Problems with 2012 Ford Focus STEERING

While driving on the highway 2/17/2017 my focus lost power steering. i managed to pull over and had the car taken to dean sellers for repairs. after the repairs were done ($2100) i learned of similar problems with the 2012 ford focus and the power steering going out.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. after the vehicle was shifted into the drive or reverse positions, the steering wheel failed and became difficult to maneuver. the power steering default warning message displayed. the vehicle was taken to a dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 75,600. the vin was unavailable.

Intermittent power assist steering malfunction over the past 6 months. power assist malfunction on starting car would reset after restarting car. ford garage checked and could find nothing wrong. went out to start car today and power assist steering now out completely. unable to turn steering wheel. restarting car does not help. fortunately car was parked in garage when this happened. will be calling ford tomorrow.

It used to be that upon starting my car, a warning prompt reading "steering assist malfunction" popped up and my steering wheel would be very diffcult to turn. usually, i would turn off the car, turn it back on, and voila--it would work fine. but now, the steering wheel malfunction has developed while driving the car with no patter or warning of it happening. again i would turn off the car and turn it back on once i merged out from the roads of the street or freeway. steering alone was really difficult. now, my car reads the same malfunction prompt, and my nifty trick of turning it off and back on no longer works. the issue is permanent as of now. also i have lots of videos documented about this issue on youtube.

I got in my car, but it in reverse and began backing out of my parking space when my suddenly car lost power. the car was in motion but the steering wheel and brake pedal locked up and i could not steer or stop my car from going backwards and i hit a parked car in the parking deck at school as a result. the code on my dash was (i) steering assist fail. i turned the car off and on several times before the steering wheel and break released and i was able to gain control of the car again. this is the 3rd time in 2 weeks it has done this (jan 28, feb 2 and feb 8). all three times the car has been in motion and in reverse gear. i contacted ford corporate offices and the ford dealership where i purchased the car from and they said there is nothing they can do unless the car duplicates the problem in their presence.

I bought my car last year at carman ford, with about 91,905 miles in an "as it is" contract. i also purchased an additional guarantee for up to 24,000m. i took the car to regular inspections to the dealer, no damage was reported. then, i hit 117,609 miles, and my steering wheel needed to be replaced completely, and i had no guarantee. a few months after i bought the car, while driving, i felt that the wheel was moved slightly to one side of the road (highway). i asked about this to the dealer after an oil inspection; they said that probably it was an alignment issue. recently, they said no damage was reported before. "steering wheel assistance required" appeared on the screen. while driving to the shop, it was very hard to turn either way. it was very hard to drive. i don't know how it is possible that they did not identify the problem earlier. however, if this is a manufacturer defect, i would like to know if they are going to do a recall or something. i think that the car is not super old and most of the mileage was because i have a long commute, i drive mostly on the highway. it is odd that a 2012 car has such a problem. couldn't go to work, school, since suddenly the car stopped working on friday 02/03/17. i had to make arrangements to get another car. overall, so much loss and drama involved with this incident and i feel it is unfair that this happened since the car had regular maintenance and is not super old.

When i start the car initially i can't turn the wheel of the car. i have to tug on it to get it to turn eventually. i'm afraid that i'll be driving in the power steering will go out. also have been having troubles with the transmission slipping. they say my car has too many miles to qualify for the clutch recall that ford has put out. i don't see what this has to do with a malfunction saying i've had troubles with it since i bought this car. both of these issues are safety issues. i have no money to replace this stuff. so i don't understand why ford won't work with people on this there needs to be a recall on the steering as i seen many others complaining about it. and they need to suck it up and take the expenditure of replacing all of these crutches that they have a recall on regardless of mileage. sometimes my seatbelt comes loose after i clicked it. i have to latch it while trying to drive. i'm tired of this car. i'll never buy from ford again. i've been having problems with this car since i bought it. and have informed the dealership that we bought it from and they clean there is nothing wrong with it period after taking it too but it's going to cost me $3,000.

The car needs now a replacement of the steering gear. the price is over $1500. the car didn't let me turn right or left and i just bought it at a certified carman ford dealership. it showed problems at 117650 miles. this is a scam, i paid for insurance and i brought the car to change the oil earlier ans they didn't find any defect. now, i cant use my car. i was in motion, the car seemed to move to one side, then at home while stationed, i couldn't move the car at all. no even right or left.

