2013 Ford Fiesta

No clear pattern

20.1% of complaints about the 2013 Ford Fiesta arrived in its first year of service. That is an unusual figure for a 2013 vehicle, but with only 906 complaints on record the sample is too small to call it a pattern — the margin of error covers the range where ordinary vehicles sit. The figures below are reported without a verdict. The most-reported system is power train (389 complaints), typically at 2.5 yr or about 20,000 miles.

Complaints: 906
Median age at failure: 2.9 yr
Median mileage: 31,404 n=746
Crash / fire / tow: 4.4% of reports
Safety recalls: 3

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

System

0y2y4y6y8y10y12y14y

Power train

389 reports · 20,000 mi

2.5 yr

3.1%

Engine

108 reports · 18,000 mi

2.2 yr

6.5%

Other

91 reports · 48,200 mi

4.8 yr

6.6%

Structure

77 reports · 40,000 mi

2.6 yr

3.9%

Electrical system

62 reports · 60,000 mi

5.8 yr

1.6%

Latches / locks

47 reports · 52,000 mi

2.8 yr

2.1%

Speed control

42 reports · 15,000 mi

2.2 yr

Safety recalls — NHTSA campaigns

20V331000 2020-06-08

Latches/locks/linkages:doors:latch

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2011-2014 Fiesta, 2013-2014 Fusion, 2015 Mustang, 2013-2015 Escape and C-Max, 2012-2015 Focus, 2014-2016 Transit Connect, 2013-2014 Lincoln MKZ, and 2015 MKC vehicles. These vehicles were previously recalled and repaired under recalls 15V-246, 16V-643 or 17V-210, however the repair may not have been completed properly. A component within the door latches may break making the doors difficult to latch and/or leading the driver or a passenger to believe a door is securely closed when, in fact, it is not.

A door that is not securely latched could open while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.

15V246000 2015-04-24

Latches/locks/linkages:doors:latch

Ford Motor Company (Ford) notified the agency on April 23, 2015, that they are recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured July 1, 2012, to May 31, 2013, and 2012-2014 Fiesta vehicles manufactured February 1, 2012, to May 31, 2013. On April 30, 2015, Ford expanded the recall to cover an additional 119,567 vehicles, including certain model year 2011 Ford Fiestas manufactured from November 11, 2009, to May 31, 2013 and certain model year 2013 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles manufactured from February 1, 2012, to June 30, 2012. A component wit

A door that is not securely latched could open while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the risk of injury to a vehicle occupant.

12V488000 2012-10-05

Air bags

Ford is recalling certain model year 2011-2013 Fiesta vehicles, manufactured from November 3, 2009 through September 21, 2012. The vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 208, "Occupant Crash Protection." The passenger side curtain air bag will not deploy in the event of a side impact collision when the front passenger seat is empty. Although the side curtain air bag system was designed to suppress the side curtain air bag under this scenario, that information is not explained in the owner's guide for these vehicles as required by FMVSS No. 208.

An occupant in the right rear seating position will not have coverage from the side curtain air bag in a side impact collision when the front passenger seat is empty, increasing the risk of injury to the right rear occupant.

In owners’ own words

Power train 500 mi 0 mo in service

TRANSMISSION STARTED GRINDING WHILE TRYING TO ACCELERATE FROM SITTING IDLE. BRAKES LOCKED UP 3 DIFFERENT TIMES WHILE I HAD MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE. THE TRANSMISSION REVS VERY HIGH WITH ANY STREET THAT IS NOT COMPLETELY FLAT. WHEN I SIT AT A STOP LIGHT IT WILL ROLL BACKWARD WHEN I TRY TO GO. IT IS AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. *TR

Power train 3,000 mi 4 mo in service

WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, CAR WILL ROLL BACKWARDS WHEN RELEASING BRAKE AT A STOPLIGHT TO MOVE FORWARD. *TR

Power train mileage not reported 5 mo in service

TRANSMISSION MAKES RATTLING NOISE I TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALER WHERE I BOUGHT CAR I WAS TOLD IT WAS NORMAL WHICH I HAVE A HARD TIME ACCEPTING IT .HAS ANYONE COMPLAINED ABOUT THIS PROBLEM BEFORE . *TR ## VIN FAILED ##

Speed control 200 mi 2 mo in service

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 FORD FIESTA. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE IN A LOW GEAR, THE VEHICLE ERRONEOUSLY ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS ABLE TO BE DRIVEN TO THE DEALER WHERE THE FAILURE COULD NOT BE REPLICATED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED ABOUT THE ISSUE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 200 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 211. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

Other Fiesta model years

How to read this

This is what owners reported, not a reliability rating. People file with NHTSA about alarming failures, not routine ones, and complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold.
Failure ages come from the incident date on each complaint, populated on about 83% of records. Mileage is shown where reported — NHTSA’s 2021 system change cut mileage capture to roughly 15%, so it thins out sharply after MY2020.
Every rank compares this vehicle only against others of the same model year. A 2025 car has not had time to accumulate five-year failures, so comparing early-failure share across years is meaningless.
Fourteen make-months distorted by media storms and mass recalls — Toyota in February 2010 ran 11× normal volume across 33 models — are excluded.
Recalls are manufacturer actions and authoritative; complaints are not. A recall listed here may already have been performed on any individual car. Check a specific VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.