Used 2012 Ford Focus Sedan Consumer Reviews
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Buyer Beware! Be AFRAID
Steve Westcott, 03/24/2016
2012 Ford Focus S 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
21 of 23 people found this review helpful
I bought a 2012 Ford Focus and have been disappointed ever since. It is the worst vehicle I have owned. It has been recalled twice in a year because of transmission problems. I had to take it in again on my own recently. The transmission in these vehicles is a real mess. Save yourself headaches and buy a Corolla. I had one and it was one of the best cars I have owned. I have major buyer's remorse with the Focus. The car even stalled when i was driving on the highway. It is truly a road hazard. The Ford Fiesta has the same transmission problems. The F-150 appears to be the only vehicle made by Ford that's worth it.
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Worst mistake we've ever made
Courtney, 01/22/2016
2012 Ford Focus S 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
21 of 23 people found this review helpful
Buying this car was the biggest mistake we ever made. It's given us nothing but problem after problem after problem. Bought it at 36k miles, it's now at 80k. Most days my husband takes my 2001 Chevy Lumina to work to avoid driving this plague of a vehicle. It is quite literally a hazard on the road. It shifts terribly, and at lights, you have to accelerate cautiously because there's no way of knowing if the car is suddenly going to upshift 2 gears from a dead stop and rear end the car in front of you. People think I don't know how to drive when they see me trying to drive out of a parking lot at low speed, which this car is not capable of doing, because it's constantly trying to upshift or downshift and causing you to rocket forward and then you have to brake to slow down. And the brakes are extremely touchy on this car, far too much so. Ford has sent bulletin after bulletin asking car owners to bring their Focuses in for repairs on the clutch and transmission. The last time we did that, the very next day, the car got stuck in 2nd gear on the highway which prevented it from going over 25mph and my husband almost got into a wreck. We had to have our insurance tow the car to the dealership because Ford refused to come out. Then they kept our car for 11 days!!! They said it would be a one day repair but I got excuse after excuse when I called asking where my car was. They did NOT offer us a loaner during those 11 days. We finally gave up and although our Ford drives like it's on its last legs (which it probably is), we aren't letting Ford touch it again. The next time we bring it to a dealership, we're coming home with a replacement car. We paid $16,000 for this car less than 2 years ago and it's worth less than $10,000. STAY AWAY FROM THIS CAR.
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THE WORST FORD I'VE EVER OWNED!!!!
Phill O, 10/06/2015
2012 Ford Focus Titanium 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 6AM)
9 of 9 people found this review helpful
1st let me say i was eagerly awaiting this car. i loved the styling, performance and economy of it. Now lemme tell ya, this car is a POS!!! the transmission is junk (look at Ford's FSAs regarding this). the rear door latch broke, nobody uses this door so it should not have failed, the drivers window motor failed the day before a rain storm. and now, today the freaking drivers door will not latch closed!!! DO NOT BUY ONE OF THESE VEHICLES! YOU WILL REGRET IT!
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Absolute Underachiever
Nick, 11/06/2016
2012 Ford Focus SE 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
14 of 15 people found this review helpful
The 2012 Ford Focus is the Detroit Lions of cars. Unreliable, ugly, underachieving, and sad. Funnily enough, they're both from Detroit and the two most stressful and irritating parts of my life. Most of the Ford Focus' issues stem from the problematic Automatic-Manual Dual-Clutch transmission. The purpose of this transmission was to increase MPG, which it does, but at a ver large cost. The transmission causes the car to constantly jerk, shudder, and roll backwards on hills. Personally, this isn't even close t the worst part about my Focus. My Focus decides when to start. Yep, you heard that right, it decides. Sometimes it takes me 10-12 turns of the key to start the damn thing. This is caused by the TCM (Transmission Control Module) which is the little computer inside the car that controls the gears. This little computer will often not register that my car is in park, and won't let me turn it on. Not only is this very problematic, but will probably end up with shelling out handfuls of cash to the dealership. Another cool driving "feature" is that the car will occasionally get stuck at 4000-6000 rpm and won't let you accelerate past 25 mph. this is incredibly terrifying when it happens, but I guess is part of the 2012 Ford Focus experience (tm). The Focus also has the most poorly designed interior that I have seen in my entire life. The cloth that the seats are made out of stains when touched by water. You know, just that substance that covers over 70% of the Earth and falls from the gosh darn sky. Another issue is that the auxiliary port makes its home in the glovebox. This leaves you with two options. Drive around with the glovebox open like a goober, or subject your aux cord to heavy strain and eventual breakage. While we are on the topic of phone related things, there is nowhere to put your phone in the car. This car was made in 2012, everyone and their mother's own phones. Overall, the interior feels incredibly cheap and uncomfortable. Honestly, all you really need is a car that takes you from point A to point B, and this thing can't even do that. At least being a Lions fan doesn't cost 8,000+ dollars.
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Another story of a transmission problem
Cynthia Beard, 11/18/2015
2012 Ford Focus Titanium 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 6AM)
14 of 15 people found this review helpful
I was rolling along in traffic on a main interstate highway and 2012 Ford Focus suddenly would not accelerate and then stalled. This was followed by all sorts of things lighting up on my dash, and the car would not re- start, wouldn't turn over, nothing. I was lucky to be able to get over to the shoulder of the highway, although it was on the left side of the road, which was super dangerous. Long story short, I was denied roadside assistance (which I thought I was covered under) because my car was no longer under warranty. I had 76,000 and change. My warranty apparently ran out at 60,000. However, this well known transmission problem that exists with this vehicle, is covered under an "extended warranty" up to 150,000 miles (but there's a $100 deductible!!!). So, because there's a faulty issue with this vehicle, a documented, known fault in the manufacturing; my money, time and convenience are not a matter of concern. My car had been properly maintained, in fact had been inspected not a week before this happened, and there was no indication of this happening. This is extremely dangerous and frankly I find it unacceptable that FORD didn't do more to prevent this from happening. There is one Service Advisor at the dealership who was helpful. He has agreed to submit my towing bills for reimbursement. No one was really apologetic or concerned with my satisfaction as a Ford customer. If I was knowingly selling dangerous, faulty vehicles, I would be falling all over myself to make sure I could make the customer happy, if that were possible. Basically the attitude is one of indifference. I thought I was doing a good thing by buying an American car, but I would never buy another Ford again, and will try to trade this vehicle in ASAP. I will buy a Subaru if I can afford it. In short, buyer beware ... transmission problem, Ford not too concerned with customer satisfaction.
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