general problems of the 2017 Ford Focus - part 1

Driving down the road the car shimmed a couple times I parked it turned it off when I went to turn it back on. It wouldn’t turn over when I finally got it to turn on. It wouldn’t go on reverse sometimes it’ll start sometimes it won’t sometimes it’ll go in reverse and sometimes it won’t.

While driving on the highway, (I-40) my dash lit up with "transmission fault stop car" the it shudders, bounced in and out of gear to finally completely stopped. Although I wasn't killed, my life was in danger. I believe the 2017 dual clutch transmission is faulty and should be added to the 2016 recall.

Recall maintenance with regard to NHTSA id number: 19v515000 for a purge valve was completed 1/9/2025. Starting in October 12, 2025, driving on the freeway, a large "bang" was felt/heard. I pulled over, the dust cover under the car had ripped partially off and took a portion of my grill trim with it. The car still ran perfectly fine, so I continued the mile and a half to my house. I did not see anything that I may have hit on the highway and did not see anything eject behind my car when this incident happened. I noticed the oil light begin to flicker as I was ½ mile from home for maybe a second, then it was off and then flickered again, it did not stay lit. I filed a claim with my insurance-progressive-they wanted to total my car without inspecting it. I negotiated and they had me take it to the Ford dealer who inspected it visually to see if the cause was internal combustion as my insurance claimed, or external damage. See photos. They recommended a full engine replacement after only a visual inspection and charged me $276. 70. I had the oil-pan replaced as shown on my bank statement $1053. 77, with interstate automotive who verified no engine damage was found. Next the lcd instrument panel showed distorted, or not at all, or perfectly fine at times, which made it hard to read, and no instrument warnings are given for any issue, just the check engine light. As of today, 3/10/26, car will no longer reverse or progress into 2nd gear, is sluggish and feels as though it has no power at all. This happened randomly on 3/9/26 after the car would not start and it was believed to be a battery issue. The battery was replaced 3/9/26 $148. 08. When the diagnostic codes for the check engine light were tested, they showed a faulty co2 module issue. New parts will be installed on 3/11/26. All of the above described issues seem as though they could be related to a major safety issue with this vehicle, but Ford insists any courtesy fixes are not available to my VIN.

Transmission is overheating is the warning I keep getting on the dashboard read out. The transmission is shifting very hard and you can hear it grinding and winding up when it is trying to shift. I had the car put on a computer at a shop and the codes were reading that the clutch was not releasing and he tried to reset it and it kept failing. I googled my car and saw that this is a known problem with them and that Ford hasn't acknowledged the problem yet.

Transmission actuator a and actuator b making the transmission not able to shift. Happened after new battery installed and was told it could have been a surge sent to transmission control module breaking the actuators.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while stopped at a traffic light, the light changed, and the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle hesitated and then jolted into gear. The contact stated that the failure was a recurring failure. The contact stated that the engine symbol was displayed, and the vehicle failed to respond while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact stated that the rpm gauge was red-lined. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to accelerate above 10 mph. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that at first, he was stopping the vehicle and turning off and restarting the vehicle to reset the transmission. The contact stated that turning off and restarting the vehicle no longer resets the transmission. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed and determined that the transmission needed to be rebuilt. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was 92,619.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving approximately 10 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed and the check engine warning light illuminated, and the transmission failed to shift to second gear. The vehicle was also unable to shift into reverse(r). The vehicle was taken to an auto parts store, where a handheld scanner retrieved a code indicating that “ clutch b-fork stuck”. The contact had not taken the vehicle to a dealer or independent mechanic to be diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 17,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the transmission unexpectedly downshifted and the vehicle stalled. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was restarted. The dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 73,001.

My 2017 Ford Focus transmission failed at 113,000 miles. I was stranded in the middle of nowhere with a flashing warning light and no cell signal.

We have a 2017 Ford Focus hatchback with a 2. 0l engine and a powershift transmission. We are the original owners and the vehicle only has 56,000 miles. The vehicle, when accelerating and shifting from 1st gear to second gear, is slipping, yielding a loss of torque in an unpredicted fashion. My daughter has nearly been rearended several times. The slip and reengagement is only in this shifting pattern (I. E. Not evident in higher gears nor at higher speeds). Ford service acknowledges that there is a problem but is not warrantying the service do to the age of the vehicle. My contention that unintended acceleration is a safety issue and I would like NHTSA to investigate this very serious issue, on such a low mileage vehicle. I worry about the safety of my daughter and other vehicles.

