500 complaints reported

2016 Ford Focus Power Train

Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.

Reports
500
Crashes
5
Fires
0
Injuries
1

Complaint Timeline

Chronological view of owner reports

Apr 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and accelerating, the vehicle shuddered and jerked before shifting into gear. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to TSB Number: 16-0129. The manufacturer was contacted, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 86,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Apr 2025
Apr 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and accelerating, the vehicle shuddered and jerked before shifting into gear. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed the vehicle with transmission failure. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was confirmed that the failure was with the transmission. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to TSB Number: 19N08. The manufacturer was contacted, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 107,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Oct 2025
Apr 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving on an Interstate at 50 MPH, the “Transmission Fault Service Now" message was displayed and the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where the vehicle was diagnosed, and DTC: P07A3 and P2872 were retrieved. The contact was advised that the clutch, transmission, and the passenger’s side engine mount were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 222,440.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Nov 2025
Apr 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle was repaired under an unidentified NHTSA recall; however, the repair failed to prevent a failure from occurring. The recall repair was completed in 2018 for a driveshaft failure. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated while accelerating while depressing the accelerator pedal. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed for a possible drive-shaft failure. The local dealer performed other unknown repairs under warranty; however, the recall repair was not performed a second time. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 11,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Jan 2025
Mar 2025

Transmision gets hot and i have to pull over right away, otherwise I might cause an accident. Once is get hot it won't move at all. Obd code p2872 and p2872dp. Clutch A stack engaged. My car only has 75400 miles. I took it to ford liner. And they told me the car has no recalls at all. They charge 196 dollars to inspect the car. They also told me that they need to change the couch A because is stuck but want to charge me 4,650$

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Mar 2025
Mar 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while accelerating, the vehicle shuddered and jerked for 2 seconds before shifting into gear. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated, with the message “Transmission Overheating - Pull Over for Safety” displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed, and the contact was informed that the clutch was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the clutch had been replaced three times. The vehiclehad previously been repaired under Customer Satisfaction Program: 19N08. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 96,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Mar 2025
Mar 2025

Battery was disconnected in order to install new radio. After installation, car started just fine but could not go faster than 20mph and would "stall" (even though it is auto transmission) once getting up to that speed. Ford dealership diagnosed as needing a new transmission control module. I was also told this problem would have occurred whenever the battery died, so it was no fault on the radio installation. There is a recall on these parts but for some reason my vehicle is not included in any warranties or recalls. I do not have any written communication with the Ford dealership yet as all contact has been via phone calls.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Sep 2025
Mar 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 35-40 MPH, the transmission was slipping. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer; however, the contact was informed that the vehicle had performed as designed. The vehicle later failed to reverse while the transmission was shifted to reverse(R). The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to report the failure to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was unknown.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Mar 2025
Mar 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power; however, the RPM continued to increase, prompting the contact to immediately turn off the vehicle. After restarting the vehicle, the vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission control module, resulting in damages to the transmission. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to Customer Satisfaction Program: 14M02. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 51,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Mar 2025
Mar 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while accelerating from a complete stop, the front-end shuddered and vibrated significantly. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the dealer had picked up the vehicle for the repair of Ford Campaign Number: 24N07; however, upon diagnosing the vehicle, the dealer informed the contact that the failure was not related to the Service Campaign, but instead to the transmission dual dry clutch. The vehicle was then taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the failure was related to the failure listed in NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train). The dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in the recall. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not covered because the VIN was not included in the recall. The failure mileage was approximately 85,500.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Sep 2024
Feb 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the check transmission warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was shaking abnormally, and the transmission was shifting hard. The contact stated that the failure was recurring. Additionally, the contact stated that the transmission was difficult to shift into reverse(R). The contact stated that the transmission was also slipping out of gear. The contact had taken the vehicle to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the shift actuator needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 111,700.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Feb 2025
Feb 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving 20 MPH, the vehicle briefly began to jump and jolted before returning to normal functionality. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the clutch, determining that the transmission friction element B was stuck on. The contact was informed that the clutch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 100,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Feb 2025
Feb 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle briefly jolted and hesitated before returning to normal functionality. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the clutch motor. The vehicle was repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V479000 (Power Train); but the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 134,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Feb 2025
Feb 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving 45 MPH, the gear shifter shifted into park(P) independently. The contact pulled over and shifted back to drive(D). In addition, while driving up or down hill, the overheating warning light illuminated, and the vehicle stalled. The contact pulled over and waited for the engine to cool down; however, the failure recurred after driving a short distance. The failure occurred on four separate occasions. The failure became progressively worse, and the vehicle was no longer being driven. A dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Nov 2024
Feb 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and shifting from first gear to second gear, the vehicle skipped and then accelerated. There was an abnormal clunking sound coming from the vehicle. There was no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the clutch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Jan 2019
Jan 2025

