2013 Ford Focus Electric Problems
Compared with other Ford Focus Electric years
Typical for this model
62/100 1.3× a typical year · 50 = typical
- Complaint rate is 1.3× that of a typical Ford Focus Electric year, weighted for crashes, fires, injuries, recalls and mileage, and allowing for the era and for how long each year has had to collect complaints.
- 50 of its 69 complaints were filed by the end of 2015.
- Most reported problem: Power steering assist loss and steering lock-up (6 complaints, median 13,000 mi).
- 3 recall campaigns on record. A VIN search at nhtsa.gov/recalls shows open recalls for a specific vehicle.
Nearby years with fewer complaints than typical and no open NHTSA investigation: 2012
Based only on NHTSA complaints, recalls and investigations. Not adjusted for how many vehicles were sold, and not a reliability rating. How this is calculated
- Complaints
- 69filed with NHTSA
- Median mileage
- 5,450miles, 64 complaints with mileage
- Recalls
- 3campaigns on record
- Trend
- StableComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.
- NHTSA crash rating
- —no overall rating published
- EPA fuel economy
- 105 MPGecombined, Electric FWD · 110 city / 99 hwy
Sources: NHTSA records for the 2013 Ford Focus Electric (complaints, recalls, investigations), EPA fuel economy. Report an error
What owners report
The overwhelming theme in owner complaints about the 2013 Focus Electric is a sudden loss of drive power accompanied by a "Stop Safely Now" message on the dash, often within the first few thousand miles. Owners also describe charging and 12-volt battery problems, steering assist loss, and door latches or locks that will not release. Many report repeat visits to the dealer with the cause not found.
- Transmission and drivetrain
Sudden loss of power with "Stop Safely Now" warning
Mentioned in 46 of 60 sampled complaints
Owners describe a chime, then a "Stop Safely Now" or "Pull Over" message, followed by complete loss of acceleration; some say steering and braking assist also dropped out. Incidents happened at highway speeds, at intersections, and in parking lots, and the car sometimes restarted after a wait or after exiting and re-entering, sometimes not. Complaints describe repeated dealer visits where codes were downloaded but no cause was found, and several mention the powertrain software recall without a lasting fix. Mostly reported under about 10,000 miles, with many at only a few thousand miles from new.
Recall 13V5230004 related service bulletins
What to check: Ask whether the powertrain control module software recall (13V523000) was performed and whether any "Stop Safely Now" codes are stored. A test drive should include a highway-speed stretch and a stop-start cycle.
2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records
“While braking for a stop sign, there was a thud, the stop safely now light came on, and the car stopped immediately. It would not re-start. I pushed it to the side and called for a tow. It is now at the Ford dealer. This is the third incident of this kind and the second time I have taken it to the dealer and reported the incident to NHTSA.”
NHTSA complaint #10549569, filed 2013-10, 1,284 miles“Driving our electric Ford focus to work when left-most display screen flashes, stop safely now! Message at the same moment that all drive power is completely cut off. Coasted to a stop, turned the car off, waited a minute or so, and turned car back on. Fortunately this occurred at 5:30 am on a two lane road, shortly after leaving my home, and before entering the interstate.”
NHTSA complaint #10551229, filed 2013-11, 5,700 miles - Electrical system
Charging faults and 12-volt battery drain
Mentioned in 8 of 60 sampled complaints
Owners report the car failing to charge on the 120-volt cord, reduced range after charging, and accessories or lights staying powered after the vehicle was switched off, draining the 12-volt battery. Some describe no-start conditions where the dealer replaced the 12-volt battery or reflashed modules, and complaints note the problem returning afterward. One owner reported the charge cord recall and repeated module reprogramming. Spread across the mileage range, from under 1,000 miles to over 45,000 miles.
Recall 18V5920004 related service bulletins
What to check: Confirm which charge cord the car comes with and whether the 120-volt cord recall (18V592000) was completed. Check the 12-volt battery age and ask whether any charge or telematics module updates were applied.
