Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2013 Ford Focus Electric owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus Electric. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to start while the battery was fully charged. The message "Stop Safely Now" was displayed. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under Ford Campaign Number: 15N03 because the campaign had expired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 50,000.
The contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus Electric. The contact stated while turning off the vehicle, the lights and radio remained operational which resulted in the battery being drained. The vehicle was diagnosed and repaired; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 45,000.
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.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus Electric. While driving approximately 55 MPH, the warning lights on the instrument panel illuminated and the screen displayed "pull over". The contact pulled the vehicle over to the side of the road to recharge the battery. A mechanic replaced the 12 volt battery; however, the failure recurred multiple times. The failure was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 900.
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus Electric. While driving various speeds, the vehicle stalled and the "stop safely now" warning indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle stalled. The failure occurred intermittently. The vehicle was taken to the dealer twice for diagnostic testing; however, the cause of the failure could not be determined. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 18,000.
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
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. Thankfully not a lot of high speed traffic and I was able to pull over somewhere safe to turn off the car and turn it back on again to get it restarted. When we returned home from the second incident I plugged in the car to charge it so we could take it back to Ford for service, however the car didn't register the plug. Tried plugging it in and unplugging it from the wall then putting everything back in to try and get it to charge. …
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. I attempted this several more times at each successive traffic light and the radio would not shut off. After one such reset, the stop safely now warning was displayed on the dash. I was stopped at a traffic light at the time and was able to reset the vehicle and safely enter a parking lot and wait for a tow - with the radio still on. …
While driving I lost the ability to accelerate the vehicle as I approached an incline in the road and a "stop safely now" and "see manual" warning light appeared on the dash. I activated the hazard lights and pulled over into the bike lane. I shut off the car, opened the door and was able to restart the car after several failed attempts. Approximately 5 minutes later, I successfully restarted the car and drove back home, only the car lost the ability to accelerate again as I came through a major intersection. This time the warning signs were not activated until I had coasted to a stop. Then the same "stop safely now" and "see manual" warning light appeared on the dash. I placed the car in park and walked a mile home. The powertrain control module reprogram was completed by Ford in September of 2013. This is the 7th occurrence since the PCM has been reprogrammed by Ford. …
I was driving and the car started beeping, and flashed up an warning 'safely stop now'. I immediately pulled the car over to the shoulder, and hit the off button. The engine shut off, but the error did not go away, I could navigate around the computer a bit, and it showed a 'warning' but would not let me see what the warning was. When I opened the car door, none of the accessory power shut off like it should. I got out of the car (removing the key) and locked the car. Still all of the accessory power stayed on. I got back in, and tried to start the car, and it would not start, and flashed the message 'safely stop now' repeatedly. I called roadside assistance, and they sent a tow truck. The accessory power said on for the entire hour I waited, by the time they got there, I got back into the car and it let me start it. It ran all the way to the dealership without any issue (3 miles). …
NHTSA investigations
Electric powertrain propulsion failure
In an October 28, 2013 letter to NHTSA, Ford Motor Company (Ford) submitted a recall notice identifying a defect in the Powertrain Control Module (PCM) software in approximately 2,456 model year (MY) 2012 through 2014 Ford Focus Electric vehicles manufactured from September 15, 2011 through August 23, 2013 (Recall No.
Pedestrian alert sounds
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles.
Electrical complaints in other Focus Electric years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2013 Ford Focus Electric?
NHTSA has 27 complaints about the electrical system of the 2013 Ford Focus Electric, 39% of the model year's 69 complaints. The component named most often is 12v/24v/48v battery (1 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2013 Ford Focus Electric electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for the 2013 Ford Focus Electric, though it has 3 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2013 Ford Focus Electric electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 5,000 miles, and 79% before 25,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.