Electric assist steering failed after 116,000 due to manufacturers placement of electronic box location 3" (three inches) away from exhaust manifold, thereby destroying electronics inside sealed box. makes steering extremely difficult. failure in parking lot and almost caused me to hit a parked car while trying to turn into a parking space.

The power steering has gone out on my vehicle and the repair cost is very high. other vehicles were recalls for this exact issue and i don't understand why mine has not also been recalled. it went out while i was driving nearly causing me to crash. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. when the vehicle was started, the steering assist warning indicator illuminated. the steering wheel seized and was unable to move. once the vehicle was shut off and restarted, the vehicle was driveable. the vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed, but the failure was not duplicated. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure the vin was unknown. the failure mileage was 92,000. updated 07/12/17*lj *cn

For a few weeks when starting the car and backing out of parking space the power steering (eps) does not immediately work. after a minute it engages and works. however, it currently is not working at all. i turned the car on and received the warning "steering assist fault" and then had to drive about 5 miles home on city streets with no power steering. it was very dangerous. my concern is the possibility of this happening while driving. it is a major safety concern. *tr

On 2 seperate occassions when the car was started after hours of non use, the power steering failed. the indicator message in the car states no steering assist. the car could be manually steered with great difficulty.the car was in front of my house on a residential street, so it could be manuevered safely and parked. when taken to the ford dealership for service after the first event, no problem could be found. one week later, the problem recurred and was taken back for service again.

I started my car this morning, put it in reverse and began to back out of my driveway when the car locked up and lost power. i could not steer or brake and the car continued rolling backwards until it hit my garage and stopped. the lights came on my dash read "(i) steering assist fault". i turned the car off and on several times before the lights went out, the steering wheel unlocked and i was able to depress the brake and gain full control of my car again. i took the car to my ford dealer in kannapolis, nc (where i purchased the car) and they said the car would need to "duplicate the error" before they could diagnose it. i explained the car would have to be in motion for that to happen and i cannot stop the car if that happens again. i drive on the interstate and i am petrified this will happen while i am on the road and have no control over the car. the tech said there have been hundreds of complaints about the loss of steering power on these fords, but that until ford issues an official recall there is nothing they can do to fix it. it could be as simple as a software update.

While driving suddenly was unable to steer the car. thre is no power steering. luckily was traveling at a minimal spped. had my daughter and 2 small grandchildren. took car to local dealership where it was purchased paid to put the car on the computer and was told to take it to a ford dealership 45 minutes away. was told the car was dangerous. *tr

The car randomly looses power steering function and becomes very hard to steer, everything else seems fine. this can happen at any time but usually when first starting the car and can self resolve in a few seconds or not at all. this should be a recall. i'm pretty strong and a big guy and i still struggle to keep this thing on the road when it happens.

Power steering has been failing intermittently. car drives like there is no power steering. so far it has always happened immediately after car has been turned on and not while in motion. the problem sounds common based on online searches.

Loss of steering power assist ,violent lane changing on freeway

I was driving my 2012 ford focus with 83244 miles on interstate 81 suddenly the power steering stopped working and the message power steering assist fault appeared on the dash it was very dangerous but i pulled over in a rest area and towed the vehicle to my house i called ford dealer hoping the it has safety recall but the person i talked to at ford service said there is no recall for power steering fault . now i do not have the money to fix it . i hop ford issues a recall on this problem .... *tr

In january, 2017 i had my 2012 focus hatchback checked out for an ongoing grinding noise only present when turning. my local mechanic diagnosed this as a failing rack and pinion which needed complete replacement to avoid a catastrophic failure while driving. a $1700 repair for a major component on a 5 year old car with only ~40k miles. very disappointed in ford, currently looking at other brands for a new purchase.

Metal on airbag assembly/steering wheel cover cracking and peeling. causing multiple finger lacerations while driving.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that while driving at 45 mph, the power steering malfunction light illuminated and the steering wheel became very hard to maneuver. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was determined that the power steering rack needed to be replaced but was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 80,255.

After starting the focus i would get a power steering fault alarm. turning the car off and on would fix the issue. now it stays off no matter what. this makes maneuvering extremely hard and dangerous.

Steering fault light and locked steering wheel - recurring in my driveway, unable to diagnose & fix - what if it happens on the freeway?