2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records
“The first event occurred on 7/17/2013, at 2267 miles. I had charged the battery overnight (at our motel), using the 120-volt charging cord. I had pulled the car around to the front of the motel the car was stationary, in park, when the stop safely now message was displayed. I just powered the car off and powered it back on. That cleared the ssn message. Then, I drove home, as planned, with no recurrences of the error message. …”
NHTSA complaint #10549442, filed 2013-10, 2,267 miles“My vehicle displayed a stop safely now warning during my normal morning commute. The warning was preceded by a failure of the radio portion of the sync system. I briefly turned off the vehicle at a usual stop on my route and upon turning it on, the radio volume, power and tuning were all unresponsive. I attempted to reset the vehicle at the next traffic light by powering down and opening the door, but the radio remained on even after the vehicle was off and the door was opened. …”
NHTSA complaint #10549370, filed 2013-10, 3,600 miles - Steering
Power steering assist loss and steering lock-up
- 6 complaints (9%)
- median 13,000 mi at 3.5 yrs old (6 state mileage, few)
- filed 2013–2018
Complaints describe the power steering warning light coming on with assist gone, making the wheel very hard to turn, sometimes while stationary and sometimes during a turn. In some reports the steering wheel locked and the car continued straight, and owners say dealers diagnosed steering column or steering sensor replacement. These reports tend to come at higher mileage than the power-loss complaints. Mostly reported between roughly 6,000 and 105,000 miles, often on cars several years old.
What to check: On a test drive, turn the wheel fully at low speed and watch for the power steering assist warning. Ask whether the steering column or steering angle sensor has been replaced.
2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records
“Was driving at 25 MPH in a residential zone, with 48 miles on the battery when an alert dinged and the message on the screen said pull over to safety now. I immediately pulled out of traffic into a parking space as the power steering stopped working, then steering then completely locked, couldn't turn the wheel. The car would no longer go forward / had lost power. And the power breaks didn't seem to be functioning. Thankfully I had already come to a complete stop. …”
NHTSA complaint #10655138, filed 2014-11, 20,000 miles“At the time of this report we have had two occurrences of a stop safely now error message while driving at highway speeds on this vehicle. During each failure the vehicle stopped functioning abruptly with no warning before the failure. All steering, control of vehicle and propulsion was lost. On the first failure we had approximately 7 seconds of momentum before coming to a stop and on the second occurrence we had an abrupt stop as if the brakes were slammed on forcibly. As a result I was thrown forward towards the steering wheel. …”
NHTSA complaint #10547429, filed 2013-10, 1,803 miles
Buying note. The 2013 Focus Electric has a well-documented pattern of "Stop Safely Now" power loss at low mileage, so ask for the recall and software history and check for stored codes before buying. Charging and 12-volt battery quirks and steering assist loss are also worth confirming on a test drive.
Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.
NHTSA recorded 69 consumer complaints for the 2013 Ford Focus Electric. 64 of the complaints include a mileage, and 89% of those were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the median is 5,450 miles. Of all complaints, 1 involved a crash, 1 an injury, according to the filers. NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns and 25 technical service bulletins for this model year. Compared with the other 2 Ford Focus Electric model years that have at least 25 complaints and are old enough to compare, this one scores 62 out of 100, where 50 is a typical year for the model (typical for this model). The comparison allows for the era and for how long each year has had to collect complaints, but not for how many vehicles were sold.
Which parts are reported most
Complaints can name more than one part, so the counts add up to more than the total. Select a part to see its complaints, recalls and bulletins.
