Your vehicle report
2015 Ford Fiesta
The problems owners report. The recalls to check. The evidence behind each.
Your vehicle at a glance
Complaint patterns and official recall records, kept distinct.
- Owner complaints
- 259
- Received Jan 2015 to Oct 2026
Owner reports
Most reported problems
- 1Ford Focus transmission clutch slips and hesitates38 complaints · 15% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 2Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips17 complaints · 6.6% of this vehicle’s complaints
- 3Rear door latch fails to open or close15 complaints · 5.8% of this vehicle’s complaints
Official NHTSA records
Recalls to check
- Recall #23V775000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015 Fiesta, 2016 Fusion, and 2016 Lincoln MKZ vehicles sold, or ever registered in Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Washington, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. A component inside the door latches may break, which can make it difficult to latch or possibly allow the doors to open while driving.
- Recall #20V177000Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014-2015 Fiesta, 2014-2016 Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles sold, or ever registered in Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Washington, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 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.
BrakeNews signals
Flagged complaint patterns
Unusual complaint patterns with no matched recall yet. A flag does not mean a recall will happen.
No problems currently meet BrakeNews’s flagging criteria. This is not a safety rating.
How flags are identifiedComplaint counts reflect reports submitted to NHTSA, not failure rates or a reliability ranking. Reported in these complaints: 16 crashes, 0 fires, 24 people injured, 0 deaths.
Explore by system
Where do owners report problems?
Choose an area on the car or a system below to explore the reported problems.
Illustrative only; not this vehicle’s exact design. Areas represent complaint categories, not confirmed defective parts.
Showing all 20 listed problems by system.
Engine & powertrain
- Ford Focus transmission clutch slips and hesitates
- Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips
- Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline
9 more problems
- Engine suddenly shuts off while driving
- Transmission fails or loses power while driving
- Head gasket leaks coolant into engine
- Ford Escape engine overheats from coolant intrusion
- Transmission shudders during acceleration at low speeds
- Transmission will not engage reverse gear
- Electronic throttle body fails and cuts power
- Unintended acceleration despite braking
- Fuel pump fails and engine stalls
Brakes
Electrical & lights
Airbags, belts & seats
Steering, suspension & tires
Body, doors & glass
Driver assistance
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Other
No problems in this category meet this page’s listing criteria. This does not establish that the system is free of problems.
Complaint history
When NHTSA received these reports. Changes in reporting alone do not establish a change in failure rates.
Show as a table
| Year | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 2015 | 9 |
| 2016 | 22 |
| 2017 | 24 |
| 2018 | 29 |
| 2019 | 39 |
| 2020 | 27 |
| 2021 | 18 |
| 2022 | 24 |
| 2023 | 26 |
| 2024 | 15 |
| 2025 | 18 |
| 2026 (to Oct 2026) | 8 |
| Total | 259 |
Problems owners report
Listed groups have at least 3 complaints. The page includes the 20 largest groups plus any additional flagged groups; some complaints are not assigned to a group.
| Problem | Complaints | Share | Share ratio | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Focus transmission clutch slips and hesitates | 38 | 15% | 28.5× | |
| Automatic transmission shifts unexpectedly or slips | 17 | 6.6% | – | |
| Rear door latch fails to open or close | 15 | 5.8% | – | NHTSA recall #20V177000, #23V775000 |
| Fuel tank or line leaks gasoline | 15 | 5.8% | – | |
| Engine suddenly shuts off while driving | 12 | 4.6% | – | |
| Transmission fails or loses power while driving | 10 | 3.9% | – | |
| Head gasket leaks coolant into engine | 7 | 2.7% | – | |
| Glass shatters or cracks without impact | 6 | 2.3% | – | |
| Airbags fail to deploy in crashes | 6 | 2.3% | – | |
| Airbag warning light stays on | 6 | 2.3% | – | |
| Ford Escape engine overheats from coolant intrusion | 5 | 1.9% | – | NHTSA recall #17V209000 |
| Transmission shudders during acceleration at low speeds | 5 | 1.9% | – | |
| Transmission will not engage reverse gear | 5 | 1.9% | – | |
| Automatic emergency braking applies without reason | 5 | 1.9% | – | |
| Electronic throttle body fails and cuts power | 5 | 1.9% | – | |
| Vehicle catches fire from wiring | 3 | 1.2% | – | |
| Unintended acceleration despite braking | 3 | 1.2% | – | |
| Fuel pump fails and engine stalls | 3 | 1.2% | – | NHTSA recall #15V005000 |
| Heater blows cold air, defroster fails | 3 | 1.2% | – | |
| Suspension clunking or rattling noise over bumps | 3 | 1.2% | – |
AI groups complaints by meaning; the groups are approximate. Share ratio compares the problem’s share of this vehicle’s complaints with its share on other vehicles over the last 24 months (shown from 3 recent complaints). A 2× ratio means twice the complaint share, not twice the failure risk. Flags mark unusual shares or recent surges after an AI review of the complaint content. “First signal” does not mean the pattern has persisted continuously.How recall estimates are calculated.