TCM FAILURE, AND B CLUTCH GOING BAD, AND FORD SERVICE TEAM TELLING ME THAT THE A CLUTCH COULD NEED TO BE REPLACED TOO. YEARS 2012-2016 ARE COVERED UNDER RECALL BUT ONLY CERTAIN MODELS WITH THE DUAL CLUTCH TRANSMISSION AND ONES BUILT PREVIOUS TO NOV 2015. I can get documentation of the service done. This is an ongoing issues with many ford owners, look online and see for yourself. Ford is taking advantage of their consumers claiming they fixed this issue but this is not the case. 93,000 miles on my car and they are telling me a need a rebuild. How many people need to go through this before Ford is held accountable? Do the research, I am not the only one. Give me a day and I will have the report back from Tony Benton Ford in Grand Rapids MI.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Jan 2025
Jan 2025

My dual clutch PowerShift transmission (DPS6) has experienced the common failure. High rpm’s and failure to shift properly, with no reverse gear at all anymore or overdrive. I was traveling at 65 mph and nearly crashed because of this.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Jan 2025
Jan 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the contact attempted to reverse the vehicle; however, the vehicle failed to reverse. No warning light was illuminated however, the "Transmission Fault Service Now" message was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission control module needed to be repaired. The vehicle was serviced under an unknown recall repair; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was towed back to the dealer and the transmission control module needed to be repaired. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 49,500.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Aug 2018
Jan 2025

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that after shifting the gear shifter out of park(P) to drive(D) and attempting to accelerate, the engine revved up, but the vehicle failed to exceed 1 MPH. The contact shifted into reverse(R), but the vehicle failed to move. The vehicle was towed to the residence and then was later towed to AAMCO, where the mechanic diagnosed the vehicle with transmission failure. The vehicle was not repaired at AAMCO and was towed to the dealer for assistance. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 133,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Nov 2024
Jan 2025

Several clutch repairs have been needed and ford is refusing to fix it.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Mar 2025
Dec 2024

Transmission control unit (module) has caused the vehicle to randomly rev the RPM. Causes vehicle to hard shift and delayed shifting. Check engine light came on and produced code P07A3. There is a recall for Ford Focus years 2012 -2018 but my vehicles VIN was not attached to this recall. My vehicle has all the same symptoms as the recalled vehicles. The vehicle is not drivable in this condition. It may cause the car to not stop or accelerate into another vehicle. It may also cause more damage to other components. I have 20+ years of mechanical background and have looked the vehicle over myself.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Apr 2024
Nov 2024

I was waiting at a redlight for it to turn green. The light turned green and I pressed on the accelerator pedal, the vehicle started rolling backwards while the vehicle was in drive. I had to turn the vehicle off in the roadway, I cranked the vehicle back and was able to move it before it told me “transmission overheat”. The dealer said that it was the clutch that went out.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Nov 2024
Nov 2024

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would hesitate upon depression of the accelerator pedal as the RPMs would rev to a high level. The contact also stated that the vehicle would fail to start due to the gear shifter not recognizing the vehicle in park(P). The contact would move the gear shifter back and forth until the vehicle was recognized in park(P). The contact stated that both the check engine and transmission hot warning messages had appeared on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it remained in their possession. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and was informed that there were no recalls on the vehicle. The contact was then referred to the NHTSA Hotline to file a complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 128,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Nov 2024
Nov 2024

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact stated while the vehicle was parked, the contact attempted to shift the gear shifter into reverse; however, the transmission failed to engage, and the vehicle shuddered. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the clutch assembly needed to be replaced. The dealer made the contact aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train); however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 96,421.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Nov 2024
Nov 2024

The contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train). The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the recall repair was performed. After the recall repair was performed, the contact stated that the transmission would intermittently shudder while depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken back to several dealers where the transmission clutch had been replaced multiple times; however, the failure persisted after the repairs. The contact stated that the vehicle had been repaired five times for the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The vehicle was recently repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 13,000.

Type: Vehicle, Vehicle: 2016 FORD FOCUS, Manufacturer: Ford Motor Company
Incident: Jan 2019

Trend Over Time

Complaints by year

Quick Summary

The 2016 Ford Focus has 500 Power Train complaints on file. 5 crashes have been reported. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.