Hello all,
I joined the forum a few days ago- seems like a nice group of people here. I wish this message could be about how much I love my SVTF (which I do), but unfortunately it's been nothing but a headache since I got it about 3 months ago. Heres the story: I buy the car brand new (2004 CD silver 5 door, every option) and am VERY happy with it. Then, with less than 2k miles on it, I go to start the car after breakfast one morning and it idles terrible- long story short, it got towed to the dealership and the problem was diagnosed as a faulty fuel pump. Ok, sounds right. I let it slide as just a "bug" in the car which I get to get out of the way early. Car gets fixed in a few days, running like new (which it still is- ah, the irony). I have the car for about 3 weeks, running fine. I go home for Labor Day weekend, Annnddddd...... it's dead. Again. Same rough idle, followed by the eventual dying of the motor. I am getting frustrated now thinking about it. This is the SECOND time this car has been towed and it has less than 3k miles on it. Unbelieveable. Anyway, the point of this post is has anyone heard of fuel problems with the SVTF? Luckily the dealership is first-class: helpful and courteous everytime. The technicians at the dealership are now examining the entire fuel system and ECU, as well as talking directly to the guys at SVT. I'm beginning to think I got a lemon. Any thoughts?

I wrote a piece about how much I liked my SVTF. That was at 10,000 miles. The YRFO helps I guess. But now I am like so many other people on here who think this thing is a piece of shit. I have 11,100 miles on it and all of a sudden it wants to start revving hard all the time. Doesn't matter if it's in neutral or not. I took it to Ford today and they said is has a vacuum leak caused by the aftermarket parts. Hello!!!! Those things have been on there since 2,000 miles and no problems. I looked over everything with a careful eye and the vacuum leak was not coming from the throttle body or any of the other aftermarket parts. I am seriously thinking about just putting back all the original equipment (I still have it) and trading this crap in for something else. You can't make it go fast without spending a lot of money. Everyone talks about it's great handling (big deal other cars i.e. SRT-4 have better slolom times). The SVTF is a piece of shit. I am so mad right now I could just sell the thing as is, take the hit, and get me a rice burner that at least won't break down or have as many problems as this worthless shit.

do it, and don't post on here anymore........

I have just as much right to post on here as anyone else. Everytime someone says something unfavorable about these cars people on here get upset. Too bad. It is what it is. Even other Focus owners (non-svt) have noticed how sensitive the SVTF crowd is on here. Grow up. If I want to state my opinion I will. That's part of the forum. Moral of the story is, I will do what I want, state what I want, and post on here if I want.

Wow, I didnt mean to sound like I was bashing the Focus. While I dont share as an extreme view as hbm1, I still am disappointed about how much trouble this has been. Please dont get me wrong and think I hate my SVTF. I dont. In fact, I love my car- when it runs. I just was looking for some info regarding the situation. Hopefully the dealership can get this completely ironed out and I can go back to having a car again. I'm stuck with a 2003 F-150 FX4 now, and I hate it- seems 50000000 time larger than the Focus. I can hardly park that truck.

BTW, its 100% stock- that may rule out some theories.

Yeah people on here are pretty sensitive about that stuff - i just say it how it is i mean the car really has some issues i love it but the pro's by no means outweigh the cons on this. People are just trying to get others input on this no need to get so touchy about it.

I'm sorry...you think you would have better luck with the SRT-4? WOW! [rofl]

Originally posted by hbm1
I wrote a piece about how much I liked my SVTF. That was at 10,000 miles. The YRFO helps I guess. But now I am like so many other people on here who think this thing is a piece of shit.

You have already bitched about this problem on another thread in this same forum (http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=23916), and I have already given you perfectly good reasons why the SVT may be acting up and why the dealership was justified in rejecting your warranty work. You may have had a bad experience, but why does that amount to "a pile of shit" a vehicle that many people on this board love.

[paranoid] So still no thoughts on the fuel issues, huh?

You sure your computer is flashed with the latest and greatest? Mine was idling horribly and then dying at intersections until they did the YFR0 and I believe they made an adjustment to the TB. If it can be. Whatever the case, mine is running much better than what it was.

Scott

So still no thoughts on the fuel issues, huh?
Wish I had more, but here's 1 thought.
Did they put in the correct fuel pump?
Aside from the difference between standard and SVT models,
the 04's have a different pump (and different ECU calibration) than the 02's and 03's.

Mine was idling horribly and then dying at intersections until they did the YFR0....
Unfortunately, the YRF0 reflash will not work on the 04's due to the above mentioned changes to the fuel system.

Originally posted by hbm1
I have just as much right to post on here as anyone else. Everytime someone says something unfavorable about these cars people on here get upset. Too bad. It is what it is. Even other Focus owners (non-svt) have noticed how sensitive the SVTF crowd is on here. Grow up. If I want to state my opinion I will. That's part of the forum. Moral of the story is, I will do what I want, state what I want, and post on here if I want.

what's the point of posting here if you don't have a focus?[confused]

I assume they put in the proper pump. I asked the service manager that question, and he said the pump from a standard Focus wont fit on an SVT- I'll have to take his word for it, because I'm new to the Focus world. Thats a good sign- can you imagine fuel cut-off at 7200rpm [xx(]
As to whether or not it was an '04 as opposed to '03 or '02, I honestly do not know. I would think that if Ford did make changes to the pump assembly for '04, then previous years would not fit. I'll let you all know the answer to that when I get it back. Thanks for the help. [thumb]

