RecallRadar

HomeFordFocus → 2017

2017 Ford Focus Recalls & Complaints

10

open safety recalls on record

Critical

1,176 owner complaints filed · Severity Index 0.15 · updated 2026-08-07

The recalls

Critical18V735000

Fuel System, Gasoline:Storage

The excessive vaccuum may result in an engine stall while driving, without warning and without the ability to restart the vehicle, raises the risk of a crash.

Remedy & full details

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Powertrain Control Module. Dealers will also check for fault codes and replace the CPV as needed. If the CPV is replaced, dealers will inspect and replace the carbon canister, fuel tank and fuel delivery module as necessary. The recall began August 19, 2019. Owners may contact Ford Customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S32. Note: Until the vehicle is serviced for this concern, owners are advised to keep the fuel tank at least halfway full.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012-2018 Ford Focus vehicles with a 2.0L GDI or 2.0L GTDI engine. The Canister Purge Valve (CPV) may malfunction, possibly causing excessive vacuum in fuel vapor management system.

Critical19V515000

Fuel System, Gasoline:Storage

The excessive vacuum may result in an engine stall while driving, without warning and without the ability to restart the vehicle, raises the risk of a crash.

Remedy & full details

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Powertrain Control Module. Dealers will also check for fault codes and replace the CPV as needed. If the CPV is replaced, dealers will inspect and replace the carbon canister, fuel tank and fuel delivery module as necessary. The recall began July 29, 2019. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 19S22.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012 and 2017 Focus vehicles equipped with 2.0L GDI gasoline engines and 2013-2014 Focus ST vehicles equipped with 2.0L GTDI engines, previously recalled under 18V-735. The affected vehicles did not have the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) updated as intended. Therefore, the Canister Purge Valve (CPV) may malfunction, possibly causing excessive vacuum in the fuel vapor management system.

Critical18V845000

Power Train:Manual Transmission

transmission fluid leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components can raises the risk of a fire.

Remedy & full details

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will update vehicles with software that detects and prevents prolonged clutch slip, and will replace the clutch, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began January 17, 2019. Owners may contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 18S07. Note: This recall is an expansion of Recall 18V-169.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Ford Focus vehicles equipped with a 1.0L Fox GTDI engine and a 6-speed manual transmission. The clutch may fracture, resulting in damage to the transmission assembly and possibly a transmission fluid leak.

Critical23V905000

Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine:Oil/Lubrication:Pump

loss of oil pressure can result in an engine stall and a loss of power braking assist, raises the risk of a crash.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will replace the oil pump tensioner assembly and oil pump drive belt, free of charge. If engine failure occurs due to a damaged oil pump belt and/or oil pump belt tensioner, Ford has authorized dealers to replace the engine assembly as an interim repair before the availability of remedy parts for the final repair. This repair will be free of charge (parts and labor). Owner notification letters were mailed August 11, 2025. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 23S64.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Ford Focus and 2018-2022 Ford EcoSport vehicles. The oil pump drive belt or drive belt tensioner may fail, resulting in a loss of engine oil pressure.

Critical26V011000

Equipment:Electrical:Engine Block Heater

electrical short circuit can raises the risk of a fire.

Remedy & full details

Owners are advised not to plug in their block heater until the vehicle is remedied. Dealers will replace the block heater, free of charge. Owners will also have a alternative option to replace engine block heater element with a threaded plug, and remove the block heater electrical cord. Interim letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed March 6, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S01. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on January 16, 2026.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2013-2018 Focus, 2013-2019 Escape, and 2015-2016 MKC vehicles equipped with a 2.0L engine. The engine block heater may crack and develop a coolant leak, causing it to short circuit when the block heater is plugged in.

Critical26V012000

Equipment:Electrical:Engine Block Heater

electrical short circuit can raises the risk of a fire.

