2008 Ford FOCUS - Ratings, Complaints and Recalls

The 2008 Ford Focus 2-DR. Hatchback with SAB has a mixed safety rating according to the provided data. While the front crash driver side and front crash passenger side ratings are both high at 5, the overall side crash rating and side crash ratings for both driver and passenger sides are lower at 3. The car has not been rated for rollover, side pole crash, or combined side barrier pole ratings. It does not have electronic stability control, forward collision warning, or lane departure warning features as per the data.

Additionally, the car has received 245 complaints and has been subject to 3 recalls. The relatively high number of complaints and recalls may raise some concerns about its overall safety and reliability. Thus, potential buyers should carefully consider these factors when evaluating the safety of the 2008 Ford Focus model.

auto generated summary, may be inaccurate.

Top stats at a glance

Complaint Count

245

Recall Count

3

Investigation Count

1

Safety Rating

Not Rated

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Safety Features

2008 Ford Focus 2-DR. Hatchback w/SAB Safety Features

Here are the safety features that come as standard on the 2008 Ford Focus 2-DR. Hatchback w/SAB

Electronic Stability Control (ESC)

ESC is an advanced safety feature in vehicles designed to help drivers maintain control during challenging driving conditions. By continuously monitoring various factors such as steering angle, vehicle speed, and individual wheel speeds, ESC can detect and reduce the risk of skidding or loss of control. It achieves this by automatically applying brakes to specific wheels to stabilize the vehicle.

No
Forward Collision Warning (FCW)

Forward Collision Warning (FCW) is a safety feature in vehicles that helps prevent frontal collisions by alerting the driver of an imminent collision with a vehicle or obstacle ahead. Using sensors such as radar or cameras, FCW monitors the distance and speed of vehicles in front, and if it detects a potential collision, it provides visual and/or auditory warnings to prompt the driver to take evasive action.

No
Lane Departure Warning (LDW)

Lane Departure Warning (LDW) is a safety feature in vehicles that alerts drivers when their vehicle unintentionally drifts out of its lane without signaling. Utilizing cameras or sensors to monitor lane markings on the road, LDW detects when the vehicle crosses these lines and triggers visual, auditory, or haptic alerts to notify the driver of potential lane departure.

No

2008 Ford Focus 2-DR. Hatchback w/SAB Safety Ratings

Here we have the crash and rollover ratings for the 2008 Ford Focus 2-DR. Hatchback w/SAB Where possible we've included the ratings for the oldest and latest models of this car so you can compare how the safety ratings have changed over time.

Frontal Crash Ratings

Combines Driver and Passenger star ratings into a single frontal rating. The frontal barrier test simulates a head-on collision between two similar vehicles, each moving at 35 mph.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2018 Score
Overall Front Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5
Front Crash Driver Side Rating 5 5 5
Front Crash Passenger Side Rating 4 5 4

Side Crash Ratings

Combines Side Barrier and Side Pole Star Ratings into a single side rating.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2018 Score
Overall Side Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5
Side Crash Drivers Side Rating 3 3 5
Side Crash Passenger Side Rating 4 3 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Front Not Rated Not Rated 5
Combined Side Barrier Pole Rating - Rear Not Rated Not Rated 5
Overall Side Barrier Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5

Rollover Ratings

The Rollover Resistance test measures the risk of rollover in a single-vehicle, loss-of-control scenario.

Test 2005 Score 2008 Score 2018 Score
Rollover Rating Not Rated Not Rated 4
Rollover Possibility % 0% 0% 0%
Dynamic Tip Result No Tip
Side Pole Crash Rating Not Rated Not Rated 5

Complaints for the 2008 Ford FOCUS

This chart show the number of complaints for each car component. A Higher number of complaints could indicate that this car might have a common fault. Something to look out for when purchasing one.

Component Complaints

Choose a component to see what complaints people have made about them.

