Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2009 Ford Focus owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Before taking a right out of the parking lot, I turned my blinker on (with my foot on the brake) and the car accelerated forward instead of turning. I kept my foot on the brake and the car speeded up even more. I finally crashed into a fence onto private property. Then I came to a full stop when I hit an SUV. This crash completely damaged the front of my 2009 Ford Focus.
Ever since we turned over sixty thousand miles on our Ford Focus se 2009 we have started to experience a problem where our car's check engine light will go on and the gas pedal will stop working. When this happens, the only thing you can do is: pull over, shift into park, turn the car off and start the car again. At this point the CEL will go off and it will be like nothing happened. This is terrifying and extremely dangerous! The first time that the car stalled or went into limp mode was when the weather was damp, so we thought it was weather related. We decided to have the dealer look at the car. We brought the car into the dealership. We dropped the car off so that the mechanic could do a test drive. After an entire day of driving, they could not reproduce the problem, or pull a diagnostic code so they gave our keys back and said we cant do anything to help you. …
While driving down the interstate at 70 miles per hour, the car dropped out of cruise control and coasted to 5 miles per hour. Pressing the gas pedal had no result. We were lucky to avoid collision with nearby cars and coasted off the interstate into a park and ride lot. Car had to be towed to dealer repair. We were told by Ford dealer that the throttle body had died and had to be replaced. This Ford certified preowned car is still covered by powertrain warranty but this does not include throttle body. Numerous actions with Ford regarding faulty throttle bodies is widely reported and we believe this issue should be addressed in a formal recall for 2009 Ford Focus. Repair is $875 which we believe Ford should be covering.
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. While driving approximately 45 MPH, the vehicle idled and would not accelerate properly. The vehicle would operate only if the accelerator pedal was depressed to the floorboard. The vehicle would not accelerate past 15 MPH. The contact stated that an unknown warning light illuminated. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle several times before the warning light dimmed. The contact had not taken the vehicle to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 44,600.
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while stopped, the vehicle suddenly accelerated. The contact depressed the brake pedal but the vehicle would not respond. The contact crashed into the rear of another vehicle. The contact sustained injuries to his right ankle and foot. The contact sought medical attention for his injuries. The police reported to the scene and a report was filed. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 86,285.
Driving on highway in rush hour traffic at 65 miles an hour when suddenly losing throttle control down to 35 miles an hour the gas pedal would not respond. Yellow wrench light and wavy car warning lights appeared. Coasted to side of the road and sat for 10 minutes. Started car and tested pedal. Eased back on freeway. Scared to drive this car.
As I was traveling down the highway the throttle suddenly and unexpectedly stopped working.(thankfully I was not in heavy traffic at the time.) I coasted the car over to the side of the highway. The car remained idling, however I still had no throttle control. The wrench light was on. I turned the car off, waited a few minutes and restarted the car. The wrench light was off and I once again had throttle control. I eased the car back onto the highway but noticed the car had difficulty holding a constant and steady speed. There were intermittent subtle surges and pauses in the speed. Once I reached my destination I had a Ford dealership run a diagnostics on the car and they could not find any codes or problems with the car. I thoroughly researched this issue and found others were having similar problems and it was related to the throttle sensor. …
I was pulling into a parking space in a school lot and was attempting to pull into a parking spot with my foot on the brake. I was going less than 5 MPH. For no reason with my foot still on the brake the cars engine unexplained raced causing the vehicle to go forward striking the back of a pickup. The vehicle bounced off that vehicle and I hit another parked vehicle sending it into another vehicle. All this time I had no control as the engine was still racing and my foot on the brake. My husband who was sitting in the front seat reached over and put the car into park. All the vehicles that were struck were parked at the time. However there were children walking into the school for an awards ceremony. There was several thousand dollars in damage to all the vehicles. In the fall of 2013 this happened to the engine as I was pulling into a ball field,again with children present. …
While driving at speed, driver loses all control of gas pedal and has to put car in neutral and shut ignition off in order to restart car to reset control of gas pedal. This situation has happened several times over the last 5 months. On oct 2 it happened 5 times on the same drive that day. This is a very serious problem that could cause injury or death. It is lucky that we have been aware of this and it hasn't cause us an accident. But now we must get it repaired because fate will catch up to you at the wrong time. I have researched this on the internet and found other people have had similar experience with this. After research some people have been told it is the throttle body which has a non replaceable sensor on it that controls a signal to the gas pedal. To repair it the throttle body has to be replaced. Please please investigate this. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2009 Ford Focus. The contact stated that while driving 50 MPH, the vehicle stalled and the power train warning lamp illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who diagnosed that the electronic throttle body sensor needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was no longer under warranty. The failure mileage was 59,000. Updated 07/13/12 the consumer stated the vehicle was under warranty at the time, but Ford stated that the power train throttle body sensor was not covered under warranty. The vehicle was repaired. Updated 07/30/12 .....updated 01/14/13 the consumer stated the vehicle was still covered under power train warranty. But, was told it would not be covered. Updated 1/15/2013 the consumer requested to have the component changed. …
Acceleration complaints in other Focus years
Frequently asked questions
How common are acceleration problems on the 2009 Ford Focus?
NHTSA has 33 complaints about the speed control & acceleration of the 2009 Ford Focus, 14% of the model year's 229 complaints.
Is there a recall for 2009 Ford Focus acceleration problems?
No. NHTSA lists no speed control & acceleration recall for the 2009 Ford Focus. 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 2009 Ford Focus acceleration problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 59,000 miles, and 19% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 4 crashes, 0 fires and 3 injuries to speed control & acceleration 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.