2012 Ford Focus: complete transmission failure

Filed Aug 26, 2026 · Transmission · 112,200 miles · OH

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle unexpectedly decelerated and stalled. The vehicle was able to restart but failed to move. The message "Transmission Failure" was displayed. The vehicle was towed to the residence and was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not covered under the Customer Satisfaction Program: 14M02 (Transmission Control Module Extended Warranty Coverage). The failure mileage was approximately 112,200.

Filed Aug 27, 2025 · Transmission · PA

I purchased this car as a certified pre owned car from the Mazda dealership In mechanicsburg PA about two and a half years ago. The transmission failed and the car was unsafe to drive after 3 months from the purchase date. The Mazda dealership didn’t know how to fix the transmission as it’s a complicated process. They tried to send it to a ford dealership but they would not work on it. It took Mazda awhile to finish my transmission because they didn’t know how to fix it. Now the same exact problem is occurring two years later. I haven’t even put 40,000 miles on my car after the replacement of the new transmission. As I stated before the car is unsafe to drive and I need it for work. This brand new transmission should not be failing after only 2 years and 35,000 miles. Included files are from November 2022 when I purchased the car and from February and march 2023 when the transmission was fixed.

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 May 8, 2024 · Transmission · 200,000 miles · AL

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.

Filed Sep 12, 2023 · Transmission · PA

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at various speed, the engine revved up; however, the vehicle failed to respond upon depressing the accelerator pedal and the vehicle shuddered. Additionally, the transmission failed to shift into the intended gear. The contact was able to veer to the side of the road. The contact stated that she continued driving; however, the failure recurred while driving. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the transmission control module (TCM) was replaced; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission clutch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was unknown.

Filed Jul 21, 2023 · Engine, Transmission · 80,000 miles · CA

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle seemed to shift into neutral and failed to respond. The check engine warning light was illuminated, and the service engine message was displayed. The contact pulled over to allow the engine to cool down. The vehicle was restarted and taken to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission control module needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the transmission failure caused the clutch to fail. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

Filed Jun 30, 2023 · Transmission · NH

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission downshifted to second gear. Additionally, the transmission failed to shift to reverse(R) as needed. The contact removed and replaced the TCM, and the vehicle operated as needed for an hour; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who informed the contact that the vehicle had a faulty clutch actuator. Additionally, the dealer informed the contact that because the codes that illuminated were not the same as those in Customer Satisfaction Program: 14M02 (Transmission Control Module) the vehicle could not be repaired under the warranty. The contact related the failure to the Customer Satisfaction Program. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure was mileage was unknown.

Filed Jun 6, 2023 · Transmission · 77,000 miles · OH

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 35 MPH and shifting gear, the transmission delayed while shifting to the next gear with the "Transmission Failure" message displayed. The contact stopped on the side of the road and shut off and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle started operating normally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the transmission control module (TCM) needed to be replaced. The contact was informed that the vehicle was not included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 13V523000 (Power Train). The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted but provided no assistance. The contact was referred to the federal safety agency Hotline. The failure mileage was 77,000.

Filed Feb 23, 2023 · Transmission · 128,000 miles · PA

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that whenever the accelerator pedal was depressed, the RPM’s would raise and the engine would rev however, the vehicle would not respond as needed. The contact had to depress the accelerator pedal excessively and maneuver the gear shifter for the vehicle to move. The transmission failure warning light was illuminated. The contact had not taken the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact became aware that the vehicle was included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 18V735000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) and 20V331000 (Latches/Locks/Linkages) however, the recalls were not related to the failure. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and stated that the vehicle was not covered under warranty due to the mileage. The approximate failure mileage was 128,000.

Filed Dec 27, 2022 · Transmission · 140,000 miles · HI

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle stalled. Additionally, the contact stated that the transmission was slipping in and out of gear and at times the vehicle failed to shift into the intended gear while driving. The transmission warning light was illuminated. An unknown message indicating a transmission failure was displayed. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle stalled while driving on another occasion. The vehicle experienced rough starts. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to a second local dealer, Star Ford (1101 S Brand Blvd, Glendale, CA 91204), but was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the federal safety agency hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 140,000.

Filed Dec 27, 2022 · Transmission · IL

Transmission failure again after already having vehicle serviced by Ford dealership in Cedar Rapids Iowa due to fuel issue from what they said was the issue. Still showing same coded and same issues with hard shifting and vibration and loss of power while trying to drive. Nearly cause daughter to be in multiple accidents. Issue started at around 40k miles and still happening and put over $10k in parts in this car now. Including new exhuast manifold and catalytic converter, O2 sensor, new fuel pressure sensors, new throttle body and other parts all done by dealerships. Getting old chasing parts. Now another shop said I was told all wrong and it's been a Transmission issue this entire time and ford just didn't want to fix it.

Filed Nov 23, 2022 · Brakes, Tires · 101,000 miles · IL · crash · 1 injury

The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the brake pedal was depressed but the brakes failed to stop the vehicle. The failure caused the vehicle to rear-end another vehicle. The contact sustained back injuries and scratches from the seat belt; however, medical attention was not yet received. A police report was filed. The contact then parked the vehicle in a parking lot, where it remained. The vehicle was not deemed totaled by the insurance company due to a lapse in insurance coverage. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact stated that prior to the failure, the vehicle lost motive power with the ABS, TPMS, and brake warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with transmission failure, and the ABS, TPMS, and brake sensors were faulty, causing the battery to drain rapidly. The dealer replaced the transmission and the sensors for the ABS, TPMS, and brakes; however, the failure recurred. The failure mileage was approximately 101,000.