Problems with 2012 Ford Focus STEERING

Started vehicle and pulling out of street parking when the wheel locked suddenly and there was a steering wheel assist warning light that came on dash. turned car off and back on and it cleared. another vehicle had to maneuver around me by the time i had turned the car off and on. luckily it was not too dark or else it may have caused an accident. *tr

I was driving to work one more when my car dashboard lite up saying steering assistance service required. an at that point my power steering went out on me. i pulled over and turned the car off as steering became very hard. after turning my car off and back on the light went off and my steering was back to normal. called the dealership who said at this point don't worry about if it happens again to bring it in. well 5/14/15 rolls around and i'm leaving work get in my car an turn the car on the my dashboard lights up again with the same message and my steering is out again. called the dealership they said to bring it in. i bring it in on 5/15/15 and they said that my power steering rack assembly needs to be replaced an since my warranty ran out that it isn't covered and they quoted me over a thousand dollars to fix it. i don't have that kind of money and to me since that is a saftey issue that is something ford should be fixing for free as that can cause me to get into an accident.

As i was backing out of a driveway my power steering failed. had to have my car towed. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that the power steering failed without warning. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. the dealer stated that the steering rack would need to be replaced. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 56,000.

Steering assist malfunction when starting vehicle, making it impossible to drive. however when restarted and "warmed up" vehicle function. ford seems to be ignoring the issue as it did with transmission malfunction. today may 5 i return to metro ford. *tr

Power steering electrical system failed without notice. noticed that there is currently a class action suit against ford for this issue and other issues. not on recall list at moment, and may have to pay for repair due to faulty design. *tr

First time 04/06/2015 started car like normal dashboard read power assist faliure contact service. turned car off then back on dash cleared. ran system check no issues. called local ford dealer was told glitch in system shouldn't happen again no need to bring in car. 2 days later... was driving on freeway when suddenly steering went out. car was going almost 65 could bearly move steering wheel felt like it was stuck in wet sand. almost crashed when approching curve had to slow down to about 10mph. what if 1yr. old was in car what if i crashed.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving various speeds, the vehicle would abnormally hesitate when shifting. also, the steering assist error warning indicator illuminated on the instrument panel. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing. the dealer stated that the hesitation was a normal occurrence and the steering gear assembly would need to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was unavailable. the approximate failure mileage was 30,000.

While driving the car around a slight bend in the road at around 45 miles per hour, i began receiving notifications on my console saying hill assist start was not functioning and that i had a steering issue and to pull over safely. the vehicle had no power steering and was difficult to control on the road because the car wanted to swerve. it was also pulling to the right. after taking the car to the local garage they told me that it needed to go to a dealership to be repaired and that the parts are on back order. after speaking with a ford dealer in kane pennsylvania they notified me that it has happened in numerous other focuses and that it would $1600 to repair it.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while reversing, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. the failure was experienced several times. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering rack and pinion needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the vin was not available. the approximate failure mileage was 34,200.

I started noticing this 3 days after i had my transmission shudder fixed. i got to the point that any time i started my car and tried to turn my wheel while going in both forward and reverse that i had no power steering assisting me in my turn. it would take all i had to turn the wheel, and sometimes it would give the alert for needing to take it in for service. i took it in, and the first time the dealer did a service update. i drove it around for a few more days before i noticed when i slowed down to take turns my wheel would physically stop turning while in mid turn. i took it back in to the dealership, where they did another update to my power steering. 2 days later it's doing the same thing. i've been fortunate for this to not happen while trying to pull a quick avoidance maneuver. it's proving to be too dangerous to drive. *tr

I was driving at approximately 30mph on a busy road when the alert sound went off in the car. the message on the dash said that there was a power steering malfunction. it immediately became very difficult to steer. i was able to arrive at my destination just up the road without incident. the steering had returned to normal when i turned the car on again about 30 minutes later. i have not experienced any steering issues since. *tr

First time: was merging from one highway to another and power steering went out. warning came on. i got off immediately. i turned the car off and the warning message went off and the car was fine. i took it directly to the dealer. they said they could not get the car to do it again and that they checked the connections and all was fine. second time: was parked and went to turn the car on. the warning message came on and i could not turn the steering wheel. turned the car off again and it cleared itself. i am going to take the car back in to ford so that i can get the dates that this occurred on record. this is twice within months that this is happening. it is scary to think of what could happen if this were to occur again. *tr

Power steering quit and driving was almost impossible for a few blocks. power steering then came back intermittently. manual said to shut vehicle off for 10 seconds and re-start. that worked for a few weeks and now steering is going out all the time for a few seconds at a time.

