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2004 Ford Focus

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2004 Ford Focus do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 864.5.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

293 reports with mileage · 94 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 183 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 31 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Steering. Review the 29 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

34 crash reports13 fire reports24 injury reports

Service Brakes complaints

4 reports
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125,000 miles · Mar 10, 2020
Service BrakesStructureCrash

IN JANUARY, I WAS INVOLVED IN A TRAFFIC CRASH. I APPLIED THE BREAKS TO MY VEHICLE (GIVING PLENTY OF TIME TO COME TO A STOP AND ONLY TRAVELING 20 MPH ) BUT THE VEHICLE DID NOT COME TO A COMPLETE STOP. AS A RESULT, I HIT A VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT STOP. IT WAS AS IF THE BREAKS WERE NOT WORKI…

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IN JANUARY, I WAS INVOLVED IN A TRAFFIC CRASH. I APPLIED THE BREAKS TO MY VEHICLE (GIVING PLENTY OF TIME TO COME TO A STOP AND ONLY TRAVELING 20 MPH ) BUT THE VEHICLE DID NOT COME TO A COMPLETE STOP. AS A RESULT, I HIT A VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. I DO NOT KNOW WHAT THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT STOP. IT WAS AS IF THE BREAKS WERE NOT WORKING CORRECTLY.

NHTSA ODI #11317279

125,550 miles · Jul 24, 2019
Electrical SystemEngineService Brakes

MY BATTERY LIGHT SEEMS TO FLASH WHEN THE CAR IS OFF. CAR HAS STALLED SEVERAL TIMES WHILE DRIVING TRY TO ACCELERATE OVER 50 MILES AN HOUR CAR WILL SHUT OFF. BACK HATCH ON WAGON SEEMS TO RELEASE ITSELF WHILE DRIVING WELL UNLOCK AUTOMATICALLY. HAVE REPLACED THREE THERMOSTAT AND THERMOSTAT HOUSING DUE TO OVERHEATING CAR WILL NOT TEL…

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MY BATTERY LIGHT SEEMS TO FLASH WHEN THE CAR IS OFF. CAR HAS STALLED SEVERAL TIMES WHILE DRIVING TRY TO ACCELERATE OVER 50 MILES AN HOUR CAR WILL SHUT OFF. BACK HATCH ON WAGON SEEMS TO RELEASE ITSELF WHILE DRIVING WELL UNLOCK AUTOMATICALLY. HAVE REPLACED THREE THERMOSTAT AND THERMOSTAT HOUSING DUE TO OVERHEATING CAR WILL NOT TELL ME IS OVERHEATING IT WILL BOIL IN THE OVERFLOW RETURN TANK PRESSURIZE AND SHOOT THE CAP OFF?...

NHTSA ODI #11234370

116,000 miles · Aug 11, 2014
EngineService Brakes

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 FORD FOCUS. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH, THE ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. IN ADDITION, WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED, THE CONTACT HEARD AN ABNORMAL NOISE. THE FAILURES OCCURRED ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF TH…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 FORD FOCUS. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH, THE ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. IN ADDITION, WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED, THE CONTACT HEARD AN ABNORMAL NOISE. THE FAILURES OCCURRED ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 116,000.

NHTSA ODI #10621294

40,000 miles · Feb 13, 2014
Service Brakes

IT HAPPENED SPORADICALLY AND ONCE IN A WHILE. WHEN BACKING OUT OF MY PARKING SPOT, THE BRAKES BARELY WORKED. THE PEDAL WAS VERY HARD TO PRESS AND IT TOOK A LOT OF FORCE TO BRING THE VEHICLE TO A STOP. TODAY, IT HAPPENED AGAIN WHEN I WAS ON THE "DRIVE" MODE. THERE IS NO WAY TO PREDICT WHEN IT WOULD HAPPEN. THE ONLY PATTERN HERE …

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IT HAPPENED SPORADICALLY AND ONCE IN A WHILE. WHEN BACKING OUT OF MY PARKING SPOT, THE BRAKES BARELY WORKED. THE PEDAL WAS VERY HARD TO PRESS AND IT TOOK A LOT OF FORCE TO BRING THE VEHICLE TO A STOP. TODAY, IT HAPPENED AGAIN WHEN I WAS ON THE "DRIVE" MODE. THERE IS NO WAY TO PREDICT WHEN IT WOULD HAPPEN. THE ONLY PATTERN HERE IS IT HAPPENED SHORTLY AFTER STARTING THE CAR. IT COULD BE IN THE REVERSE OR DRIVE MODE. THE FREQUENCY SEEMED INCREASED RECENTLY WHEN IT WAS VERY COLD. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10564289

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.