KnownCarProblems2016 Ford Fiesta Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 178 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Ford Fiesta, most often about the transmission (57% of complaints, typically around 65,000 miles). It is 6th of 11 Fiesta model years by number of complaints.
Most common 2016 Ford Fiesta problems
Transmission
101 complaints · 57%Half of these problems showed up before 65,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, clutch assembly.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that the transmission would suddenly slip while driving at various speeds. The contact would let up off the accelerator pedal until the transmission realigned itself. The failure recurred several times per day. The failure had become more frequent. The hood ajar…
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that the vehicle's transmission would suddenly slip while driving at various speeds. The contact would have to release some pressure on the acceleration pedal till the transmission realigns itself. The failure could occur several times in one day. The failure's…
Engine
34 complaints · 19%Half of these problems showed up before 55,000 miles.
When I refuel it takes several tries to get vehicle restarted and need to pump accelerator to keep it from dying. The smell of gas is bad. Come to a red light stalls and hard to restart. Air bag light on dash and never goes out. Rpm surge and car will lunge, very scary. Just started a loud clicking/thumping noise…
While driving on the highway my cars throttle body stopped functioning. Having to try and pull over I got stuck in the middle of traffic. I shut the car off and started it again and everything seemed fine. During the same trip home I got stuck on a small two lane bridge twice for the same reason. After getting off the…
Electrical
26 complaints · 15%Half of these problems showed up before 55,500 miles. Parts named most often: ignition, 12v/24v/48v battery, instrument panel.
When I refuel it takes several tries to get vehicle restarted and need to pump accelerator to keep it from dying. The smell of gas is bad. Come to a red light stalls and hard to restart. Air bag light on dash and never goes out. Rpm surge and car will lunge, very scary. Just started a loud clicking/thumping noise…
My trunk pops open on its own. At least 3 times a day at random. Giving access into the vehicle. This happens while I'm driving and while the car is stationary. I have woken up at 4 am and my trunk be open. I've been driving at 60mph and the trunk open. Been in a drive through and the trunk open. This has been going…
Other or unspecified
22 complaints · 12%Half of these problems showed up before 41,000 miles.
The clutch pedal gets stuck about an inch off the floor after being depressed at seemingly random times usually in the warmer weather months. This has caused me to lose the ability to change gears and loss of ability to accelerate. It does not come out of this position until I physically pull the pedal off the floor.…
When I put gas in my 2016 Ford Fiesta it want start right after the car stall which I'm told by my mechanic that the vapor canister purge valve is not working properly and Ford has this same issue with the Ford focus but want put the Fiesta on the to be recalled list
Speed control
11 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 25,000 miles.
When I step on the gas, the car sporadically will not go. So I will step on the gas little bit more and the car will still not go. So I will step on the gas a little more and then something will engage and I will shoot forward. This happens in places where it could be catastrophic. For example, once I was at a stop…
Since week 1 the car (when at a stop and in gear) if you pressed the accelerator at any level the car would do nothing then after roughly 3-6 seconds it would randomly launch forward. It would also seemingly go into neutral on the highway which LED to a complete loss of engine power. This also happens when on a normal…
Fuel system
11 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 57,000 miles.
The car will not start properly after refueling. You have to press on the gas several times and then the brake to start it. When it does start, you need to rev the engine a couple times to make sure it won't die again. The transmission is now slipping and drops to neutral while driving at any given time. It happened…
When I refuel it takes several tries to get vehicle restarted and need to pump accelerator to keep it from dying. The smell of gas is bad. Come to a red light stalls and hard to restart. Air bag light on dash and never goes out. Rpm surge and car will lunge, very scary. Just started a loud clicking/thumping noise…
Body and structure
8 complaints · 5%Half of these problems showed up before 52,000 miles. Parts named most often: body.
My trunk pops open on its own. At least 3 times a day at random. Giving access into the vehicle. This happens while I'm driving and while the car is stationary. I have woken up at 4 am and my trunk be open. I've been driving at 60mph and the trunk open. Been in a drive through and the trunk open. This has been going…
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fiesta. The contact stated that upon inspection, it was discovered that there was rust on the roof of the vehicle around the base of the antenna. The local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired due to the VIN not being included in an unidentified recall. The…
Steering
7 complaints · 4%Half of these problems showed up before 4,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2016 Ford Fiesta. While attempting to accelerate, the vehicle hesitated and failed to accelerate properly. In addition, a scrapping type noise was present coming from the steering wheel while operating the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the deal hamilton Ford dealer located in clovis, new mexico…
Now second occurrance of a problem with the power steering. Power assist fails on startup with car stationary and in motion. Both times the car had been parked in cold weather for a few hours. Unassisted steering is very high effort and renders the car almost unusable. The first time this occurred the dash warning…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2016 Ford Fiesta recalls
NHTSA lists no recalls for this model year.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Timing belt failure
Summary
On december 18, 2025, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe25020 to investigate instances of timing belt failure in model year (my) 2015-2017 ford fiesta and my 2015-2018 ford focus vehicles manufactured by ford motor company (ford), equipped with a 1.0l engine and manual transmission (subject vehicles). Additionally, my 2018-2021 ford ecosport and my 2016-2018 focus vehicles with a 1.0l engine and automatic transmission were analyzed as peer vehicles because they utilize a wet timing belt comprised of similar material as the timing belt in the subject vehicles. Through the pe, odi investigated a potentialâ failure/degradation of the timing belt that may affect oil pump functio
Timing belt failure
Summary
On december 18, 2025, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened pe25020 to investigate instances of timing belt failure in model year (my) 2015-2017 ford fiesta and my 2015-2018 ford focus vehicles manufactured by ford motor company (ford), equipped with a 1.0l engine and manual transmission (subject vehicles). Additionally, my 2018-2021 ford ecosport and my 2016-2018 focus vehicles with a 1.0l engine and automatic transmission were analyzed as peer vehicles because they utilize a wet timing belt comprised of similar material as the timing belt in the subject vehicles. Through the pe, odi investigated a potentialâ failure/degradation of the timing belt that may affect oil pump functio
Questions about the 2016 Ford Fiesta
- What are the most common problems with the 2016 Ford Fiesta?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: transmission (101 complaints, typically around 65,000 miles); engine (34 complaints, typically around 55,000 miles); electrical (26 complaints, typically around 55,500 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2016 Ford Fiesta have?
- NHTSA lists no recalls for the 2016 Ford Fiesta. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls in case one is issued later.
- Is the 2016 a bad year for the Ford Fiesta?
- It is 6th of 11 Fiesta model years by number of complaints, with 178 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.