Could not move steering wheel at all when i started car. after multiple restarts, steering finally worked normally. this same steering lock has happened when i start my car approximately 20 to 30 times since the first incident. ford dealer could not find anything wrong. they told me i needed a code for them to investigate the issue. this has not happened while driving, but am somewhat worried my steering may lock up in this same manner while on the road.

A power steering error message came up after starting the car. indeed the wheel could not be turned. sometimes, the error message would go away upon another start, and the steering would operate normally again. my ford dealer eventually fixed the problem, but it cost me around $1800. since previously i had the car in for a transmission recall, i thought i'd add this data point to what seems to be a growing number of people experiencing this same problem.

On several instances while entering a turn the power steering shut off and a failure notification was displayed on the dashboard. this resulted in several near accidents, especially while having to quickly adjust to the increased strength required to complete the turn without hitting another car or curb. turning vehicle off and back on resolves the issue temporarily, but power steering fails seemingly randomly every time.

I had this car about four years i put a two new battery, new start, new radio, new radiator, thermostat the arms and rod replace now i got the steering assist fault going on in my car i get wired put money on to it !

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that while driving at approximately 45 mph, the steering wheel seized and the steering assist fault warning light illuminated. the vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the steering rack needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 70,000. updated 4/29/15*cn

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving approximately 50 mph, the steering wheel seized without warning. the vehicle was coasted to a safe location. after restarting, the vehicle resumed with extreme difficulty in turning the steering wheel. the vehicle was taken to the dealer. the technician diagnosed that the power steering assist would need to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the issue. the approximate failure mileage was 70,000.

On 2/9/2015 approx. 4:00pm, my wife called me on my cell phone in a panic, clearly stressed. she said she almost was in an accident because the steering on her 2012 ford focus se hatchback locked up while she was driving about 50 mph and merging on a busy highway. she told me she got over and off the road with 0 steering. she said a sound came over the car as it happened and a message with steering assist fault service required. upon arriving on scene, i restarted the car and got the same message and 0 power steering. i called ford service and was told to bring it in the next day. as i type this the car is still at the dealer. part to fix with labor $1,652 before tax on a part ford knows is defective. i did a search on the fault code that was displayed and i was taken aback from what i seen and read about this model year and car and the steering just going out without warning. ford acts like it is not a problematic or defective part, but how do you explain the same back-ordered parts to fix it. she was lucky she or no body else died yesterday. do the right thing and issue a recall on this obviously defective part. i have also seen that there is a class action lawsuit that was filed in 2014 in california. ford do the right thing! *tr

Tl*the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that while attempting to reverse out a residential driveway, the power steering seized. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission shift needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 118,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that while making a right turn, the power steering failed and the message board displayed loss of steering, stop vehicle. as a result, the contact hit a curve and fractured the left strut and rack and pinion. the vehicle was only able to move when in reverse. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the vin was not available. the failure mileage was 78,000.

1. driving on congested interstate highway at 70mph 2. warning message in dash displayed "driver assistance steering failure" 3. manually confirmed loss of power steering 4. drove about 15 miles to a ford dealer but they were closing for the day 5. started vehicle and had normal power steering. *tr

Was driving with my mom when all of a sudden her power steering gave out and it was incredibility hard for her to steer. i took over and drove home now i drove vehicles with out power steering before but this was by far the toughest steering vehicle i drove. it was completely dangerous and irresponsible of ford to not address the issue as of yet. thankfully i was with my mom that day and nothing worse happened but it could have ended alot worse. *tr

Started engine and electronic power steering failed to operate. this usually could be remedied by restarting the car, but not this time. car is almost impossible to steer in this condition. i have seen several mentions of this condition on the internet. *tr

Upon starting my vehicle i had a steering assist malfunction displayed on the dashboard. while driving it was as if i had no power steering and was unable to turn the steering wheel all the way right or left. i commuted 45 miles like this and upon start up the next morning the issue was gone. intermittent issue. *tr

I was driving on i271 westbound. from where i got on to entering the express lane the notification of steering fault service now. i was able to get to where i was going which was under ten minutes away and able to properly steer it without it completely losing the steering. at my location it was when the steering went. the power steering rack is what needed to be replaced which was making it difficult to turn. this needs to be recalled. if i would of lost it on the highway, there could of been a serious accident and or death. something that has only just over 38,000 miles and two years old shouldnt have to be replaced on a car that is only just over two years old. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that the power steering warning light illuminated continuously. additionally, the steering wheel failed to turn after starting the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the rack and pinion needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 60,000.

