Used 2013 Ford Focus Consumer Reviews

NOT LOVING IT!

I bought my 2013 Focus SE a month ago. I cried for two days over the crazy transmission. I now have 500 miles and it is driving better. The driver's seat is uncomfortable and lots of road noise. Not enough cup holders or storage space.If I could do it again, I would not buy this car! I am not trying to be negative, just stating what I feel about the car. I talked to the dealership about the road noise and the seat and they acted as though they have never heard any complaints, but I have read several. I do like some of the features and like the way it doesn't feel like a small car. Anyway, I am trying to love it because I have to pay for it for six years :(

Shiny Junk

I bought this car brand new in August 2012 after realizing that I had to say goodbye to my beloved 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid which had about 125,000 miles on it (and was still getting 45mpg!). Fast forward to now -- the car has 16,200 miles on it and might be the biggest piece of junk I have ever driven. It handles TERRIBLY in snow (like the worst I've ever seen). I've had to have the sunroof fixed cause water was leaking into my car every time it rained, and it shakes and judders for no reason. Lots of road noise, bad acceleration. Just awful. I'm trading it in and going back to Honda.

bad decision

I had a toyotay camry, saw all the great commercials about the gas milage on the focus, and thought wow better than the camry, so i bought a 2013 ford focus titanium flex fuel, wow what a big mistake if i could get rid of this today i would hate everything about this car, gas mileage sucks, sounds and acts weird like it is going to fall appart any minute, will not make this mistake again, going back to toyota,,soon as i can.. this car sucks real BAD......

I bought two of them.

For those who say don't buy this car, you are off the mark! All you have to do is take it to Ford to have the clutches replaced! I did on my wife's 2013 SE sedan at about 40k miles on it! We like this car so much, I bought a 2013 Certified Pre-Owned Focus SE Hatchback for my 18 year old daughter yesterday! The Sync system is second to none! To those who say, Don't buy a Ford, get over yourself! BTW, they both get 33 MPG in town and 41 MPG on highway. Again, second to none! Once you have the clutches done it's a great car!

bad transmission

the transmission is terrible will accelerate without warning feels like your driving a stick shift bucks alot and will stay reving after letting off gas cannot get gas miledge it states do not buy this without a very long test drive

The little engine that can't.

This vehicle was my first new vehicle purchase before this, i had mostly clapped out rusty trucks. To say this car dissapoints in the power department is an understatement. It's dangerously slow and underpowered. To climb any kind of moderate grade, it needs to be in a low gear and engine screaming to maintain speed. Forget about trying to gain speed if you need to. Mine has a 5spd manual, and it's dopey and clunky to shift sometimes, and others it's like working a fine bolt action rifle. Depends on the day. The clutch feel is non-existent. The seats legitimately cause pain after being in them for more than 30 minutes at a time. Making long trips miserable. On the up side, it's a decent looking car. Gets good fuel economy for how much you have to tramp on it to go anywhere. I dig the Ford SYNC radio set up. Even though the AUX jack is junk. It's got fair storage and the rear seats fold down. Overall though, i wish i had kept the rusty old Dodge D100 i had traded on the Focus and kept putting monies into it. At least it had power...

UNRELIABLE

I've owned a 2013 Focus for two months now and it's been back to the shop twice for bad grounding wires in two different spots. The last one was for the fuel pump so the car died in the middle of traffic without warning!! Not the reliability you'd expect from a car with 1400 miles on it. The dealership just laughs it off. Ford has come a long way but their individual dealerships still has a lot to learn!! Read up on their Electronic Power Assist Steering too. Not the sales hype either, find the complaints, there is a Tech Bulletin released on the problem but once again, the service center at the dealership acts as if there is no problem. My advice ... shop elsewhere.

skip this car

company car and no one want to drive it. terrible in rain, transmission jumps, front end sounds like fall apart ect....

Focus was not on quality

Don't

Worst car I have ever owned

OMG! If i could trade in!

I currently drive a 08' civic hybrid and it went into the shop for repairs and this is the rental car that they gave me. This car takes off faster then my civic, better exterior design then my civic, but a smaller inside. I would trade my civic in for this car if they cabin was more spacey. But i love my civic so she is a keeper.... Great gas mileage...easy to drive...get one!

