Ford Focus Warning Lights
The Most Common Ford Focus Symbols
These are the most common dashboard symbols that you will see in your Ford Focus. Click on one to see more information or scroll further down to see the link to the owner's manual where you can find even more symbols.
Can't see the warning light you are looking for? Check the official manual:
View Owner's Manual
- Manufacturer: Ford
- Data Source: Owner's Manual
About the Focus
In an attempt to create a compact car that would sell well in North America as well as Europe, the Ford Motor Company set the UK and German design teams to the task.
Previously the automobile manufacturer found that a compact car design (a large segment in the autos market) would traditionally do well in just one territory and fail elsewhere.
To keep the number of projects to a minimum so that investment could be pooled together on a smaller number of car models the company wanted to share a chassis between countries.
So in the year 1999, the company released the Focus model in Europe with the North American region getting their hands on it a year later.
A wide range of engines, trims and transmissions helped the car adapt itself to various regions and demographics.
This tactic of multiple trims and body styles also works well for the other family car in the Ford range, the larger Fusion.
Buyers could opt for a hatchback, sedan or station wagon layout based on their requirements - convertible versions of the car also eventually came onto the market.
The RS performance trim was launched in 2003 in the European market and customers were lining up for the car with almost every part of it uprated compared to the normal version.
In the second-generation Ford Focus, the RS trim was joined by the slightly less powerful ST trim though all performance trims were scrapped with the introduction of the fourth generation in 2018.
Common Focus Warning Lights
Across all ages of the Ford Focus, we see many visitors looking for help with the ABS warning light.
This warning is displayed when a fault is discovered in the ABS system and when illuminated shows that the car has turned off the ABS completely.
Using the brakes should still be possible (as long as the issue isn't the brakes themselves) but the driver will no longer be supported by the ABS.
Hard braking or braking on loose surfaces could lead to the brakes locking up rather than alternating on and off during this time.
The cause of the issue with the ABS could be down to dirty brake fluid harming the components inside of the ABS or maybe even an electrical fault.
Seeking help from a trained mechanic as soon as possible is recommended as lives could be put in danger by continuing to drive the car.
Another common warning for the Ford Focus is the "Engine Malfunction" message, accompanied by an exclamation mark in a triangle.
This is typically referred to as the master warning light and by plugging an OBD2 reader into the car you can get a more detailed report of the problem in the form of a fault code.
You can purchase these OBD2 readers fairly cheaply online or ask your local mechanic to plug theirs into the car.