Remedy & full details

Owners are advised not to plug in their block heater until the vehicle is remedied. Dealers will replace the block heater, free of charge. Owners will also have a alternative option to replace engine block heater element with a threaded blanking plug, and remove the block heater electrical cord. Interim letters, notifying owners of the safety risk, were mailed February 13, 2026. Additional letters will be sent once the final remedy is available, anticipated in October 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 25SA4. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall became searchable on NHTSA.gov on January 16, 2026. This recall expands previous recall number 25V685.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Focus, 2019 Explorer, and 2024 Explorer vehicles. The engine block heater may crack and develop a coolant leak, causing it to short circuit when the block heater is plugged in.

Critical26V376000

Power Train:Manual Transmission

transmission fluid leak in the presence of an ignition source such as hot engine or exhaust components can raises the risk of a fire.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will update the software, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed July 6, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S43. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on July 6,2026.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Focus and 2013-2016 Fusion vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under recall numbers 18V169 and 18V845. The clutch may fracture, resulting in damage to the transmission assembly and possibly a transmission fluid leak.

Serious17V528000

Seat Belts:Rear/Other

The reduced seat back strength may raises the risk of injury in the event of a crash.

Remedy & full details

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the rear second left side rear seat back as necessary, free of charge. The recall began October 10, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 17C13.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2017 Focus vehicles. The rear left side seat back frame may have an insufficient weld between the outboard pivot bracket and the pivot nut joint, resulting in the seat back having reduced strength. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 207, "Seating Systems," and 210, "Seat Belt Assembly Anchorages."

Serious16V698000

Latches/Locks/Linkages:Hatchback/Liftgate:Lock

With only a single press needed, the driver may accidently unlatch the hatchback, raises the risk of injury to any unsecured passengers in the back.

Remedy & full details

Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Body Control Module with updated software, free of charge. The recall began February 10, 2017. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 16C13.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain model year 2013-2017 Ford Focus hatchback vehicles manufactured February 14, 2012, to August 26, 2016 and equipped with a manual transmission. The hatchback of the affected vehicles may be unlatched with a single press of the interior latch release button. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 206, "Door Locks and Door Retention Components."

Serious26V369000

Fuel System, Gasoline:Storage:Evaporative Emissions:Canister

engine that stalls while driving raises the risk of a crash.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will update the powertrain control module (PCM) software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed July 29, 2026. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 26S40. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will become searchable on NHTSA.gov on July 6,2026.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2012-2018 Focus vehicles previously repaired incorrectly under recall number 18V735. The Canister Purge Valve (CPV) may malfunction, causing the engine to stall unexpectedly while driving.

Complaint volume

1,176 this model-year 7 median, same year

Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.

What owners reported happened

28Crashes
4Fires
26Injuries
0Deaths

Across 1,176 complaints. Severity Index 0.15.

Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.

What owners report most

Power Train426 · 36%Engine225 · 19%Fuel/Propulsion System115 · 10%Unknown Or Other79 · 7%Engine And Engine Cooling78 · 7%Fuel System, Gasoline51 · 4%Vehicle Speed Control34 · 3%Electrical System33 · 3%
  1. Power Train — 426 reports
  2. Engine — 225 reports
  3. Fuel/Propulsion System — 115 reports
  4. Unknown Or Other — 79 reports
  5. Engine And Engine Cooling — 78 reports
  6. Fuel System, Gasoline — 51 reports
  7. Vehicle Speed Control — 34 reports
  8. Electrical System — 33 reports
  9. Steering — 19 reports
  10. Air Bags — 15 reports

What to do

  1. Find your 17-character VIN on the driver's door jamb or the base of the windscreen.
  2. Check it against NHTSA's official lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls — the authoritative record for your exact car.
  3. Book the repair with any franchised dealer. Safety recall work is free, with no time limit and regardless of who owns the car now.

Other model years

1999 · 2000 (18) · 2001 (14) · 2002 (8) · 2003 (7) · 2004 (6) · 2005 (5) · 2006 (2) · 2007 (2) · 2008 (2) · 2009 · 2010 · 2011 · 2012 (8) · 2013 (12) · 2014 (12) · 2015 (9) · 2016 (10) · 2017 · 2018 (7)

Numbers in brackets are open recall campaigns for that year.

Questions

Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?

Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.

Do I pay for recall repairs?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.

Why are there complaints but no recalls?

Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.