2018 FORD FOCUS Complaints

There was supposedly a recall of 2012-2018 Ford focuses such as mine, which is a 2018, but somehow my car is not included in this recall even though it seems to be affected by the same problem. I believe it to have a faulty purge valve (forgive me if I am not precise in my terminology) as it stalls after I get gas and try to start it up. I have to rev the engine to get it to stay on. I cannot stop after I get it started because it roughly idles and seems like it will shut back off if I do, which makes this a little dangerous as well as damaging for my car. I am distressed that my car is not included in this recall because I desperately need to repair it before I ruin my engine but I cannot because I don't have any money.

I had the engine on 2018 (61000 mileage) focus replaced 1 and 1/2 year ago because of the oil pan wet belt recall. Now my transmission locked up because of clutch failure. I was lucky that I was coming to a stop while parking in my driveway. Now im told by mechanic that i need a new transmission. Why was ford allowed to continue selling cars with substandard engines.

Car doesn't start after putting in gas, has to revved to start. Leaking fluid on right front driver side. Car doesn't start in intervals throughout the day.

Battery randomly died. When battery was replaced at the mechanic, it caused a glitch or broke something in or connected to the transmission. Car couldn’t reverse nor go faster than 1st gear. Had to drive 11 mph all the way to the Ford Dealership. Both Meineke AND Ford Service Manager said this is a KNOWN problem with Ford Focus’ and confirmed it is a common problem. I am now being quoted $10,000 to replace the transmission.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle, the engine was idling roughly, and the vehicle jerked abnormally. The contact stated that the vehicle needed to be shifted into neutral in to be started. Upon shifting into reverse, the vehicle shut off, with several unknown warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed, and the contact was advised that the TCM was inoperable and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 63,451,

at 72000 miles the vehicle stopped running no power no warning lights on indication of any issue. luckily it was on a side road. hade it towed to the ford dealer diagnosed with a broken timing belt and needed a new engine. the quote off $7000.00 to replace the engine with a new long block after paying the lone on the car I replaced the long block myself just last week on 07/20/2026 at a cost off around $5000.00

I’ve had this car since 2021 and it’s been worked on 3 times for the same issues. My clutch and a couple other things for the transmission. I just recently had it worked on for transmission problems and paid $1100 for a belt replacement that didn’t even fix the issue. I told them it was clutch A like the code readers pulled (multiple times might I add) and they did a test and charged me for that test and said it was just the harness belt. Today my check engine light came on, and I had a code pulled and it was clutch A like I told them (P0902). I’ve had the actuator replaced at least twice and the power module has also been replaced. My cars engine light is on and it’s shifting hard and is taking a while to even shift. I have the invoices to show that each time it’s been worked on it’s been an issue with the transmission. My VIN number needs to be recalled before something worse happens. Each time it’s been worked on it costed me too much money especially to keep having the same problems. I’ve also done research that proves this particular issue is an issue with a lot of ford focus cars.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle intermittently stalled with excessive fuel consumption. As a former Ford independent mechanic, the contact diagnosed the vehicle with a deformed fuel tank. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the canister purge valve was replaced under NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V735000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); however, the manufacturer denied coverage for the fuel tank replacement. The contact stated that the failure reoccurred. No warning light was illuminated. The contact later received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 26V369000 (Fuel System, Gasoline), and the vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the canister purge valve was replaced a second time; however, the failure persisted. The dealer notified the manufacturer of the failure. The vehicle was not further repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 180,000.

An authorized dealership performed a mandatory manufacturer safety recall repair on my vehicle for the Engine Oil Pump Belt and Tensioner (Ford Recall 23S64 / NHTSA Campaign 23V-905). While performing this specific recall, the initial facility negligently compromised the cooling system and created a severe leak, directly causing complete and total engine destruction. A subsequent independent diagnostic inspection by a separate authorized dealership confirmed this negligence. The vehicle became instantly disabled while driving, creating a severe road hazard. Total documented property damages are $14,448.31. Furthermore, the dealership and Ford Corporate have explicitly refused to repair the vehicle, despite Ford's dealer bulletins authorizing long-block engine replacements for failures related to this recall. They have also refused to reimburse me for the totaled vehicle or the out-of-pocket expenses incurred. Ford customer service has employed shady tactics, denying liability and stonewalling my attempts to reach a resolution, completely failing to provide the remedy mandated by this safety recall. The vehicle and all documentation are available for inspection upon request.

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered, and the transmission was not shifting properly while accelerating. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed with a clutch failure, and a clutch replacement was suggested at 27,000 miles. The vehicle was repaired under warranty. The contact stated that the shuddering persisted, and the purge valves were replaced after the clutch repair at 69,000 miles. The contact stated that on another occasion, while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered and almost stalled. The vehicle was pulled over into a parking lot. The vehicle was driven back to the residence. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, where it was diagnosed with a second clutch failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 86,000.