Problems with 2012 Ford Focus STEERING

While out of town and attempting to reverse my vehicle in a parking lot, my power steering stopped working and my steering wheel locked up. i was unable to move the steering wheel and got a message saying "steering assist fault. service required". fortunately, i was able to turn off my vehicle and restart it without the error message coming back. while driving home on the highway that night, i felt the car was having difficulties while idling, felt it was about to stall several times and was extremely fearful that the steering would go out suddenly again. i took my vehicle into ford the next day and learned that the steering system needed replaced. the service manager said it was completely unsafe to drive home before a more than $1,700 repair and said the steering could go out at anytime. due to several other recalls and issues with my transmission and other electrical components over the past five years, i contacted the corporate ford customer service and asked for a solution. they refused to assist me with any type of discount or financial assistance for the $1,200 part that should not be suddenly going out in a five year old vehicle. they also refused to take any ownership over the many, many recalls on my vehicle and my fears regarding the safety of the vehicle. due to the other recalls that ford has had over steering concerns in recent years, i am extremely scared that my car is unsafe even after the repair due to several known problems in cars and parts that ford makes.

Power steering cuts out while vehicle is on. steering becomes almost impossible. so far, it has only happened while stopped. concerned it could happen while moving.

My car had absolutely no warning signs of any steering issues. i drove to the tanning bed with no problem and when i came out and started my car the "service alert" came up saying "steering assist fault service required." my car had been stationary for maybe 20 minutes. i tried backing out of my parking spot and it was extremely difficult to turn the wheel. i was able to drive home- my arms were very sore by the time i pulled in the driveway. i called ford this morning to inquire about this issue and was advised it sounds like a leak in my steering system but the car is safe to drive. my biggest concern, aside from how much this is going to cost me, is that they said it was safe to drive?! if someone or something were to pull out in front of me or i needed to swerve out of the way for any reason it would literally be impossible to do so.

I lost power steering without warning while driving my son to son to school. you can still steer the car but barely and i am a 200lb maintenance man. brought it to the ford dealer and it is going to costs 1700 to fix. i have read many other 2012 focus owners have had the same problem. very surprised it is not covered under a safety recall as it happens without warning and makes maneuvering the car almost impossible.

Power steering failure, upon starting car dash lights warns of power steering failure. at first we could turn car off and restart car and then it would function. this was last year when fall and winter came we had no more problems, as summer came this year with high heat it would not function at all now.

While stationary, the steering power assist failure warning light came on and the car was almost impossible to pull out of the driveway. this is the second time this has occurred.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving approximately 40 mph, the power steering ability seized and the power steering assist message remained illuminated. the vehicle was driven to an independent mechanic (joe miller modern garage in mankato, minnesota) where it was diagnosed that the power steering rack failed and needed replacement. the failure occurred on may 13, 2017, but went away after turning the vehicle on and off. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the vin was unknown. the approximate failure mileage was 70,000.

Vehicle looses steering assist when backing up or moving forward (intermittent problem). vehicle has only 35,000 miles. concerned about safety and lack of steering back up system. took vehicle to dealer and they charged us $2,000 to replace the electric steering gear. many owners of this model/year vehicle are experiencing same complaint and are concerned about potential safety and exposure to accidents.

I've had my ford focus for 6 months. i've experienced recalls on the transmission which i have fixed. now my steering assist fault light is on and my power steering went out completely while turning into my driveway. this is a major issue. i have noticed that other people have the same issue and many people have been in horrible accidents. what if this was to happen to me and my children? it wouldn't just affect our lives but also our loved ones. i would love to know if there is a recall on this or there is an ability to get my money back on the car.

I was driving down the highway at about 70 mph and the steering assistance malfunction message suddenly showed up on the display and the steering wheel became extremely tight to turn. restarting the car did not fix the issue.

The steering wheel locks up and won't turn this has happened while driving and when i just start the car. i can put my key in the ignition and all the lights, radio, and chime works, but the car won't start. i had it checked when i got it started and the battery was fine and the altenator was fine and so was my starter. i have been having problems with my car for the past 4 years please help.

My car was parked. when i tried starting it up. the wheel locked and i received a message that stated "steering assist fault, service required". i tried to restart the car many time and the message continued to appear,

For the last 2 years this car stops steering and has an error message that reads steering assist fault service required. the car stops steering when in motion and when parked and first started. the steering wheel is close to impossible to turn when this occurs and is very dangerous especially when this happens in motion. i have had it in for service at least 6 times regarding this issue and ford will motor corp is closing my case with no resolve. this is recalled on the fusion from the same year for the same malfunction. i feel unsafe driving this vehicle. it now occurs daily. i also still have extended warranty and that does not cover this issue apparently.

Car gives a code that steering assist has failed when starting car. sometimes would reset if key turned off and turned back on. this started while under warranty but ford's techs claimed there was no problem, despite technical service bulletins on the problem. car will start, but won't steer. problem was brought to attention of ford dealer when car was still under warranty, but they have ignored the problem.

There was a power steering failure when backing out of parking spot. dealer indicated that there is a power steering issue that could impact safety (stranding the vehicle in parking lots or loss of control at speed).