On several occasions, i have received notice that the electronic power-assisted steering (epas) system has a fault and that service would be required. the remedy, as provided in the manual, is to turn off the vehicle then restart the vehicle to reset the module. while i was fortunate that this had not occurred while driving, this is an extremely dangerous issue, particularly because the steering locks up when the fault occurs. recently, the epas system notified me of a fault and it was not remedied upon restarting the vehicle. i have seen many complaints online about the same issue with the same model year and make, however, ford has not provided a recall, as they did with the 2012 fusion and flex. this issue needs to be addressed because it is clearly a manufacturing or design defect, wherein the consumer should not bear the cost of repair or replacement (up to $2000.00), especially given the recall on similar models from the same year. *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that while driving at 50 mph, the steering wheel seized. the contact mentioned that the vehicle was restarted and functioned normally. the contact stated that the failure was periodically. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer or independent mechanic for a diagnostic test or repairs. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and informed the contact that the vehicle was not included in a recall. the failure mileage was approximately 250,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving approximately 55 mph, the steering wheel locked and the vehicle drifted to the left without warning. the issue recurred multiple times. the vehicle was driven to the dealer. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified. the vin was unknown. the approximate failure mileage was 95,595.

I have twice received an error when starting the car: "steering assist fault - service required" and i had no power steering whatsoever. the error was resolved both times by restarting the car, but i am very nervous that the fault will occur while the vehicle is in motion and will cause a crash. i've been seeing that this is a relatively common error in a range of ford vehicles around this model year and hope that a recall will be issued soon.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while the vehicle was in reverse, the steering assist fault warning indicator illuminated. as a result, greater effort was needed to operate the steering wheel. the vehicle was not restarted. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 92,000.

Lost power steering to vehicle, unable to drive due to safety concerns. transmission hesitates when driven or when gasing from a stop.

Started my car this morning and immediately my "steering requires assist" alert came on and i found i had no power steering. my car showed no signs of any issue when i parked it last night 12/14/16 around 7pm but when i went to leave for work at 12/15/16 at 5:30am the alert came on. i had my car towed to the dealer and dealer has informed me that 1) a car with less than 70k needs the entire steering column replaced to the tune of $2000 and 2) that this failure is so commonplace they stock the steering assembly for this repair. i'm just thankful i wasn't commuting on the interstate when this occurred whereas many others were not.

Electronic power steering failure, out of warranty, ford wants 1800 dollars to try to fix. car has sat in garage for over a year undrivable.

I could handle the studder and handle the being held hostage by my seat belt, but now i have to pay $1,800 to get my steering fix after almost hitting a tree with my family in the car. i was just about to upgrade to a escape, i will never buy ford again after this because i have 89000 on my car they will help with nothing. nor do they care about the safety of me and my family or the other people around me ! i have never been so disappointed. i truly loved this little car until it tried to kill me.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving various speeds, the power steering seized without warning. the vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostic testing, where it was determined that the vehicle was not included in a recall. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 60,000.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while backing out of a parking space, the steering wheel stiffened and failed. also, the instrument panel lighting remained illuminated. the issue recurred multiple times. the vehicle was towed to the dealer, but the failure could not be replicated. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified. the vehicle was not repaired. the vin was unknown. the approximate failure mileage was 60,000.

Power steering failed when backing out on the first incident along with an error message display. on second occasion, when starting the car, the same error message regarding the steering was displayed. turning the engine off and then back on seemed to get the car operational.

Started car and steering wheel froze - power steering completely incapacitated. error notification displayed "steering assist fault." i turned the car off and when i restarted it was gone. this also happened a year ago and now again intermittently. this is a safety hazard that has been reported by many others. ford needs to recall these models before a serious event happens.

On friday, 12/2/16, when pulling out of on-street parking space, warning "steering assist fault service required" came on, and i completely lost steering control. turned off car, then turned on again, with same warning. called ford dealer, was told they couldn't do anything till monday. had to call tow. after 20 minutes, i tried car again, and everything was fine. i am afraid to drive, especially if my steering goes out again.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving 2 mph, the power steering seized without warning. the vehicle was taken to be repaired. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was 35,000.