I started my car on 12/6/14 and the steering wheel was locked and would not turn. i shut the car off and turned it on again and the steering wheel was operating. on 12/8/14 i started my car and once again the steering wheel is locked and my dashboard displayed a message stating steering assist service or service steering assist. i called ford to schedule an appointment and i have checked online and see there are numerous complaints regarding power steering. *tr

Steering system completely failed. driver could not turn car to the right. car has only 45,000 miles. could have resulted in serious accident if operating at higher speed. when i brought the car into ford they told me the "steering rack" was on back order, which leads one to believe this is a common issue! ford needs to recall this issue immediately before it leads to death. *js

Steering has become unreliable and has "gone out" two times in the past three days. once at a higher rate of speed and another at a lower rate of speed. my husband has had to use extreme excessive force (he is quite strong too) in order to control the car where he wants it to go. the light came on and he turned the car off and on and the light was no longer on the dashboard. to add, the car is up to date on all services needed and is well taken care of. *js

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving approximately 5 mph, the steering assist warning indicator illuminated and the steering wheel seized. the failure recurred multiple times intermittently. the vehicle was taken to a dealer for diagnostic testing. the mechanic stated that there was a shortage in the steering gear box, and the steering gear box needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure recurred. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 45,000. updated 1/14/16 ln; updated 3/27/18 *jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that the steering wheel seized and excessive force on the steering wheel was required in order to maneuver the vehicle. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 72,000. updated 12/22/14*lj

While driving the car going into a turn the power steering went out. i could not turn the wheel. almost had an accident. when driving the car and you stop the car stalls. you can start the car go to where you want to go and when you get back in the car it doesn't start. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated the while driving at low speeds, the power steering became difficult to maneuver intermittently and excessive force was needed in order to control the vehicle. the vehicle was not diagnosed. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 54,800.

While driving on a busy road, the power steering suddenly stopped working and the car became very difficult to steer. when i returned home and restarted the car, the power steering worked normally again. it is being checked by the dealership today. on the phone, the dealership said it would be difficult to diagnose the problem if it wasn't still happening. this seems like a significant safety hazard. *tr

The power steering was lost and had to manually force the steering wheel to regain control. error message came up on the dash, power steering failure. the power steering comes back after turning the car off and back on again. this has happened 4 times now, twice in the past week 12/26/14. *tr

While pulling out into the hwy my car's dashboard gave a message that stated steering assist malfunction. my cars steering wheel became tight and hard to turn. i got my car to the side of the road and turned it off. when i turned the car back on the dash information stated that all systems were normal. i called the ford company where i purchased the car for the second time and was told that if it happened again to bring the car in. i currently live 70 miles from where i purchased my vehicle and i'm scared to drive it that far. i've had service with them before and i am not very happy with any of their service i want my car fixed properly and right so i won't be afraid to drive it. please help. *tr

When car starts power steering (electronic) does not work for an undetermined length on time from a few seconds to one hour. stop and restart car and power steering works. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving at approximately 30 mph, the steering wheel was difficult to maneuver. the contact was able to regain control. the vehicle was taken to a dealer where the steering column assembly and the column steering cover were both replaced. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 15,000.

