2001 Ford Focus Brakes Problems
- Complaints
- 199about this part
- Share
- 11%of 1,761 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 25,975miles
- Trend
- StableComplaints filed in the last 3 full calendar years are within 25% of the 3 years before.
NHTSA recorded 199 complaints about the brakes of the 2001 Ford Focus, 11% of the 1,761 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 25,975 miles. 18 of these say a crash was involved and 2 a fire, according to the filers.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“I was driving to work and I turned on my cruise control, I had to barely brake for a caution when a car was coming in my lane, once I went around them...I left the cruise control off....but the car sped up on its own...approximately 65-70 miles an hour. My brakes were working just fine. …”
NHTSA complaint #10494804, filed 2013-01, 153,000 miles“After driving from work to home, about 4.6 miles, I turned right into my parking space in front of my home when the brakes failed while the car accelerated directly into the rock wall that serves as a barrier between the parking, walkway and building; I immediately pulled up the emergency brake, put it into park and turned the car off. I had it towed into my mechanic and was notified that they found throttle cable was bound up and they re-routed cable properly. I would like to know if anyone has ever had this experience with their vehicle accelerating when brakes are applied on this model. …”
NHTSA complaint #11186950, filed 2019-03, 123,961 miles“Premature brake pad and rotor replacements on front of Ford Focus sedan. Brakes replaced at 21,000 miles. I have never had to replace rotors on any car this early. Ford owners of Focus have listed this problem hundreds of times. Yet I know of no recall for this problem. Some have had it in less than 10,000 miles. This really needs to be looked into.”
NHTSA complaint #10038822, filed 2003-09, 21,600 miles“Bought vehicle 2nd hand, cash, everything worked fine. Now, I have no brake lights, & my door locks no longer work on the remote, or the all lock/unlock button, & now my trunk latch is not working correctly. The door locks are self locking (meaning that they lock at any given time whenever they please.) the brake switch has been replaced, all bulbs have been checked & replaced, fuses keep getting blown. Cannot locate fuse for the door locks. Ford has a campaign for the year 2000 for a door latch issue, campaign #05s27 NHTSA id# 05v-030. …”
NHTSA complaint #10579548, filed 2014-04, 130,000 miles“Front wheel rotors had to be replaced at 20,598 miles. Brakes were squealing from the time of purchase (new car), but we were told that they would loosen up and be okay --- they never did stop squealing..when we inquired about any recall, we were told there were no recalls from the factory where the car was manufactured.”
NHTSA complaint #10033215, filed 2003-08, 20,598 milesRelated service bulletins
- 10017934Jun 7, 2005Rear brake squeal.
Brakes: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 21 | 3% |
| 2017 | 11 | 1% |
| 2016 | 13 | 1% |
| 2015 | 10 | 1% |
| 2014 | 32 | 1% |
| 2013 | 24 | 1% |
| 2012 | 61 | 2% |
| 2011 | 5 | 4% |
| 2010 | 11 | 4% |
| 2009 | 9 | 4% |
| 2008 | 13 | 5% |
| 2007 | 20 | 5% |
| 2006 | 14 | 7% |
| 2005 | 30 | 7% |
| 2004 | 40 | 10% |
| 2003 | 62 | 6% |
| 2002 | 72 | 8% |
| 2001 | 199 | 11% |
| 2000 | 424 | 12% |
| 1999 | 2 | 18% |
Other parts of the 2001 Ford Focus
496 complaintsFuel system
318 complaintsEngine cooling
243 complaintsSuspension
150 complaintsAir bags
147 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
90 complaintsSteering
86 complaintsTires
74 complaintsLatches, locks and linkages
66 complaintsVehicle speed control
66 complaintsBody and structure
60 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
59 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2001 Ford Focus
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.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology