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Purchased 2014 focus 2 years ago. Never run the best, but as have put in for servicing thought it must be my driving. My son is a mechanic in Perth and drives it when he comes home. This time he said it was getting worse, so booked in for check. In the intrim we discovered on line the trouble Ford was having with this car. I was shocked to find out they were only fixing these cars when owners complain. One of the faults was losing power. Imagine that happening passing on motorway! I had a close call a few months ago, and now can figer out why.
My dealer has given good service and replaced the clutch packs. My problem now is, If I want to sell car it has had a lot of bad publicity and will be deemed a lemon. Also purched the car in good will as an automatic not a manual with a powershift, is this not false advertising?? Would never have purchased knowing this. Please advise my legal rights
Hi there,
This is a question faced by lots of Focus and Fiesta owners, not all of the transmissions give problems and market trends and pricing will dictate resale. It pays to do a lot of homework into a vehicle type before buying. The transmission is still classed as an automatic as it doesn't have a gear shifter or clutch pedal, you still put it in drive. If the manufacturer/ dealer is deemed to be fixing or attempting to remedy the problem, they are fulfilling their responsibility under the CGA.
Hi Cade Thank you for your reply. As you will know a class action has been taken in Australia regarding the Focus. NZ is keeping very quiet, If something is faulty and could cause an accident would that not deem a recall??? Yes we should have done our homework on it, we thought we were safe dealing with a reputable car dealer and it was a later model car. We have been told we should be driving it like a manual as it is a Automotive manual not Automatic
I'm also interested in this as having the same issue. In Australia they are talking about replacing the cars with the latest model. I wonder how many in NZ have had this issue and if anyone has had a satisfactory settlement? I am on my third clutch... The last only lasted 6 months.
I love my 2014 Ford Fiesta ... except for the problems I have had with the clutch. My car is booked in for the second replacement clutch next week. It is covered by Mechanical Breakdown Insurance but I am concerned about what happens when I want to trade it in on a new one. I can't possibly sell it privately, knowing that there are ongoing clutch problems.
With the first clutch, I wasn't sure there was a problem; I thought maybe I wasn't driving it right, until I got stuck crawling in traffic for an hour. The slipping/shuddering got so bad I knew it wasn't me. Ford replaced it, no questions asked. A year later, I was back in for a regular service and I asked them to do the diagnostics on the clutch to see how it was going. It was all good in the beginning, but by the time I went to pick up my car they had some error codes coming out, the car wouldn't start, and now they say I need a new clutch. It seems a worse after the service than before the car went in. I don't understand what about the diagnostic tests could have caused such a problem!
Hi there,
A diagnostic check should never really make the car worse nor introduce a problem, maybe clearing the system memory or testing the transmission operation exposed an underlying fault. It might be better to keep all dealings with the manufacturer even when the time comes to change vehicle. The new Ford Focus doesn't have this type of transmission anymore- I think the Fiesta still does.
When I drove the loan car which was a Fiesta I commented that the transmission felt a lot better than mine. They said the new Fiestas no longer have the dual clutch system.
That's good news. :-)