Terrible Transmission - Buy something else

The interior build quality, sync capability and low cabin noise is what attracted me to this car. Now that I've had it for about 3 months it's quite possibly the worst new car I have ever owned. The MyTouch Sync system is very glitchy and slow. The premium sound system 'burps' when at low volume and anything with bass comes on the radio and I don't listen to rap or anything with excessive bass to begin with. The worst part is the transmission. I have had the software updated twice and I'm scheduled for another appointment for a transmission that feels like it's loose and slipping. I will never own another Ford product after the experience I've had.

Transmission problem

I am very unhappy with the "new transmission" Ford has put in the new 2013 Focus. My car is 7 months old and has had 4 visits for the same issue. Last month it was in the shop for almost 2 weeks due to a leak of a seal and needing a new clutch. The transmission shifts inappropriatly and puts me at high risk for smashing into a car ahead of me. The answer given by the Ford employees is that I need to learn the car and how to drive it. Unacceptable answer!

YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR

This car is very cheap to purchase and lots of fun to drive. But since I had it I had to replace one of the front drive axles and the parking brake. The front end sounded loose. The paint on the hood already chipped off. I drive very conservatively and do not follow cars close for this reason. I know it is not my fault. The S model comes with automatic lights but only on the dash, so when it gets dark enough your dash lights come on, but not your headlights. I have been pulled over by the police already because I did not have my headlights on. By the time I sold it two years after I bought it, the interior materials started to deteriorate. I sold it before the rest of the vehicle went with it, the warranty was expired, and I was upside down in the loan. On the other hand it was fun to drive and with the price being so cheap you can afford to make the modifications you want to make it yours

So far pleasantly surprised!

2013 Focus Titanium Hatchback 5MT. MPG has been good with a high of 33.7 and a low of 31.3 after 1500 miles and 5 weeks of ownership. I have proformance suspension with 18 in wheels. Handles wonderfully on dry or wet roads here in FL. I enjoy all the tech extras, I traded in a 2003 Honda Pilot with 170K miles. Still learning to use MyFord Touch with SYNC efficiently. After 2 1/2 years and over 25k miles I still enjoy driving this car. Handles wonderfully and MPG is much better than expected. Cons are sync navigation system and outward visibility. I am at 55,000 miles now and on my third set of tires. The Michelin performance summer tires didn’t last much past 25,000 miles. I just put all season tires on it. There is a bigger grip difference than I expected. The clutch is just about worn out. I taught three kids how to drive a standard shift car and they were pretty brutal on it. My MPG has dropped to 28 to 29 MPG. I moved to an area that has a lot more stop and go driving. I would say the biggest disappointment in the car it is the navigation system. Very limited on what you can find and not very good at understanding voice commands compared to other cars I’ve been in. So far the only money I’ve spent on the car has been for maintenance tires, windshield wipers, oil changes… The car is pretty low for me so I am looking to get into a compact SUV. I’m waiting to see how the new escape or the MKC/corsair are when they come out later this year. If not any of those I’ll go back to Japanese cars that I have owned it for about the last 25 years. Sept 1, 2020 69,000 miles. Clutch has quit slipping so there is no need at this time to replace. Intelligent access touch pad entry has quit working on drivers side. The replacement part is $185, Ford says they need to diagnose then remove and replace. New handle comes with primer only so it will have to be painted. Too much hassle and cost. This appears to be a common problem. The LCD between the tach and speedometer disappears when it’s hot outside. I found a replacement for $100 and it appears easy to DIY. Those are my only problems. I moved to Houston and my MPG has returned to over 33 due to my new driving conditions. I put summer tires back on so the handling has improved greatly. I still enjoy the car.

still very good: get the 5sp and non MFT

ery good choice, however for maximum reliability (and long term maintenance cost savings) skip the Dual Clutch and the My Ford Touch options. Bought in July 2013, 5000 troublefree, comfortable miles so far. The Manual transmission's the better choice by far (you take a little hit in fuel economy ironically, but trust me, it's gonna cost a LOT less to maintain than the dual clutch) Comfortable on long drives (- saw an average of 39 MPG on 800 mile trip ), adequate pep for city stop and go, plus passing on highways (3rd gear is very sweet around 5500 rpm . . . ). Definitely spec'ed well, and punches a bit above its price range - But get the manual w/o MFT Update oct 2016: I still stand by the manual transmission and the MFT free as the best combination. If you're buying used then this will be your best bet AND you'll likely get it cheap because of the residual reputation hit Ford Focuses took in general for the "dual clutch" nightmares and the MFT cock ups. Avoid both and you have a fairly bomb proof car with good fuel economy, some good performance, and very good reliability (Focus reliability overall is dragged down by the 2 aforementioned items; scores on European equivalents w 5 speed and non MFT are much better than average) Other than regular oil and filter changes, no issues.

