.
I was driving my car and received a "stop safely now" message. It was brought to the dealer and the 12v battery was replaced and the condition stopped. One week later, however, it happened again. I was in the middle of an intersection after taking off from a stop light and the "stop safely now" message appeared and the car would no longer work. Dealer indicates it is an issue with the transmission control module- which is under a recall for some other 2012-2014 Ford Focus electric cars... mine does not appear to be included in that recall, but it is exhibiting symptoms exactly like the open recall. Very hazardous situation as the vehicle loses all power- first time was on an Interstate highway and the second was in the middle of the intersection.
Jerking on first and second gear shutterings
The contact's wife owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that on several occasions while driving at various speeds, the transmission unintendedly shifted gear. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired approximately 15 times, but the failure persisted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 12,000.
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.
Took vehicle to Ford dealership after being seen at transmission shop. Previous transmission shop said TCM was bad as well as clutch. Took car to Ford for TCM recall, they said it wasn't broken and refused to replace it. The did say clutch is broken and needs replacement which Ford is not willing to help with on cost.
I received a recall dated June 2023 about my transmission. It is the first one I have ever received. I had it towed to Stanley Ford McGregor and service said that there wasn't anything wrong. I was told I need to pay them $165 for a recall review???? I don't feel safe driving it as it slips, bucks, jerks, shudders, delay when shifting as well as having difficulty in changing gears causing many "almost accidents." I just found out Ford settled on 2020 judgement and a 2022 judgement. I had no idea. It is plagued with numerous problems and safety concerns. I have written a letter to the General Manager, Mike F at Stanley Ford McGregor as well as sent copies to Jim Farley, CEO of Ford and FMC Customer Relationship Center. I asked them to get back with me as I will NOT pay that $165 and drive an unsafe car that I don't want to put my 1 yr old grandson at risk as well.
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission was shifting erratically. The vehicle was taken to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission clutch and shift motor had failed. Additionally, the clutch fork was stuck. The contact was informed that the transmission clutch, shift motor, and clutch fork needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 109,301.
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