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 car automatically accelerated while parking perpendicular in a parking structure; driver had slowed/braked, to 5 miles or less, to park and taken her foot off the gas and pressed the brake. Abruptly the car accelerated and the car crashed into the wall in front with the driver air bags activated and front bumper crushed.
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.
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
Tl* the contact owns a 2013 Ford Focus Electric. While driving approximately 20 MPH, the engine stalled. After restarting, the vehicle resumed normal operation. The failure recurred three times. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 13V523000 (power train). The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 20,900.
While making a left turn and accelerating out of the turn the engine, power train and breaking system stopped working. The vehicle stopped dead in the street. The dash displayed "stop safely now" and a yellow warning light symbol of a wrench appeared. I took several attempts to restart using various methods the vehicle finally reset and started.
Stop safely now warning on dash. Car will not move. Had to be towed to dealer again. This is the fourth time to occur in 7 weeks. Been at the dealer most of the time since buying it on 12/16/2016. Ford needs to send an engineer to rectify the issue before someone is injured or killed due to this safety defect.
2013 Focus Electric. Was just heading to freeway when a warning displayed "stop safely now" a few seconds later the vechile power to motor stopped and vehicle was stalled in traffic with wife and grandchildren in car. Vehicle was on a full charge and 1 mile from startup.
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. …
Related recalls
Power train › Automatic transmission › Control module (TCM/PCM/tecm)
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.
Remedy: Ford will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the power control module, free of charge. The recall beganon November 22, 2013. Ford's recall campaign number is 13S09.
Transmission complaints in other Focus Electric years
Frequently asked questions
How common are transmission problems on the 2013 Ford Focus Electric?
NHTSA has 37 complaints about the transmission & drivetrain of the 2013 Ford Focus Electric, 54% of the model year's 69 complaints.
Is there a recall for 2013 Ford Focus Electric transmission problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 13V-523 (control module (tcm/pcm/tecm), Oct 30, 2013). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2013 Ford Focus Electric transmission problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 5,000 miles, and 86% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 1 crash, 0 fires and 1 injury to transmission & drivetrain problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
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.