2013 Ford Focus problems
The 2013 Ford Focus has 2,930 complaints on file with NHTSA. The largest share (37%) concerns drivetrain & axles. After that come engine (12%) and electrical system (9%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 2,930 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Drivetrain & axles 37% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 80 and 20
- Injuries and deaths
- 45 and 5
- Typical mileage
- 52,000 miles 2,315 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 641 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 292 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 340 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 353 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 267 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 169 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 116 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 78 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 31 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 17 |
| 200k+ miles | 11 |
What the data shows
Among the 2,315 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 52,000 miles. For drivetrain & axles specifically, the median reported mileage is about 38,000 miles (877 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 80 complaints mention a crash; 20 complaints mention a fire; 45 injuries reported; 5 deaths reported. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 84% of model years in our database.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2013 ranks 4th most-complained-about out of 19 model years of the Ford Focus with enough data (1,931 complaints in that window). It is also covered by 11 safety recall campaigns.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
The contact owned a 2013 Ford Focus. The contact stated that she left her dog in the vehicle with the engine off and the windows partially open, as she entered her workplace. Approximately 30 minutes later, she was alerted that there was a vehicle on fire. She rushed outside to discover that her vehicle was on fire. As she attempted to save her dog, the fire grew stronger and the vehicle became engulfed in flames. By the time the fire department arrived, the vehicle was incinerated.
My 75 year old mother in law was driving this car (her car) on 4/4/17 in bellmead, texas. She was hit at about 40 MPH in the front passenger side quarter panel/wheel area by a 1998 honda sedan. She was driving on a paved feeder road in clear sun shiny weather. The car was a total loss due to the axel breaking and the air bag did not deploy. She hit her head in the accident which resulted in her death a week later due to a stroke caused by a left hemorrhagic stroke (brain bleed).
While attempting to turn right on two occasions today my wife's 2013 ford focus had no power steering. I have read many complaints about this issue and am very curious as to why ford has not done anything about it? Will somebody have to crash and die for the motor company to accept responsibility? There have been several problems with this vehicle since we bought it and the fact that we purchased it practically brand new it is concerning to have so much go wrong.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 25 MPH, the transmission fault failure service now warning light illuminated. The contact continued driving to her residence and then the engine fault failure service now warning light also illuminated. The contact towed the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the transmission control module to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired.