← New search

2003 Ford Focus

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2003 Ford Focus do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 864.5.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

753 reports with mileage · 224 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Electrical System. Review the 522 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Latches/locks/linkages. Review the 82 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Steering. Review the 73 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

52 crash reports17 fire reports37 injury reports

Electrical System complaints

522 reports
Clear category filter
69,000 miles · Dec 12, 2014
Electrical System

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER GETTING IT REPLACED AGAIN I PUT UP WITH IT UNTIL DEC5 AND HAD IR REPLACED AGAIN 1 DAY LATER KEYS IS STUCK IN IGNITION AGAIN ITS A TOTAL OF 7 IGNITIONS I HAVE REPLACED AND FORD AGAIN SAYS THERE IS NO PROBLEM WITH IGNITION,. I HAVE SEEN HUNDREDS OF BLOGS ABOUT SAME PROBL…

Read full complaint

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER GETTING IT REPLACED AGAIN I PUT UP WITH IT UNTIL DEC5 AND HAD IR REPLACED AGAIN 1 DAY LATER KEYS IS STUCK IN IGNITION AGAIN ITS A TOTAL OF 7 IGNITIONS I HAVE REPLACED AND FORD AGAIN SAYS THERE IS NO PROBLEM WITH IGNITION,. I HAVE SEEN HUNDREDS OF BLOGS ABOUT SAME PROBLEM AND FORD DOESN'T REPLAY TO ANY OF THEM WHAT CAN BE DONE? I AM TIRED OPF PAYING 250-200.00 TO REPLACE THIS. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10663801

65,000 miles · Dec 12, 2014
Electrical System

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER I BOUGHT CAR NEW APPROXIMATE DATE BY THIS TIME THE IGNITION STARTED DRAINING MY BATTERY AND ALTERNATOR AND HAD TO HAVE THEM BOTH REPLACE ALONG WITH NEW IGNITION KIT AND WAS TOLD I NEEDED NEW KEYS THIS LASTED ABOUT A MONTH THEN KEY GOT STUCK ON IGNITION AGAIN CONTINUOUSLY…

Read full complaint

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER I BOUGHT CAR NEW APPROXIMATE DATE BY THIS TIME THE IGNITION STARTED DRAINING MY BATTERY AND ALTERNATOR AND HAD TO HAVE THEM BOTH REPLACE ALONG WITH NEW IGNITION KIT AND WAS TOLD I NEEDED NEW KEYS THIS LASTED ABOUT A MONTH THEN KEY GOT STUCK ON IGNITION AGAIN CONTINUOUSLY AT THAT TIME I CALLED FORD AGAIN AND WAS TOLD THEY HAVE NO PROBLEMS WITH IGNITION AND NOTHING THEY WILL DO FOR ME. MY NEPHEW WENT TO FORD SCHOOL TO BECOME A MECHANIC AND TOLD ME FORD HAS KNOW ABOUT THIS PROBLEM SINCE 2002 AND DOESN'T WANT TO DO A RECALL. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10663799

50,000 miles · Dec 12, 2014
Electrical System

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER I BOUGHT CAR NEW APPROXIMATE DATE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10663798

15,000 miles · Dec 12, 2014
Electrical System

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER I BOUGHT CAR NEW APPROXIMATE DATE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10663794

3,500 miles · Dec 12, 2014
Electrical System

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER I BOUGHT CAR NEW APPROXIMATE DATE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10663791

2,000 miles · Dec 12, 2014
Electrical System

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER I BOUGHT CAR NEW APPROXIMATE DATE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10663790

200 miles · Dec 12, 2014
Electrical System

I HAD TO REPLACE IGNITION KIT ABOUT A MONTH AFTER I BOUGHT CAR NEW. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10663788

138,000 miles · Nov 25, 2014
Electrical System

I HAVE HAD ISSUES WITH THE IGNITION LOCKING. I'M GOING ON MY 3RD REPAIR FOR THE SAME EXACT ISSUE. FIRST THE IGNITION WAS RE-KEYED AND/OR REPLACED. NEXT THE IGNITION AGAIN WAS REPLACED. THE STEERING COLUMN HAD TO REMOVED. THIS TIME, I'M IMAGING THE SAME THING. I'M VERY UPSET THAT FORD HAS NEVER OFFERED TO REPAIR AT DISCOUNTS OR T…

Read full complaint

I HAVE HAD ISSUES WITH THE IGNITION LOCKING. I'M GOING ON MY 3RD REPAIR FOR THE SAME EXACT ISSUE. FIRST THE IGNITION WAS RE-KEYED AND/OR REPLACED. NEXT THE IGNITION AGAIN WAS REPLACED. THE STEERING COLUMN HAD TO REMOVED. THIS TIME, I'M IMAGING THE SAME THING. I'M VERY UPSET THAT FORD HAS NEVER OFFERED TO REPAIR AT DISCOUNTS OR TO REPAIR AT ALL. VERY UPSET THAT THEY NEVER RECALLED IT, KNOWING THIS WAS STACKING UP FOR BUYERS, AS AN ISSUE. I COME FROM A FAMILY WITH FAITHFUL FORD, LINCOLN/MERCURY TIES, WHICH INCLUDE EMPLOYEES, RETIREES, AND A FAMILY THAT SUPPORTS FORD, NO DOUBT. AS A FOCUS OWNER, I AM VERY DISAPPOINTED HOW THIS HAS BEEN HANDLED. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10660920