I started getting this on screen error "steering assist malfunction" a couple of months ago, but it would disappear after a few minutes. today when i went to start the car the message appeared only this time it stayed. i turned the car off and back on and still had the issue. i had to drive my children to school with no power steering. i'm filing the complaint because after searching the entire day it turns out this is a pretty common issue with the 2012 ford focus. some dealers lie and say they have "never seen it before." they charge on average $1700 to repair it. they recalled several other ford models from 2012, but not this one. they should have. had i already been driving with my children when this went out i would have wrecked. had i not driven an older car that doesn't have power steering i probably wouldn't have known what to do or how to react. this is a dangerous issue and ford needs to take responsibility for the problem. *tr

Electronic rack and pinion failure after 91,000 miles. making steering nearly impossible and nearly causing accident. why was this not included in the other electronic power steering recalls from ford? everything i have seen is the rack is being exposed to too much heat and failing prematurely

At 49000 miles got " service power steering now " light and steering was locked up at start of car. has happened 4 times in 8 days at start up of car. restarting fixes steering but afraid problem will escalate and cause accident or worse...please investigate before someone is hurt or killed from loss of control of steering.

Driving at night on county road approx 25-30 mph dry pavement went to turn the wheel of the car to follow the road and there was no response from the steering wheel or the brakes. car went off the road headed for a tree. went into ditch before steering became available again. in investigating this issue on my own prior to taking to dealer. i have found this to be an issue and even a noted investigation listed or awareness of the highway safety administration. i can tell you there was absolutely zero control of this car at that time. these cars are very dangerous on many levels as they have multiple defective parts. just call jim o'neal in sellersburg indiana as they have all the records of showing they have almost rebuilt my entire car since i bought new in 2012. upon being evaluated and driven, with this occurring to the technician as well at jim o'neal ford, it was found that the entire steering component had failed and needed to be replaced. ford is aware of this concern as there have been 2 bulletins sent to their dealership service departments. documented in research if you look and also told to me verbally by [xxx] the service manager at jim o'neal ford. at no time in the many visits to the repair shop at ford has anyone mentioned the fact that this could possibly occur or has there been any preventive checks of the system. i really would like this investigated as i do see i am not the only one that has had this issue and was just lucky enough to have not had a serious accident with my children in the car during this latest failure in this car. ford should be held accountable for producing and not upholding their end of this car as people are being seriously injured. information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Power steering completely went out. error notification on dash says "steering assist fault." this was an intermittent problem for the last couple months that was fixed my turning the car off and restarting it. but it has completely gone off and it will not reset with turning the car off and on. replaced 80amp megafuse that others online said may be the issue, this did not correct the problem. my only other idea is that it is the power steering rack that everyone else online has needed replaced.

Randomly, when starting the car, i receive a steering assist fault error causing the steering wheel to freeze. the only remedy is to turn the car off, wait a few minutes, and restart. the error should go away and the steering wheel can easily move.

Power steering assist fault when driving. no power steering at all. difficult to drive the car.

I was turning into my apt complex powe sterling went out light said malfunctions powe steering. i was trying to control hit a pole. seat belt tighten around my neck. i had just had a procedure did two weeks pryor injection in my neck went to doctor he told me i was so informed he could not tell gave me five different mess i go c him on 8th dec should been back sooner i have no car in shop no money get it out.

2012 ford focus. consumer writes in regards to steering control module recall repair issues, transmission problems and windshield motor malfunction. *smd the consumer stated on the night of november 12, 2016, a safety warning light appeared on the dash. when he tried driving about 12 miles home, he had no power steering. the problem did not occur again. on monday november 14, 2016 the consumer stopped by a non-ford garage. no work was performed. however, the mechanic stated the problem was the steering control module. the mechanic suggested taking the vehicle to the dealer. upon inspection, the dealer claimed there was no problem, but to bring the vehicle back, if the light came on again. the dealer informed the consumer three were no transmission problem. however, in march 2016, the consumer experienced a transmission problem. the dealer stated the problem was due to a weak battery. the problem occurred again and the dealer stated it was the fault of the alternator not sending enough current to the module. the problem continued. on july 4, 2016, the transmission light illuminated. the consumer used the off key procedure, to put the vehicle into gear, but the light remained on. *jb

When the car is turned on and stationary, it will display "steering assist fault," and the power steering will not turn on, greatly reducing the capacity to steer. upon turning the car off and back on, the power steering re-engages. it has been doing this for about one year now.

Power steering assist failed while pulling out of driveway. ford is aware of this issue and has failed to issue a recall on this model, but has on other models with same issue. there are many other complaints of this problem you can find online, even news articles about this happening with this model. even the service technicians at the ford dealer knew of the problem.