The electrical power steering malfunction light will illuminate, when this happens this is a sudden complete loss of power steering making it impossible to steer vehicle. this occurred when the vehicle was in park stationary and also while in drive moving. it occasionally would happen. after the third or fourth time, the malfunction light remained illuminated and power steering loss remained despite try to restart car, this final time it did not shut off problem. took vehicle into ford where i had to pay for a complete new steering rack and cbm. cost $2,000 at ford dealership.

Electical power sterring malfunction. power sterring failed while driving on highway. was able to stop. but couldn't turn sterring wheel.

There was a power steering failure when backing out of parking spot. dealer indicated that there is a power steering issue that could impact safety (stranding the vehicle in parking lots or loss of control at speed).

Power steering failure at 83,320 mi. it failed while starting the car. the power steering failure light/warning came on.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that the power steering assist failed. while attempting to reverse the vehicle, the steering wheel became difficult to turn. the power assist indicator illuminated after the failure occurred. the dealer diagnosed that the steering rack failed. the vehicle was repaired and the steering rack was replaced. the manufacturer was not notified. the failure mileage was 59,000.

Tl* the contact owned a 2012 ford focus. while driving approximately 30 mph, there was an abnormal noise and the steering seized. the contact crashed into a telephone pole. the driver's side air bag deployed. a police report was filed. the contact sustained injuries to the arms, a broken nose, and black eyes. medical attention was required. the vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. the vehicle was destroyed. the vin and failure mileage were not available. updated 10/18/17*lj consumer stated "i'd only had the car 3 weeks when the steering froze and the steering wheel would not move. it was going left when it hit the pole." no vin available. updated 10/4/18*jb

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while stationary and driving at various speeds, the steering wheel seized without warning on several occasions. don sanderson ford in glendale, arizona was made aware of the failure and stated 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 approximately 80,000. *tt consumer stated 3 to 4 times upon starting the vehicle the wheel would not move, after awhile after putting the car from "p" to "n" and back again it moved. there have been several recalls. consumer has brought it in many times for transmission recalls. consumer also stated driver and passenger doors open on ther own and passenger window would not go down from driver side controls.*jb

When the vehicle was started, the power steering assist malfunction indicator light was illuminated. the steering wheel seized and was unable to be maneuvered. once the vehicle was shut off and restarted, the vehicle was driveable. however, this has been an ongoing reoccurrence. each time the vehicle is shut off and restarted it seems to be resolved and driveable. vehicle was taken to mechanic, no issues could be diagnosed at that time. owner called to check for any open recalls under vehicle vin search, but no recalls apply to this ongoing steering problem.

Power steering went out

1 the power steering stops working and hard to steer 2. the transmission shutters after getting it repaired for the third time

On april 22 , 2017 while my daughter and her 5 years old child was driving from a cheerleader meet in maryland to sterling virginia, she stopped to retrieved a snack pack out of the trunk, when she got back in and started the vehicle the vehicle steering seized up and the light came on she was luckily able to maneuver the vehicle back to sterling va goons dealership . the vehicle as been at the dealership for 25 days; ford motor co offered an x-pin to purchase a new vehicle which they tried to intimidate my daughter into buying. the vehicle is in my name and i have since retired and live in fl . the vehicle is at koons ford very arrogant bunch and today i received a call that they wanted their loaner back and that for me to make a decision right away and authorized the payments for repair he did not offer any coupons or breakdown of the same. i told him to call me back and that's where it is now. ford know very well that there is a problem with the vehicle steering system and are playing games with people lives. please address my name is [xxx] thanks information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. the contact stated that while exiting from the driveway, the steering wheel seized. the vehicle was towed to the dealer to be diagnosed. the contact was informed that the r and r steering rack and steering sensor needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired. the manufacturer was not notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 43,703. ..updated 06/08/17 *bf

There was a power steering failure when backing out of parking spot. i was unable to turn the wheel, resulting in blocked traffic, and disruption to other drivers in the parking lot. managed to drive car (in straight line, back to earlier parking space). dealer indicated that there is a power steering issue that could impact safety (stranding the vehicle in parking lots or loss of control at speed).

While backing out of driveway power steering failed. could not regain power steering until vehicle was turned off and then restarted

Power steering assist failure. drove to work fine, 8 hours later came out to go home and the power steering would not work. turned off the car and all electronics in hopes it was just a boot error with no success. the error was "power steering assist failure." had to have car towed due to it not being highway safe. recalls for power steering on other models after failure.

Power steering would randomly go out when starting the car. at first, turning car off and restarting would clear error and steering would be fine. one day, car turned on and error wouldn't clear. no power steering at all. took into dealer to repair. repair will cost of $1900. not sure why it's not covered under power train warranty. and with the amount of complaints i've read online for 2012 ford focus power steering issues, i'm really surprised there hasn't been a recall. very unsafe!!

Vehicle was stationary when i turned the car on. steering column locked up and the car started beeping and presented the warning "system check steering assist fault service required." this only happens when the vehicle is stationary and not in motion. in order to stop the above issue, i had to turn the car off and back on and then the steering would unlock.

