Owners filed 3,929 complaints about the 2015–2025 Ford Focus with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the 24th-most of any vehicle in our Car Problem Index. The 2016 model year drew the most (1,181), and the single most-reported problem area is transmission / powertrain, named in 51% of complaints.
Key findings
- Worst model year: 2016, with 1,181 complaints, led by transmission / powertrain (673).
- Earliest-failing area: speed control / acceleration complaints came at a median of 38k mi on the odometer.
- Fire and crash reports: 11 complaints mention a fire and 91 mention a crash; owners reported 79 injuries.
Ford Focus complaints by model year
| Model year | Complaints | Top problem areas | Median mileage | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 1,018 | Transmission / powertrain (558), Engine (172), Fuel system (137) | 60k mi | 31 | 4 |
| 2016 | 1,181 | Transmission / powertrain (673), Engine (233), Fuel system (165) | 61k mi | 27 | 2 |
| 2017 | 896 | Transmission / powertrain (452), Engine (229), Fuel system (116) | 56k mi | 18 | 2 |
| 2018 | 834 | Transmission / powertrain (318), Engine (231), Fuel system (131) | 56k mi | 15 | 3 |
Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower partly because owners have had fewer years to report problems.
Most-reported Ford Focus problems, and what they cost to fix
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median mileage | Repair estimate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transmission / powertrain | 2,001 | 51% | 60k mi | Transmission repair cost |
| Engine | 865 | 22% | 57k mi | Engine repair cost |
| Fuel system | 549 | 14% | 56k mi | Fuel pump repair cost |
| Engine and cooling | 262 | 7% | 77k mi | Engine repair cost |
| Electrical system | 230 | 6% | 50k mi | Alternator / electrical repair cost |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 220 | 6% | 70k mi | Fuel pump repair cost |
| Steering | 188 | 5% | 55k mi | Power steering repair cost |
| Speed control / acceleration | 141 | 4% | 38k mi | — |
One complaint can name several problem areas, so shares add up to more than 100%.
What this data can and can't tell you
These are unverified reports that owners submitted to NHTSA, counted by model year. They are not defect findings, and they aren't adjusted for sales: a best-selling vehicle collects more complaints simply because more of them are on the road. Use the counts to compare model years of the same vehicle and to see which systems owners complain about most, not to compare how reliable two different models are. See the full methodology.
Other Ford models in the index
- Ford F-150 (11,842)
- Ford Escape (9,632)
- Ford Explorer (9,079)
- Ford Edge (5,190)
- Ford Fusion (4,656)
- Ford F-250 Sd (3,942)
- Ford Expedition (2,537)
- Ford F-350 Sd (2,147)
- Ford Ecosport (1,850)
- Ford Mustang (1,750)
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, consumer complaint files (nhtsa.gov), model years 2015–2025, retrieved 2026-09-23. Free to cite with a link to this page.