- Electrical system27 39%
- Engine16 23%
- Fuel system15 22%
- Steering9 13%
- Vehicle speed control5 7.2%
- Brakes4 5.8%
- Other or unknown3 4.3%
- Exterior lighting1 1.5%
Example complaints
Transmission and drivetrain: “So I was driving home last night in the rain and the speedometer was jumping around a little and the traction control flashed a couple times and I thought 'oh it's just cause the rain' well today the same thing was happening while I was driving. Then I got a warning light saying 'low brake fluid' and the brakes locked up while I was doing 30mph. It went away and drove fine but it will pop up every 4 miles or so saying low brake fluid”
NHTSA complaint #11193717, filed 2019-04, 91,500 milesElectrical system: “Driving the vehicle home when warning lights began to flash on the dash saying to check owners manual and to pull over. The gas pedal became unresponsive and I coasted up to a red light at a left turn signal and stopped, put on my hazard lights. Eventually turned vehicle off then on again and was able to drive it home. Second incident was on 9/29/13, and had 2863 miles on it. While driving to dinner the same warning lights appeared on dash, and we lost power. …”
NHTSA complaint #10546858, filed 2013-10, 2,351 milesEngine: “The engine shut down with a 'stop safely now' warning. Since it was the first time it happened, it was not clear what happened, so I came to stop in middle of the road. This has happened a total of 5 times now..with two events within a mile of each other yesterday 10/26. Yesterday the first event was at 40 MPH again in the middle of the road (luckily not very busy at the time) and I was able to pull over to side of the road. The other two times, it happened while backing out of the driveway onto the road.”
NHTSA complaint #10549680, filed 2013-10, 1,275 milesFuel system: “While driving the vehicle, a loud chime sounded, with a red triangle saying, stop safely now as well as a yellow see manual indication. This was very dangerous because it was sudden and while driving. The car lost all power and I had to attempt to pull of the street so I wouldn't cause an accident. I shifted to park and turned the car off and back on and it resolved the issue. However, 2 days later the same problem occurred but this time I was unable to restart the vehicle and needed to tow the car to the dealership.”
NHTSA complaint #10750116, filed 2015-08, 60,650 milesMileage when problems were reported
89% of the 64 complaints with a mileage were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles; the middle half falls between 2,351 and 19,500 miles.
Complaints by year filed
Trend: stable. Complaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.
Fuel economy and running cost
EPA ratings for each 2013 Ford Focus Electric version. Annual fuel cost is the EPA's estimate at its current fuel prices for 15,000 miles a year (55% city driving); for electric versions it is the cost of electricity and the rating is in MPGe.
| Version | Engine | Transmission | City | Hwy | Comb. | Fuel / yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Focus Electric FWD | Electric | single-speed | 110 | 99 | 105 MPGe | $700 |
Source: U.S. EPA and Department of Energy, fueleconomy.gov. Ratings are for comparing vehicles; real-world mileage varies with driving and conditions.
Recalls and investigations
- 18V592000Sep 10, 2018Equipment › ElectricalCovers: Ford Focus Electric 2012–2015, Fusion Hybrid 2013–2015, C-MAX 2013–2015
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…
- 13V523000Oct 30, 2013Power train › Automatic transmission › Control module (tcm/pcm/tecm)Covers: Ford Focus Electric 2012–2014
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.
- 13V475000Oct 17, 2013Electrical system › Ignition › Anti-theft › Control moduleCovers: Ford Focus Electric 2012–2013, C-MAX Energi 2013, C-MAX 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…
Recall details for the 2013 Ford Focus Electric → · Check a VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls
NHTSA investigations
- PE13031Electric powertrain propulsion failureClosed · Sep 6, 2013
Technical service bulletins
TSBs are manufacturer notes to dealers about known repair procedures. They are not recalls and do not by themselves mean a vehicle has a fault. 25 on record; the latest 10 are shown.