Complaint:
"ignition cylinder fails, leaving drivers stranded. ford focus online forums are plastered with numerous complaints about the focus ignition lock cylinder failure, and there are youtube videos showing how to repair it with tape or rigging a bypass push button ignition switch, but ford should be fixing these issues so people are not stranded. issue does not happen when driving, and only happens when key is off, and attempting to crank the car. several people have complained about 500 dollar repairs that only last a few months before issue returns, and ford is very aware, but there are no recalls for the defect. i suppose a car that wont start is not considered dangerous, in itself, but the "hacks and fixes" for the issue can potentially be, and i think this deserves extreme scrutiny, as it affects several ford year models. drivers can suddenly be stranded miles from home and stuck with expensive repair costs that can render them without any transportation at all with no means of resolution."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2023-09-10
Complaint:
"constituent writes in regards to switch asy ignition failure on 2008 ford focus. *ld the consumer requested to be reimbursed for the cost of the repairs for the ignition assembly. *js"
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2021-02-03
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford focus. the contact experienced difficulty inserting the key into the ignition in order to start the vehicle. the cylinder in the ignition was replaced, but the failure recurred. the ignition switch was replaced, but the failure recurred a third time. the ignition was repaired by an independent mechanic who installed a piece of cardboard in order to start the vehicle. the dealer and manufacturer were not contacted. the failure mileage was 104,000."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2019-01-05
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford focus. the contact stated that the key failed to turn in the ignition switch. initially, the key had to be pushed down for it to turn and start the vehicle. currently, the contact had to unlock the steering wheel and wiggle it until the key turned and started the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed, but no failure code was found. the contact called first ford (located at 292 william s canning blvd, fall river, ma 02721, (508) 730-1000) and was informed to schedule an appointment. the vehicle was not taken to a dealer and was not repaired due to the diagnostic and repair fees. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the failure mileage was approximately 167,845."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2018-04-08
Complaint:
"when i put key in ignition most times it doesnt catch and car doesnt turn on. i have to push harder to crank car on or take key out several times and keep trying until it catches. sometimes when i pull key out part of ignition switch pulls out a little and car vegins to chime until i push ignition switch back in. i know there was a similar recall until the 2005 model, this issue was never fixes from all the research ive done on this issue"
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2019-01-10
Complaint:
"the ingniition switch went out for a second time. i replaced it once but decided to put a start button on my car. i can't afford to pay for an another ingniition switch. they should have been a recall on it."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2017-02-10
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford focus. while attempting to start the vehicle, it failed to start. the dealer was not notified. the manufacturer stated that they would make a note of the failure, but nothing could be done at this time. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the failure mileage was 82,000."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2018-03-06
Complaint:
"our car in 2017 while driving on road suddenly stopped with all the dashboard lights on. car got stuck and we could not start engine in next few mins. after few mins everything back to normal. we started driving again. and did not have that problem again for a while. fast forward to october 2018 it has done it 3 times now where the lights come on while driving and it dies no power at all i have to put in park and turn off. it then normally starts right up again. this stops in the middle of traffic in busy streets never know when it is going to happen. took car to local shop. they said serious problem bit where they could not diagnose. next went to ford dealer. same issue happened in front of them . they told me it could be ignition as it was off a little but that it would not start so that would not be the problem with it dying while driving. but again same problem. we called them again and this time they had similar experience while driving car back to shop. but after going there they could not reproduce problem. so they said to take car back but advised to be careful while driving as car might stop anytime"
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2018-10-10
Complaint:
"vehicle stationary. upon inserting the key into the ignition, the engine does not start. this occurs with several turns of the ignition. once the key is strongly inserted or wiggles around the engine starts. recently diagnosed as a faulty ignition cylinder. it happens daily!"
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2017-03-04
Complaint:
"tl* the contact owns a 2008 ford focus. after inserting the key into the ignition and turning the switch, the engine would not start. the cause of the failure was not diagnosed. the vehicle was not repaired. the manufacturer was notified of the failure. the failure mileage was 100,000."
Components Involved: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Date of incident: 2016-01-12

Recalls for the 2008 Ford FOCUS

Component Recalls

Choose a component to see what recalls people have made about them.

Recall:
"k2 motor is recalling 1,921 aftermarket headlamps of various models sold for use on the above listed vehicles. these headlamps are missing the amber side reflex reflector which fails to conform with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, "lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.""
Consequence:
WITHOUT THE AMBER SIDE REFLEX REFLECTORS, THE LIGHTING VISIBILITY MAY BE AFFECTED, POSSIBLY RESULTING IN A VEHICLE CRASH.
Remedy:

K2 MOTOR WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND OFFER A FULL REFUND. THE RECALL BEGAN ON DECEMEBER 17, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT K2 MOTOR AT 1-909-839-2992.

Component(s) Involved: EXTERIOR LIGHTING > HEADLIGHTS
Date of incident: 2008-08-11

FORD Overall Complaint Ranking

This table shows the ranking of car manufacturers when it comes to most complaints and recalls. The manufacturer with the most complaints is at the top. However this doesn't necassarily mean they should be avoided. Some manufacturers might just have more popular or affordable cars which a lot of people have bought. Which means there's more scope for a complaint to be made. Use the ranking table below as a part your wider research into buying a car.

FORD ranks 1 out of 44 in the complaints ranking table.

Manufacturer Complaint Count Recall Count Ranking
FORD 208,358 3,259 1
CHEVROLET 111,306 2,082 2
TOYOTA 81,019 1,852 3
HONDA 61,937 1,268 4
NISSAN 56,226 930 5
DODGE 45,756 827 6
HYUNDAI 44,150 649 7
GMC 34,441 1,410 8
KIA 29,832 501 9
CHRYSLER 27,698 254 10
TESLA 26,230 730 11
BMW 24,890 1,877 12
VOLKSWAGEN 23,125 829 13
MERCEDES-BENZ 19,066 2,925 14
SUBARU 18,513 703 15
MAZDA 10,599 364 16
PONTIAC 10,430 138 17
CADILLAC 9,434 444 18
AUDI 7,865 1,093 19
BUICK 7,851 279 20
SATURN 7,672 84 21
MERCURY 7,374 135 22
LEXUS 6,373 408 23
LINCOLN 5,897 423 24
ACURA 5,722 382 25
MINI 5,585 366 26
INFINITI 4,000 187 27
MITSUBISHI 3,912 397 28
VOLVO 3,875 727 29
PORSCHE 2,646 1,231 30
SUZUKI 2,272 123 31
FIAT 2,205 80 32
SAAB 1,536 76 33
JAGUAR 1,195 198 34
SMART 528 17 35
GENESIS 436 42 36
ISUZU 249 37 37
ALFA ROMEO 161 37 38
MASERATI 76 46 39
BENTLEY 46 159 40
POLESTAR 42 2 41
LUCID 14 6 42
CODA 4 2 43
MAYBACH 0 0 44

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