After starting the car and starting to back out of a parking place, the audible notification came on and the dash board displayed a message saying "steering assist fault". after that the steering felt like there was no power steering at all

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. after the vehicle was started, the power steering failed to operate intermittently for up to five seconds. on another occasion, while turning, the steering wheel became difficult to maneuver and the power steering failure and service power steering system warning indicators illuminated. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was unknown.

4/01/2017 - started up the car and get a warning message that "steering assist fault. service required." lost power steering, need a lot of effort to steer while drive is park. turn engine off and turn it back on again, power steering restored, work normally. then happen again 9/23/2017 (turn off and on engine to resolve). but today (10/16/2017), the same symptom and this time, turn on and off engine does not clear the problem. ford dealer said need to pay $2600 to replace the steering rack to fix the issue.

Power steering goes out very hard to steer, yellow trouble light some times comes on. very scary when it happens. happens when starting from stop position.

Power assist steering failed twice while driving, one at low speed (15 mph) and again in traffic at (50 mph). turning ignition off than on returns steering to normal. no warning before failure. lucky to get vehicle off to shoulder off to side of freeway without a collision.

Pulls to the right. steering gets hard to turn. i was in ashville n.c traffic when it happen in 3 lanes traffic final was able to get side of the road.scared hell out of me.call ford,they said there is no recall for this

On at least five occasions the power steering has failed while driving at speeds greater than 45mph. just prior to the failure a warning light turns on. once the vehicle is parked and turned off then back on the power steering resumes normal operation. ford dealership recommends replacement of the steering system. seems to be very similar to a recall issue on other ford models

Driving on highway vehicle reported - electronic power-assisted steering failure. i lost power steering. on highway problem was manageable. it requires much more effort to steer and control car in city.

Power steering assist fault. incredibly dangerous was on the freeway starting our vacation that is now ruined because ford is closed on sunday's.

Tl* the contact owns a 2012 ford focus. while driving various speeds, the steering malfunction warning indicator illuminated. the failure occurred more while driving at a lower speed. the contact stated that more force was needed to control the vehicle. the local dealer was contacted (legacy ford, 27225 southwest fwy, rosenberg, tx, 77471, 281-342-5611) and advised the contact to bring in the vehicle. the dealer referred the contact to the manufacturer. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure and stated that the vehicle was not included in nhtsa campaign number: 15v340000 (steering). the failure mileage was approximately 100,000.

The electric power steering unit is defective. my daughter was driving on the highway. it began making a grinding noise while driving and minutes later after pulling off the highway it started locking up where it would not turn. my daughter was able to jiggle it back and forth to make it steer into her works parking lot. steering failure light came on and said to safely stop. i had to trailer it a mechanic shop because it would not turn. mechanic and had to replace entire electric steering rack ($1947.74).

I went to start up my 2012 ford focus to drive my son to school, and as it turned over i received a message on my dashboard saying there was a problem with the steering assist module and that it needed service immediately. i still had to drive my son into school, so i had to drive my focus in traffic with no power steering. the car was very hard to steer and fortunately i made it ok. later, when i went to leave for work, there was no message and it has been fine the rest of the day. this seems very dangerous to me. why is there no fix or recall on this?

The power assist fault keeps coming on and the steering wheel is hard to turn when stationary and when you try to turn.

Notice came up on dash monitor "steering assist malfunction-needs attention". after re-starting the car you could steer it, and took it to a ford dealer and was told it needed a "steering rack" at a cost of $1600.00, not covered on the "drive train" warranty, even though i was told by the sales man from a different dealer where i bought the car, that a new steering rack had been installed at just over 3000 miles. the car now only has just over 45000 miles on it. not happy! car was not moving when the initial "needs attention" message appeared, it was parked in a parking lot, and just started to go home from work.

My daughter complained that she received a dashboard warning and lost power steering a few times- to confirm, i drove her car for a week and it happened six times in one week!!! total loss of steering! it happened while in reverse, driving forward and upon starting. in my driveway, and in city streets and while turning. i was not going fast and was watching for it. what could happen to those who aren't watching for it? apparently it is a manufacturing issue as tons of other owners are having the same issue. this is my childs car (which i will not let her drive) and i find it totally unacceptable that ford has not recalled this huge safety issue!

Upon start-up a yellow warning message was displayed that the power steering had failed, i.e. it took great effort to turn the steering wheel. car was shut off. later in the day, car was re-started and the power steering was again working and no warning light (amber) was displayed. appointment with dealer was made to address issue.

Started the car in my driveway and the steering assist failure light came on. the car has no power steering. it is not drivable. i drive 70 miles a day on the freeway and it was pure luck this didn't cause an accident.

Driver assist fault again. this is the 4th instance that is happened in 3 weeks - where my car suddenly powers off while i am behind the wheel. the last three times it happened while my car was in reverse motion. today, it happened while i was in drive but stopped at a red light in downtown charlotte, nc. someone had to help me push my car out of the middle of the road. occurred on my way to work around 3:30 pm est.