- 10174403Apr 24, 2020Electrical system. Some 2012-2016 Focus Electric vehicles built on 15-Sep-2011 and through 9-Dec-2015 may exhibit a Stop Safely Now message displayed in the instrument panel cluster (IPC) message center. This may be…
- 10169994Dec 12, 2019Latches, locks and linkages, Body and structure. Customer Satisfaction Program 19N09 Certain 2011-2014 Model Year Edge and MKX and 2013-2014 Model Year Explorer, Flex, and MKT Vehicles Left Front Door Latch Extended Coverage
- 10167225Oct 4, 2019Electrical system. Some 2012-2016 Focus Electric vehicles may abort the battery energy control module (BECM) on demand self-test but pass the network test. This is the result of a module software limitation and does…
- 10148720Oct 4, 2018Equipment, Transmission and drivetrain, Engine. Some 2011-2014 Fiesta and 2012-2014 Focus vehicles equipped with a DPS6 transmission may experience a fluid leak between the engine and transmission. Be aware that the engine oil and DPS6…
- 10144217Jul 20, 2018Equipment, Electrical system. Some 2013-2018 Fusion Energi, 2012-2018 Focus Electric and 2013-2017 C-MAX Energi vehicles equipped with a TCU built on or before 11-Oct-2017 may exhibit a discharged battery, inoperative remote…
- 10144195Jul 20, 2018Equipment, Electrical system. Some 2012-2018 Focus Electric, 2013-2017 C-Max Energi, and 2013-2018 Fusion Energi plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) may exhibit the high voltage (HV) battery failing to charge while connected…
- 10136582Feb 20, 2018Electrical system. Some 2012-2014 Focus vehicles equipped with a 2.0L gasoline direct injection (GDI) engine may exhibit concerns of engine runs rough, crank no-start, loss of power, loss of engine RPM, and/or…
- 10095781Feb 9, 2017Electrical system. Some 2012-2017 focus electric/2013-2017 cmax energi/fusion energi/2015-2017 mkc/mkz/2016-2017 mkx and 2017 continental vehicles operating with a 3g tcu on or before 16-jan-2017 may not respond to…
- 10094770Dec 5, 2016Equipment. Certain 2015 model year mkc and mkz vehicles equipped with the reserve equipment group, and certain 2012-2016 focus electric, c-max energi, and fusion energi vehicles - embedded modem replacement.
- 10109047Sep 26, 2016Transmission and drivetrain. Some 2011-2016 Fiesta and 2012-2016 Focus vehicles equipped with a DPS6 transmission may exhibit intermittent concerns of loss of transmission engagement while driving, intermittent no start or a…
Other model years of the Ford Focus Electric
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | Crash ★ | MPG | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 7 | 6,650 | 0 | — | 107 MPGe | — | Not enough data |
| 2016 | 5 | 10,000 | 1 | — | 105 MPGe | — | Not enough data |
| 2015 | 12 | 7,050 | 2 | — | 105 MPGe | — | Not enough data |
| 2014 | 55 | 9,500 | 2 | — | 105 MPGe | 50 · Typical | Falling |
| 2013 | 69 | 5,450 | 3 | — | 105 MPGe | 62 · Typical | Stable |
| 2012 | 33 | 19,000 | 3 | — | 105 MPGe | 27 · Fewer | Falling |
All Ford Focus Electric model years · Best and worst years by complaints
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2013 Ford Focus Electric?
The overwhelming theme in owner complaints about the 2013 Focus Electric is a sudden loss of drive power accompanied by a "Stop Safely Now" message on the dash, often within the first few thousand miles. The issues reported most often: Sudden loss of power with "Stop Safely Now" warning; Charging faults and 12-volt battery drain; Power steering assist loss and steering lock-up.
How many NHTSA complaints does the 2013 Ford Focus Electric have?
NHTSA recorded 69 consumer complaints for the 2013 Ford Focus Electric as of Oct 29, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
What part of the 2013 Ford Focus Electric is reported most often?
Transmission and drivetrain is named most often, in 37 complaints (54% of the total), followed by electrical system with 27.
Has the 2013 Ford Focus Electric been recalled?
NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for this model year. To check a specific vehicle, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
How efficient is the 2013 Ford Focus Electric according to the EPA?
The EPA rates the 2013 Ford Focus Electric (Focus Electric, Electric) at 105 MPGe combined, 110 city and 99 highway, with an estimated annual electricity cost of $700 at 15,000 miles a year. Other battery and motor versions are rated differently.
At what mileage are problems with the 2013 Ford Focus Electric reported?
Among the 64 complaints that include a mileage, the median is 5,450 miles and the middle half falls between 2,351 and 19,500 miles; 89% were filed for vehicles with under 50,000 miles.
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 29, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Fuel economy is from the EPA and DOE (fueleconomy.gov).
Complaint counts come from NHTSA’s public complaint database; we count each complaint once. The source records for this vehicle are on nhtsa.gov. Scores and trends are our own summaries of that data, described in the methodology. This page is not legal, safety or repair advice: for a specific vehicle, check its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and ask a qualified mechanic. See an error? Tell us.