On July 2nd my daughter was driving her car and the engine slowed and turned off. She tried to out it in reverse and it would not function. We took it to our mechanics and he got a p287a - code - I then spoke with Ford customer service and they stated the extended warranty on that same issue expired June 30th and advised me to reach out to you as the extended warranty was not listed for our vehicle I am hoping someone can help us since we are under the mileage and it was only a few days past the time frame. Thank you.

The contact called on behalf of the owner of a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while his friend was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle jerked and unexpectedly downshifted. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The owner of the vehicle pulled over to the side of the road. The vehicle returned to normal functionality, but the failure became a regular occurrence. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure persisted. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the nhsta hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 91,000.

Catastrophic engine failure, engine died and was unable to shift into gear my 16 year old daughter was driving on a busy highway when the engine died, causing her to stop completely on a 55 mph road. She was unable to get the car into a gear to have it pushed to the side of the road and had to sit in the car with traffic flying by her until we could get a tow truck (approximately 30 minutes). She was unable to get out due to the traffic being so heavy. The vehicle had a limited warranty left on it, and it was towed to a facility where they diagnosed with blown head gasket and/or cracked cylinder head. It was towed to a dealership where it was discovered the car had an active recall that caused the engine failure. There was no warning signs previously.

Bought this car last June of this year and ever since then. First gear will buck sometime and second gear too. After I gotten to thrird gear it goes away. My local tires plus says that's with all Ford Focus'ES he think I'm crazy but I have let a friend drive it when I there and he says the same thing as me. It bucks. .

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle shuddered while shifting between 1st and 2nd gear, or upon acceleration. There was no warning light illuminated. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact was informed that the VIN was not under recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 56,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle had hesitated to start. Additionally, the contact stated while driving approximately 20 mph, the vehicle started sputtering, the rpms increased, and the vehicle lost drive power. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The messages "transmission overheat" and "transmission failure. Could be overheating - pull vehicle over ASAP" were displayed. The vehicle was steered to the side of the road. The vehicle was restarted and was towed to the residence. The vehicle was then towed to a dealer, where the vehicle made an abnormal rattling sound. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,463.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while his son was driving at slow speeds, the vehicle jerked while depressing the accelerator pedal. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The mechanic retrieved a code for transmission clutch failure. The dealer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that there were no recalls related to the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was referred to the manufacturer and attempted to file a case; however, the contact was referred to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 82,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle inadvertently lost motive power. The contact was able to pull to the shoulder of the roadway, where the vehicle was able to restart after cooling down. The transmission overheating warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed a failure with the transmission. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA campaign number: 18v845000 (power train); but was informed that the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 86,000. The VIN was not available.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle shuddered and failed to shift properly with no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission clutch had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for further assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 73,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that after starting and driving forward, the check engine warning light illuminated, and the vehicle began to shake and vibrate. The vehicle was driven to the dealer who diagnosed that the clutch assembly, cylinder assembly, lever assembly and seals were faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 18v845000 (power train). The contact stated that the vehicle had experienced the failure listed in the recall. The failure mileage was 57,313.

The vehichle was shuttering upon while it shifted into higher gears for a while and then about a week ago the vehicle stalled and would no longer go into gear.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 25 mph, the transmission was shifting abnormally and jumping into gear. The contact stated that the check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a transmission center, and it was determined that there was a clutch and gear shifting failure. The mechanic recommended a dual clutch and gear assembly replacement. The local dealer was contacted but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired; however, the contact was provided and estimate for the repair. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 108,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated while the vehicle was stopped at a traffic light, the accelerator pedal was depressed and the transmission failed to shift properly, with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with transmission failure. The contact was informed that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 92,000.

Ford Focus 2017 hatchback causing traffic jams and backup do to low speed, overheating, stalling, jerky shifting, failure to move or hesitation in the middle of driving, causing the car to stop or slow down in the middle of traffic and blocking exits and cars from moving around the vehicle. Transmission overheating and car says to pull over when driving after a few minutes. Powertrain is affected car not driving at correct speed. Transmission clutch a disengaged and having a hard time engaging. Constant clutch issues. Causing issues to driver safety and others on the road. Ford knows about these models but are failing to fix at affordable price or provide warranty. Not upholding customer satisfactory.

