2012 Ford FOCUS ELECTRIC: complaints, problems and recalls

DRIVING ABOUT 30 MILES PER HOUR, THE CAR CHIMED A WARNING AND FLASHED "STOP SAFELY NOW" ON THE DASHBOARD. THE CAR LOST SPEED AND I COASTED TO A STOP AT THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. I WAS NOT ABLE TO RESTART MY CAR. THE "STOP SAFELY NOW" WARNING WITH CHIME REPEATED EACH TIME I TRIED TO RESTART. I CALLED A TOW TRUCK, HOWEVER, AFTER ABOUT 20 MINUTES, I WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE CAR. THIS HAS HAPPENED AT LEAST 7 TIMES PREVIOUSLY (VERY SIMILAR CIRCUMSTANCES). I'VE HAD THE CAR SERVICED MULTIPLE TIMES, TELLING THE DEALER OF THIS ISSUE, BUT DESPITE SOFTWARE UPG…

Owner-reported narrative. 7,916 miles reported. Look up ODI 10546765 at NHTSA ↗

WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY BRIDGE, THE FORD FOCUS ELECTRIC STALLED. THE DASHBOARD SHOWS A SIGN "STOP SAFELY NOW" AND THEN A PICTURE OF A YELLOW WRENCH. I HAD TO STOP AT THE HIGHWAY'S SHOULDER. VERY VERY DANGEROUS. VERY UNSAFE. I TRIED TO START THE CAR. IT WOULD NOT START. AFTER 45 MINUTES, WHEN ALL THE ELECTRICAL LIGHT INDICATORS ON THE DASHBOARD SHOWED BLACK, I PUSHED THE START BUTTON AGAIN, AND IT STARTED. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION AND I HEARD IN THE ONLINE FORUM THAT "CAR STALLED SUDDENLY WHILE DRIVING" WAS COMMON RECENTLY. FORD NEE…

Owner-reported narrative. 7,600 miles reported. Look up ODI 10548195 at NHTSA ↗

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 WAS ATTEMPTED WHICH DID NOT HAPPEN, THE DASH DISPLAY WAS STILL ACTIVE. REPEATED ATTEMPTS FINALLY COMPLETELY SHUT DOWN THE SYSTEM, WHICH WAS THEN STARTED NORMALLY. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 8,664 miles reported. Look up ODI 10548524 at NHTSA ↗

"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 IT RESTARTED AFTER THAT. I WAS STUCK FOR ABOUT 3 OR 4 MINUTES. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 8,033 miles reported. Look up ODI 10548777 at NHTSA ↗

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. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 10,900 miles reported. Look up ODI 10549495 at NHTSA ↗

WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE, I SUDDENLY RECEIVED A "STOP SAFELY NOW" MESSAGE. THIS HAS HAPPENED SEVERAL TIMES SINCE THE FIRST INCIDENT, SOMETIMES WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE, AND SOMETIMES WHILE THE VEHICLE IS NOT IN MOTION. IN ADDITION, THE STATED AVAILABLE CAPACITY OF THE BATTERY (23KWH) IS IN FACT NOT ACCESSIBLE, AND THE VEHICLE IS ONLY ABLE TO USE 16KWH BEFORE THE STOP SAFELY NOW MESSAGE IS DISPLAYED. *TR

Owner-reported narrative. 100 miles reported. Look up ODI 10553518 at NHTSA ↗

FULL CHARGE, ENTERED READY TO DRIVE MODE, SELECTED REVERSE AND CAR SHUT DOWN. READY TO DRIVE INDICATOR OFF. PLACED BACK IN PARK, PRESSED STOP BUTTON, DEPRESSED BRAKE PEDAL, PRESSED START BUTTON AND CAR INDICATED READY TO DRIVE AGAIN. SELECTED REVERSE AND IT WORKED NORMALLY. SEPARATE INCIDENT, ONE WEEK PRIOR. 5 MILES OF RANGE REMAINING WHILE PULLING INTO DRIVEWAY UP A HILL. PRESSED ACCELERATOR AND LEFT DISPLAY SHOWED STOP SAFELY NOW, AND POWER WAS REMOVED. CAR STALLED ON HILL, READY TO DRIVE INDICATOR OFF. PLACED BACK IN PARK, SET HAND B…

Owner-reported narrative. 1,402 miles reported. Look up ODI 10561306 at NHTSA ↗

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 FREEWAY, IN A PARKING LOT AND HAPPENS AT ALL SPEEDS AND HAPPENS RANDOMLY. FORTUNATELY IT HAS NOT YET CAUSED AN ACCIDENT BUT IT EASILY CAN ESPECIALLY IF IN THE FAST LANE ON THE FREEWAY OR IN AN INTERSECTION.

Owner-reported narrative. 2,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10567198 at NHTSA ↗

Reported: 2013-10-17 (October 17, 2013)

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."

Consequence: 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.

Remedy: 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.

Reported: 2013-10-30 (October 30, 2013)

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.

Consequence: An unexpected loss of power while driving increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: 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.

Reported: 2018-09-10 (September 10, 2018)

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.

Consequence: An overheated cord can increase the risk of a fire.

Remedy: 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.