2018 Ford Focus Power Train
Owner-reported problems and safety issues filed with NHTSA. Review common failures, severity levels, and complaint trends over time.
Complaint Timeline
Chronological view of owner reports
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to shift to reverse(R) as needed. The contact stated that the transmission warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that when the gear shifter was shifted to drive(D), the transmission downshifted unintendedly. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined 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 NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 134,225.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle failed to respond as needed. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact pulled over to the right side of the road and waited for his girlfriend to pick him up. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the clutch, the A and B lever, and the throw-out bearing needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V169000 (POWER TRAIN); however, the vehicle was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 131,731.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. In addition, the contact stated that the vehicle hesitated, and an unknown warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed 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. In addition, the manufacturer offered to help with the cost for the repair. The contact was advised to contact the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 500.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 MPH, there was an abnormal sound coming from underneath the vehicle. The contact stated that over time the transmission was difficult to shift into gear. The transmission warning light was illuminated, and the message "Internal Transmission Failure" was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed; however, the cause of the failure was not yet determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 61,000.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted with an unknown warning light illuminated. The vehicle was able to be restarted. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the dual clutch in the transmission had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the same diagnostic information was provided. The contact was informed that the dual clutch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 146,000.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 20 MPH and attempting to accelerate, the RPMs suddenly increased; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission control module, clutch actuators, and dual-clutch assembly. The vehicle was not repaired. 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 83,000.
My 2018 Ford Focus started to buck, hesitate, and felt like it was going to stall. I pulled out of an intersection and my car just wouldn't go. I almost got hit. Then my engine light came on. Took it to my mechanic and he checked it with the coding machine which showed that it was in the transmission. I looked on the recall page and although my vehicle wasn't on it, they did recall other Ford Focus vehicles for the exact same problem. Ford knows there is a problem with this. It is very upsetting that my vehicle isn't part of the recall.
Whenever the car is just being driven normally it has begun having issues shifting gears esspecially in the lower gears. The check engine light has gone one in the vehicle several times all producing the same error code of P07A3 "Transmission friction element 'A' stuck on". All who have serviced the vehicle have expressed that this is a well known and common issue with the newer models of Focus with active recalls in the past for the years 2012-2016 due to the exact issue that my transmission is portraying now. The vehicle will stutter when it exceeds speeds between 7mph to 14mph. In extreme cases the vehicle will stall out with a set RPM of 1×1000. When a stall out occurs the vehicle becomes unwieldy as it'll start to shake violently prompting the immediate response of pulling off to the side of the road to prevent any potential damage to the vehicle itself as well as other vehicles on the road. From the countless mechanics I've consulted about this issue they have all brought forth the notion that this problem isn't fixable and the only solution is replacing the entire transmission unit as a whole as this is again an extremely common fault with the new Ford Focus models.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted with the check engine and transmission temperature warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the transmission had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the transmission had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted, and the dealer informed the contact that a used transmission was installed into the vehicle by the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHSTA Hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 103,449.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle failed to properly accelerate, and the transmission was slipping while shifting between first and second gear. Additionally, the engine overheated due to the coolant leak, and the message to "Pull Over" was displayed. The cause of the failures was not yet determined. The manufacturer and local dealer were notified of the failure. The contact stated that the transmission had been replaced on four previous occasions. The failure mileage was 77,805.
My car is having a hard time shifting in lower gears, RPM's race, but car does not move forward. This is the 2nd time in 6 months we've had this issue. We've already had both clutches replaced the last time this issue happened. Car is at approximately 67,000 miles.
Slowed down to enter roundabout, when acceleration out of roundabout transmission shuddered, check engine light illuminated and failed to accelerate greater then 35 mph. When stopped transmission continued to shudder, and shifted awkwardly.
My 2018 Ford focus started having transmission issues over 2 years ago. I took my car into a Ford dealership who reassured me that my car was fine and that my transmission was in fact not slipping. I continued to drive my vehicle while feeling the transmission slipping telling myself Ford told me this is normal it's fine. Cut to 2 years later. It is not fine. My entire transmission needs replaced. My TCM was not working properly which in turn ruined my reverse gear and caused internal damage to the transmission, resulting in a recommended replacement of the transmission. My car is only 5 years old with about 45,000 mi on it. I drive about half as much as the average American driver per year. My car had a hard acceleration so it was hard to enter traffic from a stop. Many times I was making a turn into traffic and felt like I might get hit by another car because I couldn't get into traffic fast enough. The jerking and slipping of the transmission caused constant fear of the car not performing as it should so to ensure everyone's safety, I would only make turns or go when there was absolutely no traffic. It also caused fear when my car wouldn't accelerate so I use more pressure on the gas pedal and then suddenly my car would lurch forward faster than expected. My check engine light did light up a few weeks prior to my transmission going out but the code was for the fuel pump purge valve. Again, the issue started in April of 2022 and the Ford dealership told me there was nothing wrong with the transmission even though there was. My transmission is experiencing many of the same things others experienced which is why this transmission was recalled. Unfortunately my particular VIN number was not.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would not properly accelerate and had experienced hard shifting from first to second gear. The check engine warning light illuminated and the warning message "transmission Overheating" was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the transmission was faulty. The vehicle was later taken to the local dealer who replaced that clutch actuator but the failure was not remedied. The contact was advised that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but no assistance was offered.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle briefly jolted forward before returning to normal functionality. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure reoccurred after 12,000 miles. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, who again diagnosed a failure with the transmission. The vehicle was repaired, but the failure reoccurred. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred two additional times, and the same diagnostic report was provided. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, and a case was opened. The failure mileage was 15,000.
The car would not accelerate or shift gears. It just happened out of the blue with no warning. I kept up with maintenance schedule and it wasn't even recommended to have checked until 150,000 according to the owners manual that came with the car. I was only at 98,443 miles and had no warning lights or no leaks. I was driving with my grandchildren and was lucky I could coast safely off the road. I had it towed to the local dealership. The tech found that the car needed a NEW transmission.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to immediately start. The contact stated that after starting the vehicle, the transmission failed to properly shift between first and second gear, and the vehicle failed to accelerate above 20 MPH. Additionally, the vehicle failed to respond while shifting into reverse. The vehicle was towed to the local mechanic who diagnosed that the dual input clutch assembly, shift fork, and clutch actuator were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The local dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The failure mileage was 75,000.
Driving into a parking lot the check engine light came on and the vehicle would only move about 10 mph - parked the vehicle and returning to the vehicle it would not go into reverse or any forward gear.06
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while attempting to drive at any speed, the vehicle would jerk aggressively while either accelerating or decelerating, The contact also noted that when shifting the vehicle in reverse, the vehicle would move very slowly. The vehicle was towed to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that the clutch and both forks needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 148,406.
The contact's son owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle hesitated to start and failed to accelerate above 15 MPH while driving. The check engine warning light was intermittently illuminated. The contact's son pulled over and restarted the vehicle and an abnormal burning odor was coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the dealer, where the clutch and actuator motor were replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to file a complaint with the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was 65,607.
Have owned the car for a little over a year has 150,000 miles on it stopped at a red light and went to take off no power what so ever.Finally went into drive and got it to the garbage transmission is going out. My friction sensor is bad can’t buy the part so need a new transmission.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle decelerated unintendedly. The contact depressed the accelerator pedal down to the floorboard, but the vehicle failed to respond. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact veered to the side of the road. The contact stated that she turned off and restarted the vehicle. The contact continued driving; however, the failure recurred while driving. The contact stated that the failure had been recurring increasingly, and the vehicle was towed to the residence on one occasion. Additionally, the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start while shifted into park(P), and only start while shifted into neutral(N). The contact also stated that the vehicle failed to respond while shifting into reverse(R). The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and a case was opened. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 150,000.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 30-35 MPH, the vehicle made an abnormal ticking sound. The contact pulled over to the side of the road, where the vehicle failed to respond while in reverse(R). The contact drove to the residence at 5 MPH. The contact scanned the vehicle with a vehicle scanner and retrieved a DTC code related to the B-fork. The contact contacted an independent mechanic and was informed that the torque converter might have failed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer was not notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 130,000.
The clutch failed, and is available for inspection. The dealer confirmed clutch needs replacing. No warning lights which is why I scanned for any codes. Other than the dealer no other inspections. I was driving normally along on the highway in stop and go traffic. A/C was on and normal breaking and traveling 15-25MPH. As traffic broke started to accelerate at a normal pace. Then the vehicle started to violently shake, got really loud like my exhaust had fallen off. I had to put the hazard lights on. Then put the vehicle in neutral as traffic was passing me on both sides. From neutral went back to drive and it make a loud noise but seemed power was back. I had to keep rpm’s under 2000 and get off the highway and drove slowly home. Applying any higher acceleration resulting in shaking and noises. I did stop to see if any fluids or objects hanging once safely off the highway but nothing was there. I scanned the vehicle in the following days and had zero codes, attached. Then made appointment for the dealership. They are saying no recall while my scanner says possibly. I called Ford direct and they point me to here as my vin apparently doesn’t meet the criteria.
The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered abnormally. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the clutch assembly needed to be replaced. The contact researched and was made aware of NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V169000 (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 approximately 20,000.
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Quick Summary
The 2018 Ford Focus has 207 Power Train complaints on file. Review the timeline above for detailed owner experiences.