Don't assume anything when it comes to dealer service! Find a way to cross check the part number and make sure they put in the correct one. It probably is correct, but the only problems I've had with my SVTF is the dealer service. On the first oil change (and only by them), they managed to use the wrong oil, the wrong filter and cross-thread/strip the drain plug. I know all dealerships are different, but it seems quite a few have a problem with the SVTF's. Hope you have better luck, cuz they really are fun little cars.

hbm1 ive already got 44k and by no means do i think the svtf is a piece of shit, and not to attack you or anything but who cares how long a part has been on? if it wasnt installed properly it can still damage something over time

but anywho maybe its not at all related to the fuel pump or pump system, long shot here but maybe youve got bad spark plugs? vacuum leak? alternator could be surging and not putting out proper volts? i could go on but without being able to eliminate anything it seems pointless, and as nice as that dealership may be sometimes thats all they are, i live near chicago and had my car serviced at a dealer up there numerous times and they were great people but they never really fixed any problems, everytime they worked on it the next week or few days later when i came back south to champaign and i had another cel or rough idle etc. i went out to another svt dealership out in clinton IL and regardless of kinda being hicks, them boys know their stuff, but they werent friendly, well too friendly, so if you have continuing problems id consider going to another dealership and i tihnk quite a few people would agree i dont care how nice people are if theyre doing the job right the first time, thats nice enough

I just wanted to make sure that everyone understands that by no means was this meant to be a bitching and moaning post. I love my SVTF- I just wanted to get to the bottom of the problem and get my first "car" running again so that I can enjoy my car. I used to own a 1996 Explorer, and the members of that forum would put their heads down and together and bull their way through a problem to get it solved- I assumed that to be true here. I appreciate everyones advice or thoughts. Sorry if I offended anyone.

Dealership says they replaced the fuel pump and the car is running again. However, the service manager isn't convinced the problem is solved, and they are running a scan of the entire system to check codes, etc. He says he talked to the SVT people, and no one there has ever heard of this problem before- so no worries if no one on the forum had any clue what was wrong :) Either this guy really wants to solve my problem, or he realizes the next time I have a problem, I am eligible to a lemon law claim. I prefer the former.

Hey there Stephen S. ,
I recently had a Fuel pump/ sending unit replaced and the service tech I talked with said that he spoke to SVT directly and they requested for the fuel pump to be ordered directly from their national warehouse. The tech said that SVT stated that the ful pump assembly had been updated and that any fuel pump on their shelf maybe of the old style and that the problems might reoccure if they used it instead of the updated pump from Fords warehouse. I don't know if this may be your situation BUT that is what I was told for the delay in my parts arriving to the dealer and getting my SVT back.
Good luck
L8R Joe

OHHHH MY TURN!!!

YOU SUCK

Im guessing there is a vaccumm leak and your just to pissed off to hear the little hissing noise under your hood and fix it because your an over reacting moron. I had problems too I was very calm after I got it back from the dealer and using my KNOWLEDGE of cars I found the hose that is RIGHT UNDER THE MIDDLE OF THE FUEL RAIL that was not plugged in...

AND I PLUGGED IT BACK IN

and my car runs PERFECT.

So please dont ruin everyone elses day and keep your $^%#*ing to yourself.

I have been under the hood [:)][:)][:)][:)][:)][:)]hole. Maybe you are an underachieving dumb[:)][:)][:)][:)][:)][:)]*. Ruin who's fun? All the people with all the problems. Let's see....limited production car....unlimited problems...tranny problem..major issue...now if you want you can get under my hood and listen for yourself to all the *&^%$%# that I want to do.

lwnslw,
A very real possiblity about the fuel pump- unless they were really concentrating on what they were doing, they could have easily throw an "old" one from the warehouse in there. That sounds like the deal to me. How recently was the pump replaced?

keep it clean ladies. dont wanna lock this.

I dont think I've ever had one of my threads locked before...... [paranoid] [:(]

Ha, I just got my Certificate of Authenticity today. It's back at home (I'm at school now)- I'll have to check the date next time I go home (may be soon with Ivan heading this way). It sounds like we bought our cars at about the same time, so I'm guessing my build date is after January. Yea, we both have good taste in cars [;)] [thumb]

Good luck buddy, stay safe. I feel so bad for you people in Florida. Three major hurricanes in a row, unbelievable...

6,000 trouble free miles on my 04 SVTF. I love it. Here's something to think about, boys...the SVTF is a high-performance vehicle that has very little in common with a regular Focus (other than looks) the thing has been tweaked and tuned to extremes, and in addition to that it's driven a little harder than what another car would have to tolerate. Also, the car was only introduced in '02, so no....bugs haven't been worked out yet. Umm...yeah, you might have a few more problems than with a Focus SE. Duh. As for me, even if i were to have problems with it, that's why the warranty is there and I would use it and not be a whiny little bitch about some problems that may arise. It's a piece of machinery, for chrissakes....not God!

Stephen S.-- I apologize for those who have hijacked the thread and have been anything but helpful. Yoy bought a great car, and it's unfortunate that it has had this problem so early in your ownership. Like you, I hope they are able to properly diagnose and fix the problem rather than having to buy it back. MY recommendation to you would be to call Ford SVT yourself and discuss what has been going on with your vehicle. Also, like mentioned before, ensure that the proper parts were installed and also check to see whuch ECU Flash you have. You should have the latest and greatest, though, because my build date was in October of '03 and I'm up-to-date.

Good Luck on your car and seriously consider trying another dealer....the more people looking at it, the better your chances of someone knowing what is going on.

its also a combination of the things that went together. first time that ecu, engine, tranny, and everything went together. remember how many probs the 00 focus had? as the years go by the car gets less problamatic. if you want something special, you have to learn to put up with that kind of stuff.