2016 Ford Fiesta

Typical pattern

6.3% of complaints about the 2016 Ford Fiesta came in the first year, which is unremarkable for a 2016 vehicle — around the middle of the 199 model-years on record. The median complaint arrives at 4.8 yr in service. The most-reported system is power train (103 complaints), typically at 5.8 yr or about 69,000 miles.

Complaints: 253
Median age at failure: 4.8 yr
Median mileage: 54,000 n=164
Crash / fire / tow: 14.2% of reports
Safety recalls: 0

In owners’ own words

Other 1,360 mi 1.5 yr in service

I HAD THE HOOD ON MY FORD OPEN TODAY TO CLEAR OUT LEAVES THAT HAD GOTTEN STUCK AROUND THE VENTS UNDER THE HOOD. WHILE I HAD THE HOOD UP I NOTICED "TIN FOIL" AROUND THE WINDSHIELD WHERE IT MEETS THE FRAME OF FRONT WINDOWS.. I'M STRUCK BY THAT TIN FOIL & ON BOTH SIDES THE PASSENGER SIDE & THE DRIVER SIDE OF THE WINDSHIELD HOW SAFE IS THAT .. (TOOK THREE PICS & HOPE YOU CAN SEE IT) UPLOADED ALL 3 PICTURES.. AUTO WAS STATIONARY AT THE TIME..

Other 7,000 mi 2.1 yr in service

TRANSMISSION ISSUES. THE CAR JERKS AND STUTTERS AND RAMPS UP REALLY HIGH. DON'T FEEL VERY SAFE IN EVERY DAY TRAFFIC. I JUST PURCHASED THE 2016 BRAND NEW IN MAY 2017 AND HAVE HAD IT BACK FOR SERVICE THREE TIMES. I AM NOT SATISFIED WITH THE EXPLANATION OF THE DUAL TRANSMISSION. HAD I KNOW IT HAD THE SAME TRANSMISSION AS MY 2011 FIESTA, I WOULD NOT HAVE PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE!

Other 25,000 mi 3.8 yr in service

WHEN I STEP ON THE GAS, THE CAR SPORADICALLY WILL NOT GO. SO I WILL STEP ON THE GAS LITTLE BIT MORE AND THE CAR WILL STILL NOT GO. SO I WILL STEP ON THE GAS A LITTLE MORE AND THEN SOMETHING WILL ENGAGE AND I WILL SHOOT FORWARD. THIS HAPPENS IN PLACES WHERE IT COULD BE CATASTROPHIC. FOR EXAMPLE, ONCE I WAS AT A STOP SIGN AND THIS WAS HAPPENING AND BECAUSE MY CAR WASN'T MOVING, ANOTHER CAR STARTED TO GO AND MY CAR FINALLY ENGAGED AND SHOT FORWARD AND I NARROWLY MISSED HITTING THAT OTHER VEHICLE

Electrical system mileage not reported 10 mo in service

DAYLIGHT RUNNING LAMPS INOPERATIVE AT TIME OF PURCHASE. PAID FOR TX INSPECTION. DISCOVERED AFTER LEAVING DEALERSHIP.

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.

2016 Ford Fiesta

When each system is reported — middle 50% of complaints

In owners’ own words

Other Fiesta model years

How to read this