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Ford Focus vs Toyota Corolla

Which one, and which years, drew fewer problems per car sold

The short answer

Across the 2012 to 2022 model years, the Toyota Corolla drew fewer owner complaints per car sold: 76 per 100,000 against 939 for the Ford Focus, or 92% fewer. For the newer 2019 to 2022 cars the two are about even. The best years to target are 2015 and 2017 for the Focus and 2018 and 2022 for the Corolla.

2015 Ford Focus ST in Tangerine Scream Metallic Tri-coat, Front Right, 05-29-2022

Ford Focus

Complaints per 100k sold939
Recalls since 201224
Average crash rating4.9 of 5
'12'13'14'15'16'17'18
Best2015, 2017
Avoid2012, 2014
2020 Toyota Corolla SE 2.0L sedan, 12.28.19

Toyota Corolla

Complaints per 100k sold76
Recalls since 201221
Average crash rating4.8 of 5
'12'13'14'15'16'17'18'19'20'21'22'23'24
Best2018, 2022
Avoidnone stand out

By age group

Model yearsFocusCorollaFewer problems
Older (2012 to 2015)1,07388Corolla
Middle (2016 to 2018)66655Corolla
Newer (2019 to 2022)n/a80About even

Owner complaints per 100,000 cars sold, pooled across the years in each group. Lower is better. A model counts as ahead only when it is at least 10% lower.

Year by year

YearFocusCorolla
20121,547153
201393067
20141,21280
201551161
201670959
201757257
201873547
2019n/a68
2020n/a132
2021n/a76
2022n/a48
2023n/aToo new
2024n/aToo new

Complaints per 100,000 sold for each model year. Green is a good year for that model, amber average, red a year to watch out for.

Most reported problems

Questions

Is the Focus or Corolla more reliable?

Across the 2012 to 2022 model years, the Toyota Corolla drew fewer owner complaints per car sold: 76 per 100,000 against 939 for the Ford Focus, or 92% fewer. For the newer 2019 to 2022 cars the two are about even. The best years to target are 2015 and 2017 for the Focus and 2018 and 2022 for the Corolla.

Which Focus and Corolla years should I avoid?

For the Focus: 2012, 2014. For the Corolla: none stand out.

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