Nope

First, I realize it's dumb to buy a car and not like it; but I had a good test drive & it made sense due to being a good used deal. Wanted a middle ground compact car; that is decent performance and economy. Cruze, Civic, Elantra weren't gutsy enough; and something like the Si is fun but not practical enough. I came from a 2008 Mazda 3 5spd which I now realize was amazing, but figured would change it up. Inside is cramped, the center stack is huge and has no storage. Rear leg room is poor/worse. Auto transmission (not select shift) is hit or miss; can be very smooth or very stupid. Fuel economy is not as hoped. The 3 got me 25 in mostly city driving (rated 23/29); and this gets 28.5.

What A Car goNNA Buy Another one

Almost all miles highway moved from michigan to mississippi made alot of trips home

Three clutches, one transmission, shotty service

Bought my car new at the end of 2012. Like clockwork, my clutches started going out every 15K miles. The last replacement included a new transmission- and that has helped substantially, but it's been 20K miles, and I can feel the shuddering starting to come back. That aside (and it's a big deal), it gets good gas mileage, it's an affordable payment, and it's a nice sized car for commuting.

My first Ford

Honestly probably the best car iv ever owned, there are recalls on the car like crazy but those can easily be fixed for free. But I would recommend this vehicle to friends and family or just anyone it’s comfy, smooth drive, good handling, it’s a little shakey at times, but I think because it’s partically a sports car also.

Focus SE 5 Speed with appearance package

Picked it up for 10 grand in 2017 with 35k miles as a college student. Car now has 97k miles and car has been excellent. Only big repair I had was the ac compressor which involves replacing the one time use belt as well ($1200). The 6 speaker audio system is pretty garbage so I replaced all door speakers and 2 tweeters with Infinity brand speakers and the audio quality is much better. For a compact car, the acceleration is pretty impressive as sub 7 second 0-60s is achievable in this little car. I’ve also ran e85 in the car a few times as it is a flex fuel and it’s accelerated faster off the line but I stopped using e85 as it puts too much wear on the stock clutch. It’s unfortunate that the focus is no longer in production for the US market but I would definitely recommend this vehicle ONLY with the 5 speed

small

very small , not recommenced if you have kids and carseats . Passenger has no leg room. transmission , clutch and fuel tank recalled .

No Problems

Bought Car in 2015 with low miles. Read reviews and had Buyers remorse. This car has been flawless. Replaced Battery. Tires, and brakes in 2020 and it still runs like a champ. Absolutely no problems.

The car that didn’t

In the first year, the engine had to be rebuilt due to an oil leak and it never got better. Multiple recalls. Jerky shifting and poor acceleration. The Ac had to be replaced at 60k and the transmission failed at 80k. Not a well built car. After buying it in 2013, the transmission going at 80k was a mixed feeling. By then, the car was paid for and I was driving it for free, but getting an excuse to finally get rid of it was our joy

DO NOT BUY!

One of my biggest regrets in my life is buying this car. My transmission blew out at under 70,000 miles and Ford didn't care! My mechanic was on the phone with several representatives and ALL of them said I had to pay FULL PRICE for a brand new transmission! And guess what they also said? "I'm so sorry about that!" Your "sorries" didn't pay for the transmission, so they did not matter to me! Little did I know, this was only the beginning of what Ford would put me through. This transmission failure happened in 2021. In fall of 2022, the transmission FAILED two more times within the span of 6 months and guess what? 3 of those 6 months it spent in the shop waiting for a new transmission! That's right, I went 3 months with no car because again, they DO NOT CARE! On the third and probably not the final time, Ford agreed only to send the transmission quickly if I paid $800! Unbelievable! I can't wait to get rid of this! So, if you want to experience the mental breakdown I did by all means purchase this car. I hope I saved someone the pain of going through what I went through!