Current Ford recall NHTSA campaign number: 23v905000 only includes vins with automatic transmissions. However, the oil pump belt & timing belt are the same used on the automatic transmissions that are subject of the recall. These components are just as likely to fail on manual transmission vins but are not included in the current campaign.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that there was an abnormal sound coming from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and the dealer found particles from the clutch inside the actuators, which caused the clutch to fail. The contact had the clutch replaced; however, soon after picking up the vehicle from the dealer, the contact stated that the failure recurred with the messages "transmission overheating stop safely" and "transmission hot wait 5 mins" displayed on the instrument panel. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 18v845000 (power train); and the contact was referred to the NHTSA hotline for further assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 97,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated while driving 30 mph, the accelerator pedal was depressed and the vehicle failed to respond, and the vehicle started jerking. The transmission symbol was displayed, and a message that the transmission was hot and to wait for 5 minutes was displayed. The vehicle was then taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed with canister failure. The vehicle was repaired; however, after 5 minutes of driving the vehicle, the message was displayed again. The contact pulled over to the side of the road, and with assistance from two other drivers, the vehicle was pushed to a parking lot. The contact stated that after the vehicle had cooled down, the contact drove home. The contact stated that the vehicle was losing motive power while shifting gear. The following day the vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with clutch failure. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not repaired because the vehicle was not under recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 61,000.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle was jerking. The vehicle rolled backwards while on an incline. The contact stated that the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle hesitated and lost motive power. The contact stated that the transmission overheated, and a message to pull over was displayed. The vehicle was slow to move when the accelerator pedal was depressed. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who confirmed there was no recall coverage on the VIN for the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 138,000.

I have a 2017 Ford Focus that the powertrain is messed up in it there's been multiple other cars that I've looked up online that have the same problem it's faulty of Ford and I think there needs to be a recall on these things if there is let me know because I know there was a lawsuit going I don't know what happened but these transmissions are faulty in these cars.

While driving my 2017 Ford Focus se (automatic), the vehicle began experiencing severe transmission problems including hesitation, shuddering during acceleration, jerking between shifts, and eventually a complete failure to engage any gear. The car became inoperable in traffic, posing a serious safety risk to me and others. There were no warning lights or messages prior to the failure. I took the vehicle to a certified Ford dealership, and after performing a diagnostic inspection, they confirmed the transmission had failed and needs to be completely replaced. The symptoms are consistent with widespread issues linked to the dps6 powershift dual-clutch transmission used in Ford Focus models from 2012 to 2018. Ford is aware of these defects, as documented in multiple technical service bulletins (including tsbs 16-0109, 17-0044, and 18-2358), and several class action lawsuits. Despite this being a known and well-documented defect, Ford has refused to provide any assistance or coverage for the repair, citing the expiration of the basic warranty. I believe this is a manufacturing defect that should be covered regardless of mileage due to the nature and safety risk of the failure. The transmission issue has been diagnosed and confirmed by a Ford dealership and the vehicle is available for inspection upon request. I am filing this report because I believe this issue continues to put drivers at risk and warrants further investigation and action by NHTSA.

The contact owns a 2017 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle briefly shuddered and jerked before returning to normal functionality. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed failures with the clutch position sensor, and the battery monitoring sensor. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, a case was opened, and the contact was referred to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was 63,000.

The contact’s son owns a 2017 Ford Focus. While the contact’s son was pulling into a parking space, the vehicle lost motive power, with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle then failed to exceed 10 mph. The vehicle failed to start and was towed to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that the transmission control module had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure and confirmed that the vehicle was not under recall. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was 95,000.

A "p07a3" code on a 2017 Ford Focus indicates that the transmission's "friction element a" is stuck on, meaning a clutch within the transmission is not releasing properly, likely causing issues with shifting and potentially putting the car into limp mode; this is a serious issue that requires professional repair as it usually points towards internal transmission problems. I see slot of people are having the same issue online but yet there is no recall on this issue and there should be.

Rpm going to high and irregular shifting . This happened after I replaced the part for the 24n07 campaign.

I started driving and the car seemed to act rough. I went up a small hill and I had almost no power halfway up. The car showed the symbol of the little car that looks like it is sliding. I had to chug up the rest of the hill fighting the car itself because there was no where else to go. It kept revving but went no more than about ten mph. Once I got over the top I pulled into someone's driveway so I could get back home. I was unable to reverse. The car just revved. I had to turn off the car, put it in neutral, and push the car backwards out of the driveway. I was able to start the car and nurse it home, but it jumped and revved the entire time. I tried to use down hills to my advantage and barely paused at stop signs for fear of getting stuck on the road. I got to my house and parked. Now the car only starts when it wants to. I checked codes and got p287a for the clutch. I haven't called Ford for service options yet because I really don't know what to do and have no idea how I'd get there. I think this car should have been included in the powertrain recall because this came out of nowhere.