Electrical complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
While driving around [redacted] PM on Thursday, [redacted], the Focus Electric displayed a "Stop Safely Now" message and proceeded to cut power going to the electric motor, allowing the car only to coast as if it was in neutral. Luckily no vehicles were around in my lanes, as that easily could've caused an accident. Electric steering, regen braking, and air conditioning were all disabled. I was able to coast it into a nearby FireHouse Subs parking lot, and directly into a parking spot. Had to disconnect the 12 Volt battery for 5 minutes and reconnect to hopefully reset the computers in the car. Still displayed SSN message after reconnection. I let the car sit for another 30 minutes and was able to start it up like nothing happened. …
Brand new Focus Electric, less than 3 days old from dealer on 8/17/2017. For the last two days, I have driven less than 100 miles. Car was charged overnight and shows full charge this morning. I drove the car less than 30 miles today. In the evening, when I was driving, the car suddenly lost power and the engine stopped suddenly on the road. The car was in steady speed on a city street in a straight line. I was not accelerating. I was not braking. Almost got hit by a car behind me. I was unable to restart the car. Battery still show 80 miles charge. Indicator warning shows: "stop safely warning lamp" and "Electric motor warning lamp". All interior lights are bright when the car door is opened, it does not appear that the battery charge is low. Also there is no warning of "low battery" before the car suddenly lost power. …
When on freeway car suddenly displays an alert saying Stop safely now And will shut off , while driving makes it impossible to properly control the car . It has done this on multiple occasions, On the freeway , on residential streets and also when starting from park and proceeding to drive car has suddenly stopped and unable to restart right away
Tl* the contact owns a 2016 Ford Focus Electric. While the vehicle was parked in the driveway, the charger cable overheated and burned. The contact stated that there was a burn mark on the outlet. The contact stated that no sparks or flames were seen. There were no warning indicators illuminated. The contact also stated that the vehicle experienced the failure listed in NHTSA campaign number: 18V592000 (equipment); however, the vehicle year was excluded from the recall. The vehicle was taken to larry h. Miller Ford Lincoln draper (11442 lone peak pkwy, draper, ut 84020, [phone]), but the failure was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 10,000.
When driving my car the first day I bought it, the wrench icon illuminated, telling me to check the manual. I figured I would do so after work, but as I tried to start the car to leave work, I received a "Stop Safely Now" message and could not start the car. It had at least 30% charge, being electric, so that had nothing to do with it not starting. I am glad this did not happen when I was driving, as I have seen other instances of earlier years of the Ford Focus electric with this same issue. In other cases, it came in while the owner was driving, causing all power to the accelerator to stop. It was recently serviced since I just bought it, so I know there shouldn't have been any outlying service to be done. I am calling a tow service in the morning to have it taken to a dealer, so hopefully they can figure out the issue. …
Driving my vehicle in normal conditions with over 30 miles left to a charge on a suburban street going approximately 45 miles per hour, suddenly a red triangle warning appeared on the dash stating stop safely now. 60 seconds later the vehicle shut off and I lost all power leaving me stranded in the dark in the middle of the street. After about 20 minutes I was able to restart the vehicle and proceed home. There is never any prior warning to this happening. This has happened 3 times to me within a 2 month period and I have taken it to my dealership twice with no results. I drive 40 miles to work one way on very busy phoenix freeways and am petrified this will happen in the hov lane and I end up in a dangerous situation. I have found this to be an issue on previous years model recall no 13v-523000. …
Tl* the contact leased a 2014 Ford Focus Electric. After the vehicle was charged, it was discovered that the outlet had melted. The manufacturer was contacted and told the contact that there must be faulty wiring at the residence. An electrician was contacted and stated that the wiring was not faulty. The outlet was replaced, however, the failure recurred on two other occasions where the outlet melted and was replaced. The failure also occurred at the contact's office. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the charging plug was faulty and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 14,000. Updated 01/12/16 updated 02/03/16
On Tuesday, September 22, 2015, while my son was driving on the freeway at 65 MPH in the carpool lane, the car suddenly stalled on him and loss all power to the car. A message popped up on the dash in an orange triangle stated "stop safely now". Since he was in the carpool lane, he did not have enough time to get the car off to the side. He was stranded in a busy carpool lane and almost got rear end from behind when the car suddenly cut off all power and came to a stop. This has put my son in a great danger situation!!! He could have got rear ended and the stalling of the car could have caused a multi-cars accident in the carpool lane on the freeway. Somehow he managed to able to restart the car after turning the car on, off and opening the driver side door and closing it several time. The car continue to have the same problem on and off for the next couple of days. …
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.
Frequently asked questions
Which Ford Focus Electric years have electrical problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 2014 (29), 2013 (27) and 2012 (14) model years. Electrical complaints make up 53% of all complaints for the 2014.
Is there a recall for Ford Focus Electric electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for any Ford Focus Electric model year. A widespread problem may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin, so ask a dealer.
At what mileage do Ford Focus Electric electrical problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 8,000 miles; 89% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the 12v/24v/48v battery (2 mentions).
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.