Recalls
NHTSA recall #23V775000November 17, 202345,173 vehicles affected
latches/locks/linkages: doors: latch
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2015 Fiesta, 2016 Fusion, and 2016 Lincoln MKZ vehicles sold, or ever registered in Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Washington, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. A component inside the door latches may break, which can make it difficult to latch or possibly allow the doors to open while driving.
Vehicle doors opening unexpectedly while driving can increase the risk of a crash or injury.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect the door latch date codes and if necessary, replace all four side door latches, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed December 20, 2023. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S15. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall number 20V-177.
NHTSA recall #20V177000March 23, 2020288,110 vehicles affected
latches/locks/linkages: doors: latch
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014-2015 Fiesta, 2014-2016 Fusion and Lincoln MKZ vehicles sold, or ever registered in Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Washington, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands. 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.
Remedy
Ford will notify owners, and Ford or Lincoln dealers will replace the side door latches, free of charge. The recall began September 21, 2020. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 20S15.
NHTSA recall #17V209000March 27, 2017208,584 vehicles affected
engine and engine cooling: engine
Ford Motor Company (Ford) is recalling certain 2014 Escape, 2014-2015 Fiesta ST, 2013-2014 Fusion and 2013-2015 Transit Connect vehicles equipped with 1.6L GTDI engines. If the vehicle is started and driven with an insufficient level of coolant within the engine cooling system, the engine cylinder head may overheat, crack and leak oil.
If the cylinder head cracks and leaks oil, the oil may contact a hot engine or exhaust component, increasing the risk of a fire.
Remedy
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will install a coolant level sensor and the supporting hardware and software, free of charge. Interim notices informing owners of the safety risk were mailed April 21, 2017. The recall began on January 5, 2018. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 17S09.
NHTSA recall #15V005000January 9, 201554,543 vehicles affected
fuel system, gasoline: delivery: fuel pump
Ford Motor Company (Ford) notified the agency on January 8, 2015, that they are recalling certain model year 2014 Ford Escape vehicles manufactured April 15, 2014, to May 8, 2014, and 2015 Lincoln MKC vehicles manufactured April 21, 2014, to May 15, 2014. On April 30, 2015, Ford expanded the recall to cover an additional 45,505 vehicles, including certain model year 2014-2015 Ford Transit Connect vehicles manufactured November 11, 2013, to August 29, 2014, 2014-2015 Ford Fiesta vehicles manufactured April 10, 2014, to June 17, 2014 and 2014 Ford Edge vehicles manufactured April 30, 2014, to May 21, 2014. Improper nickel plating of components within the fuel pump may result in the fuel pump failing.
If the fuel pump fails, the vehicle may stall without warning, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Ford will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump, free of charge. The recall began on February 27, 2015. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 14S30.
Other model years
About this data
NHTSA complaints and recalls through October 2026. Complaints are counted once each, however many components they name. Original complaints are on NHTSA's page for the 2015 Ford Fiesta.
Problem groups are formed by AI and may be approximate. BrakeNews flags unusual complaint patterns; they are not official defect findings. Investigation reports are written and checked by AI, with no human review. Owner reports do not establish that a defect exists.
Read the methodology and track record · Check current recalls by VIN