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2012 Ford Focus Electric Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 33 complaints with NHTSA about the 2012 Ford Focus Electric, most often about the transmission (42% of complaints, typically around 13,500 miles). It is the 3rd most complained-about Focus Electric model year since 2000 and has 3 recalls.
Most common 2012 Ford Focus Electric problems
Transmission
14 complaints · 42%Half of these problems showed up before 13,500 miles. Parts named most often: clutch assembly.
This is an electric vehicle. The car was shut down completely in the middle of street. The message displayed indicated I should "stop the vehicle now". After about two minutes, I was able to start the system again and drive away.
Just entered freeway on-ramp and began to accelerate when power instantly ceased and car coasted. Dashboard indicated "stop safely now" and I pulled to the side. Steering and brakes were still functioning but no response at all from the accelerator. Car did not respond at first to a restart. Had to turn car off, open…
Electrical
14 complaints · 42%Half of these problems showed up before 13,500 miles. Parts named most often: 12v/24v/48v battery, hand heater.
The product is bosch power xpress 240 volt charger coupled to my 2012 Ford Focus Electric. It is set to 30 amps for my vehicle....updated 12/17/14 this charger was put in service on 7/22/2013. I noticed in february that there was a noticeable electrical smell of melted plastic after charging the car, but there was no…
The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus Electric. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced a complete loss of power and an abnormal burning of the outlet. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the battery needed to be replaced. In addition, the technician stated that the charge cable and…
Steering
6 complaints · 18%I started the car this morning and the steering would not work. I came inside the house, looked up the problem on line and found a terrific amount of hits. I also saw that without warning the steering can stop all together causing an accident. I also saw that sometimes you can go back to the vehicle and start it up…
Twice since we have owned this car the steering wheel locks up after the engine is started. My wife says there is a message on the dash display about the steering. Both times she showed me the steering being locked up in the driveway of our home. I was able to correct the problem by turning off the ignition switch and…
Speed control
4 complaints · 12%The contact owns a 2012 Ford Focus Electric. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 65 MPH, the cruise control would independently activate and the speed would increase to 70 MPH. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who was unable to diagnose the failure on numerous occasions. The manufacturer was not…
While driving vehicle on the highway and using cruise control vehicle fails to maintain speed. The cruise control abruptly shuts off without warning and driver has to take over. The vehicle maintenance light turns on/off periodically. Dealer has investigated and diagnosed this as the wiring harness under the passenger…
Fuel system
3 complaints · 9%Starting up from waiting at a signal light the system flashed "stop safely now". (I had just touched the display screen to view the battery state of charge - normal.) proceeding through a left turn and when getting to the curb the system shut down providing no motive power. At that point a complete turn off of the car…
The product is bosch power xpress 240 volt charger coupled to my 2012 Ford Focus Electric. It is set to 30 amps for my vehicle....updated 12/17/14 this charger was put in service on 7/22/2013. I noticed in february that there was a noticeable electrical smell of melted plastic after charging the car, but there was no…
Engine
3 complaints · 9%"stop safely now" message appeared while traveling about 30mph and slowing down for a stoplight. Car would not move while message was lit. The car had 88% charge, and was charging 5min prior to the incident. Trying to restart the car was unsuccessfully at first, but I turned the car off, opened a door, closed it, then…
To date 8/20/2013 the car has died 8 times and 4 times in the last week. The sequence I use to get it started again is after the ssn warning, pull over, turn ingition off, open door, close door, lock car, unlock car, press start. It only started to happen after the update was done. It happens over bumps, on the…
Stability control
3 complaints · 9%The Ford Focus Electric has two "drive" modes: "d" and "l". The latter is more aggressive in regenerative braking. When I approach a right turn into my neighborhood, there is a short segment of cement between the two asphalt roads. I believe the traction/steering control gets confused, and the regenerative braking…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2012 Ford Focus Electric recalls
Equipment: electrical
Risk: An overheated cord can increase the risk of a fire.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the current cord with a new 120v convenience cord with a thermistor, free of charge. The recall began january 18, 2019. Owners may contact ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18s24.
Full defect summary
Ford motor company (ford) is recalling certain 120v convenience charge cords that were supplied with and sold for use with 2013-2015 ford c-max energi and fusion energi vehicles and 2012-2015 ford focus electric vehicles. Cords with part numbers fm58-10b706-aa, fm58-10b706-ab, fm58-10b706-AC, fm58-10b706-ad, fm58-10b706-ae and fm58-10b706-af were manufactured without thermistors, and during vehicle charging, increased resistance in the house's outlet or wiring can cause the cord to overheat and melt.
Transmission: control module (tcm/pcm/tecm)
Risk: An unexpected loss of power while driving increases the risk of a crash.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the power control module, free of charge. The recall beganon november 22, 2013. Ford's recall campaign number is 13s09. Owners may contact ford motor company customer relationship center at 1-866-436-7332.
Full defect summary
Ford motor company (ford) is recalling certain model year 2012-2014 focus electric vehicles manufactured september 15, 2011, through august 23, 2013. In the affected vehicles, a powertrain control module software problem may result in a stall-like condition.
Equipment: anti-theft devices
Risk: Without an audible door chime, a vehicle owner may open the door and exit the vehicle without being reminded that the vehicle is still operational, leaving the vehicle susceptible to theft.
Fix: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will update the software for the door chime, free of charge. The recall began on october 30, 2013. Owners may contact the ford customer relationship center at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's recall number is 13c07.
Full defect summary
Ford motor company (ford) is recalling certain model year 2012-2013 focus electric vehicles and 2013 c-max vehicles equipped with the intelligent access push button start system. In the affected vehicles, there is no audible chime when the vehicle is operational and the driver's door is opened. Thus, these vehicles fail to conform to federal motor vehicle safety standard (fmvss) no. 114, "theft protection and rollaway prevention."
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
Pedestrian alert sounds
Summary
Nhtsa received a petition on or about july 18, 2022, requesting that federal motor vehicle safety standard (fmvss) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the united states. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under odi number 11486072. Fmvss 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 kg or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after march 1, 2021.on january 27, 2023, NHTSA opened defect petition (dp) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matt
Door latch failures
Summary
In december 2019, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened this investigation based on 235 vehicle owner questionnaires (voqs) alleging doors failed to latch when closed, and/or inadvertently opened while driving, on model year (my) 2012-2014 ford fiesta, and 2013-2014 fusion and lincoln mkz. Some voqs reported the failure occurred after the latch had been remedied under a prior recall which involved fracture of the latch pawl spring tab due to thermally induced cyclic fatigue. Other voqs alleged a similar failure in vehicles not previously recalled. A latch with a fractured pawl spring tab typically results in a ?door will not close? Condition, however in certain somewhat rare circu
Door latch failure
Summary
In january, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened this preliminary evaluation based on consumers' allegations of doors failing to latch and/or inadvertently opening on model year (my) 2012-2013 ford focus vehicles (subject vehicles).odi has received 464 unique reports related to the alleged problem, with over 200 claiming that the door(s) opened inadvertently while the vehicle was in motion.one consumer alleged an injury that occurred while driving when a door inadvertently opened and then closed on a child's arm.another alleged that a door that inadvertently opened struck a parked vehicle.in response to odi's information request, ford motor company (ford) provided 500 unique repo
Electric powertrain propulsion failure
Summary
In an october 28, 2013 letter to NHTSA, ford motor company (ford) submitted a recall notice identifying a defect in the powertrain control module (PCM) software in approximately 2,456 model year (my) 2012 through 2014 ford focus electric vehicles manufactured from september 15, 2011 through august 23, 2013 (recall no. 13v-523).according to ford, PCM software faults may cause a complete loss of powertrain torque.when this condition occurs, drivers receive a red triangle indicator and the message stop safely now in the instrument cluster.in addition, vehicle brake and steering systems will continue to operate normally and the vehicle can be restarted after going through a shutdown process.ford
Questions about the 2012 Ford Focus Electric
- What are the most common problems with the 2012 Ford Focus Electric?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: transmission (14 complaints, typically around 13,500 miles); electrical (14 complaints, typically around 13,500 miles); steering (6 complaints).
- How many recalls does the 2012 Ford Focus Electric have?
- 3 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from September 10, 2018 (equipment). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2012 a bad year for the Ford Focus Electric?
- It is the 3rd most complained-about Focus Electric model year since 2000, with 33 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.