• Problems in some model years of the Ford Focus have resulted in recalls.New Ford Fiesta image by zimous from Fotolia.com
  
  Since 1903, the Ford Motor Company has been producing vehicles. As of 2010, the company still remains one of the leading automobile manufacturers in the world. With constant technological advancements, even 100 years of manufacturing can't prevent mass problems and issues that often result in recalls. Many vehicles---such as the Ford Focus---have several problems that have forced Ford to issue multiple recalls.
  
  

Airbags

• Sometimes problems in manufacturing affect only a few vehicles, resulting in recalls of very low numbers. Such was the case for the 2008 Ford Focus, of which 45 units were issued for a recall in November 2007. Some vehicles failed the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 208, dealing with the airbag protection of the passenger. The malfunctioning airbags were not installed properly, which posed a potential risk of them not deploying in the event of a crash.
  
  

Latches

• Recalls can take place not over tens of thousands of vehicles, but over hundreds of thousands of vehicles. A problem with the 2005 Ford Focus and other vehicles resulted in more than 589,000 models being recalled. In selected vehicles, a corrosion build-up existed on the rear door latch, which could cause binding of the "pawl" area. This corrosion could prevent the pawl from catching the latch. Closing and opening the rear door can be a subsequent problem. This could potentially result in the door opening unintentionally while the vehicle is in motion.
  
  

Seats

• In 2000, 95,000 2001 Ford Focus models were recalled at the end of the year due to an issue with the reclining seat. The passenger seat of the Ford Focus is designed to fold down and become a load floor. On some malfunctioning vehicles, when the seat is folded down, a problem with the hinge pivot disengaging can occur. The problem is that when folding the seat back up, the seat has the potential to not re-engage, which can be dangerous in the event of a crash.