On the way home going along the interstate at the speed limit of 70 mph, the steering suddenly cut out without warning. we safely made it to the side of the interstate in which a light popped up in my dash which said steering loss stop safely. i turned the car off and then started it back again in hopes that it was just a glitch, but the error was still there. by the grace of god, we made it home safely. the following morning, i called the corporate customer relations number at the ford motor company and spoke to a customer representative who told me that yes there are recalls on focuses of the same year for steering loss, but my vin number did not fall under that recall because my car was not made at the same manufacturing location. he basically advised me that i need to call my local ford dealer and have my car sent there for repair. i then received the action plan from the supervisor at ford in which it discussed the results from the diagnostic test. all the results correlated with the other focus recalls which spoke of high steering resistance and the total estimated bill of $2,207.55. i then called the customer relations back at corporate ford motor company, gave them my case number, and expressed the issue that i was having, the diagnosis of the car, the correlation between my cars diagnosis and the recalled ford focus diagnosis; the representative that i spoke to then said she would draft up some more paperwork in my case and send it to her supervisor, but it wasn't likely that my car would be covered under recall. the incident on the interstate was one that was horrifying, could have caused death and has sent me into a spiral of non-stop panic attacks and i am unsure of what all i can do. i need your help to stop this from happening to someone else and to help us get the recall for safety concerns that we should have been afforded in the first place. updated 10/27/14. *jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that the vehicle failed to start. the vehicle was taken to the dealer twice where the transmission control module was replaced. weeks later, there was an abnormal noise coming from the radio and it randomly failed to work. while driving, the steering wheel seized and the contact had to apply force to the steering wheel each time the failure recurred. the contact also mentioned that the eps warning light illuminated. the manufacturer was notified of the failures. the approximate failure mileage was 103,000. updated 11/12/15*lj, updated 3/20/18*jb updated 5/16/18*jb

Son was driving home when the electronic steering assist failed, making car very hard to control. *tr

Power steering failure light came on and power-steering in vehicle stopped working. attempted to clear out by shutting off engine and turning car back on, but it did not work. had to have car towed to dealership. they said there is a sensor failure and entire steering system needs replaced, cost approximately $2,000. may be two weeks to repair, no word on when parts will be in. *tr

I was driving and the steering wheel started to be hard to turn. a light came on and the car said steering assist fault service required. i was able to pull the car over and restart it and it worked until today 10/11/14. today i was in my driveway and the light came on again and said the same message. i tried restarting it four times and nothing happened so it was unsafe to drive. *tr

Randomly since we bought the car is 2014 power assist default would show up on the screen and then i would be left without power steering. i learned to pull over turn the car off and it would work normal again. several times it happened in bad places that almost caused me to wreck. i have 3 small children and was always worried about it happening. i have ran into a ditch because of it but wasn't hurt. it will happen at any speed and down any road. on july 17, 2018 it did it but now it wont turn fix it when i turn the car off. so i'm guessing it has completely went out. i have called ford and told them about it. they said about 1 year ago there were no recalls. i told them i have read a lot of people have had this same problem with the same car. i called today to the dealership i bought it from and he said to bring it in. 109.00 just to check and see if it needs a computer reset which he said was probably the problem. i doubt it i asked how much that would be and he said we would talk when i got there. i have not went bc its gonna be hard to drive and i do not have the money to get it fixed. this should be a recall. they have recalled many others for the same exact problem why are they leaving the focus owners with a dangerous car? we have always bought fords. but i promise this is the last one we ever get. if they do not care about families safety they will get no more money from us

The victim of the fatality was driving northwest on rte 84 at 1:58 pm on 9/26/14 when she hit the medium strip at the corner of dodge rd in hampton falls, n.h.. the right front tire had a blow out and she then had a roll over accident. she went through the guard rail and into a deep ditch. the eye witness called 911 and assisted the driver who had no signs of life at the scene. when the volunteer hampton falls squad arrived at the scene, the acls unit was called off. this is currently under investigation by the new hampshire state police. updated 10/28/14 *bf.....updated 12/29/15 *bf *tr

Power steering sporadically comes in and out---usually when the car is just started and we attempt to back out---the steering has no power. *tr if this happens while driving at a higher speed----this could be bad.

1.power steering goes out at any given time, whether its initial crank or driving at any speeds. it appears to occur more so in the warmer months of the year. 2. transmission slips, chatters, rollbacks while in gear, hesitation, delayed response. i have taken vehicle to dealership multiple times, they said they cant get the power steering to re-occur so there was nothing wrong with car! they said the transmission acts within their specs, as this is does come and go but appears 90-95% of the time. however i did receive an extended warranty out of no where for the transmission in which i heard they do nothing but clean oil off the clutch plate which will resolve nothing. my wife is 100lbs soaking wet and cannot control the vehicle in turns when the steering goes out. she has already blown out a tire on a curb due to not being able to correct the path of the vehicle in a turn. *tr