150,000 miles · Sep 19, 2014
Electrical SystemFire

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 FORD FOCUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE POSITIVE BATTERY CABLE BECAME EXTREMELY HOT AND MELTED. WHEN THE AIR CONDITIONING WAS ACTIVATED, THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A PRIVATE MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE POSITIVE BATTERY CABLE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT T…

Read full complaint

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 FORD FOCUS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE POSITIVE BATTERY CABLE BECAME EXTREMELY HOT AND MELTED. WHEN THE AIR CONDITIONING WAS ACTIVATED, THE VEHICLE STALLED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A PRIVATE MECHANIC WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE POSITIVE BATTERY CABLE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 150,000.

NHTSA ODI #10637582

210,000 miles · Sep 18, 2014
Electrical System

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 FORD FOCUS. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED, THE EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR LIGHTING FLASHED INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT ALL OF THE IGNITION CABLE CORDS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTI…

Read full complaint

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 FORD FOCUS. WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED, THE EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR LIGHTING FLASHED INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT ALL OF THE IGNITION CABLE CORDS NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 210,000.

NHTSA ODI #10637173

Official recalls

1

05V030000 · Latches/locks/linkages:doors:latch

Feb 1, 2005

CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES WITH FOUR OR FIVE DOORS AND ORIGINALLY SOLD IN OR CURRENTLY REGISTERED IN CONNECTICUT, DELAWARE, ILLINOIS, INDIANA, IOWA, MAINE, MARYLAND, MASSACHUSETTS, MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, MISSOURI, NEW HAMPSHIRE, NEW JERSEY, NEW YORK, OHIO, PENNSYLVANIA, RHODE ISLAND, VERMONT, WEST VIRGINIA, WISCONSIN, AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, A BUILD-UP OF CORROSION AT THE PAWL PIVOT AREA OF THE REAR DOOR LATCH CAN CAUSE A BINDING CONDITION OF THE PAWL THAT MAY AFFECT PROPER ENGAGEMENT OF THE PAWL INTO THE CATCH. THE OCCUPANT MAY EXPERIENCE DIFFICULTY OPENING OR CLOSING A REAR DOOR, AND EVENTUALLY THE REAR DOOR MAY NOT LATCH PROPERLY.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: IF NOT LATCHED PROPERLY, THE DOOR MAY OPEN WHILE THE VEHICLE IS IN MOTION. IF AN OCCUPANT FELL OUT OF THE VEHICLE, PERSONAL INJURIES COULD OCCUR.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL HAVE A LOWER ROCKER SEAL ADDED TO THE DOOR AND HAVE THE REAR DOOR LATCHES EVALUATED FREE OF CHARGE. A LATCH THAT PASSES THE EVALUATION WILL BE LUBRICATED TO PREVENT FUTURE CORROSION. A LATCH THAT DOES NOT PASS THE EVALUATION WILL BE REPLACED. IN ADDITION, A STICKER WILL BE AFFIXED TO THE REAR DOORS ADVISING THE OWNERS TO USE THE RECOMMENDED LUBRICANT. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 9, 2005. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD AT 1-800-392-3673.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

1

AQ10001 · Fleet Vehicle Recall Completion Audit

Opened Nov 18, 2010 · Closed Dec 28, 2015

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Unknown Or Other

On November 18, 2010, NHTSA's Recall Management Division (RMD) opened an audit query (AQ10-001) to investigate recall remedy completion by rental car companies on safety recall campaigns.It was expected to provide the agency an indication of how completely and how quickly rental car fleets perform necessary recall-related remedies on the vehicles owned and then rented/leased for use on the roadways.RMD queried three (3) major motor vehicle manufacturers (Ford, Chrysler, and General Motors) and requested data regarding completion figures for fifteen (15) discreet safety recalls.Analysis of this data demonstrated that rental car recalls completion was neither complete nor consistent.The rental car companies representing the largest market share in the industry were then queried as to their respective policies for the rental, lease, and sale of vehicles with open recalls.The data and responses from the manufacturers and the rental car companies can be found in the document repository by accessing the ?Associated Documents link above.In December 2015, Congress enacted the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act.One section of the Act prohibits rental car companies from renting, leasing, or selling motor vehicles subject to open safety recalls.With the passage of the FAST Act and its prohibition, there is no continuing need for the agency to investigate rental car recall completions.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The agency reserves the right to open any future investigations, including audits of individual recalls, or groups of recalls, or rental car companies, to examine more closely safety recalls performance and completion issues in this area.