Good Riddance, 2013 Ford Focus

Research this transmission!! I unfortunately didn't have an option, this was a family car that was sold to me for college. I've had nothing but issues. First off, it shifts hard and feels like it's about to break gears or something with how laggy and lurchy it shifts. It began to shudder when accelerating. Every trip it got worse. I got lucky and had to finally replace the dual clutch (yes. It's an automatic trans) at 100k miles. After that though, problems got worse. I ended up stranded on a major interstate! The car shuddered, all gauges flashed, engine light came on, and then it stalled out and died. Extremely unsafe! I thought that was a fluke until I was accelerating at a green light and it did it again! Thank goodness I wasn't rear-ended because I couldn't do anything. I couldn't even turn the car off until a minute of the transmission and electronics freaking out. The third time it did it, I knew it had to go. Extremely unsafe, and if you merely research the DPS6 transmission, you'll see that Ford royally messed up and didn't know what they were doing. Dangerous! Please do your research, and if you're looking at one, there are better, more reliable vehicles! Please, for your safety!!!

$4400 CLUTCH repair at 80k miles!!

Totally a junk car. Won't go into gear, and it turns out no one wants to touch it for repair except Ford, for the price above. I've never been so disgusted with a vehicle I've owned. I'm going to sell it for scrap or donate, not putting that sort of money into it.

DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES DO BUSINESS WITH TH

Performance Ford and Ford Motor Company are criminals. My father bought a Focus in 2013, brand new, from Performance Fore Bountiful. He brought it back to them with only 8000 miles complaining of a transmission shutter in 2014. PF replaced the clutch assembly under warranty. The exact same thing with the exact same repair happened in 2017 and 2019 with 21k miles and 40k miles. Unfortunately my poor father was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2018 and passed away last year in 2023. Performance Ford placated him long enough to get him out of his 50k powertrain warranty. Telling him they fixed it. My father did tell me it was "fixed" one time under warranty one time. When in fact Ford knew it could never be. Just google the Ford Powershift transmission. Look at the class action lawsuits. Look at the US Department of Justice investigation. Note where the above investigations found the powershift can NEVER be fixed as it is a dual DRY clutch. Ford knew all this in PRODUCTION and released it anyway. Against advisement from the engineers. After Ford settled the class action and multiple other law suits, Ford released it AGAIN for Focus and Fiesta in 2017-2019. People have died due to the transmission shifting itself into neutral at 75 MPH. I unfortunately inherited the Focus with only 53k miles. I thought it was "fixed." The transmission is going out again according to an independent mechanic. Performance Ford said it was fine when I later took it in for the 14M02 recall which is only a litigation avoidance tactic that Ford call the customer satisfaction program-extended warranty on the TCM. PF declined to fix it it under the litigation avoidance warranty. I sold the Honda I owned because it had 150k miles when I got the xxx focus. Honda probably would have lasted longer. Performance says call Ford. Ford says call dealer. I instead called the Attorney General. Hoping to get an investigation against either. Gephardt is next. DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES DO BUSINESS WITH THESE CRIMINALS. DO NOT EVEN BUY AN AIR FILTER FROM THEM!!!

Never left me sit, but watch out for this $$ pit.

The most important thing is that this vehicle never left me stranded. For that I will give it three stars. For me, the two things I liked the most was the gas mileage, and the fact it never broke down. But everything else did. I bought a 5-speed manual hatchback, with 75k miles on it, and right off the bat had issues. Faulty EVAP valve. Whenever you got gas, and started it, the car would shut off. Got that fixed. First year I changed the tires, brakes, and rotors. Second year of ownership I had to fix the master cylinder and water pump. Third year I had to replace the struts, shocks, and then the radiator cracked and coolant leaked everywhere. Ford Sync is garbage. The interior is arguably the cheapest, and loudest that I have ever sat in. Everything rattles. My old 99 Camry was nicer than this 2013 Ford. There was also no visor for the sunroof? Who in their right mind gives you a sun roof, but not a way to cover it? I traded it in Yesterday for a Honda. Good riddance and goodbye Ford.

I liked the car

The car is good on gas and the highway