So I had the recalibration done 2 weeks ago exactly and I've been holding off on posting this or checking in with the dealership and wanted to ask if anyone else is having this issue...
So, I'll be driving to/from work or on the interstate with cruise control on (haven't paid attention to whether or not this happens without using CC) and occasionally and for no apparent reason my transmission will kind of hiccup, that's the best way I can describe it. For instance on cruise doing 50 to and from work, my tach sits about 1800RPMs, when these hiccups occur the tach will "spike" up to 2000-2100RPMs and then back down, and I can feel that it almost disengages and I can feel the car slow for that split second and then regain itself and the RPMs settle back to 1800 or so.
It's tough to catch because it happens intermittently (but I'd say a few times every time I drive) and I can't just keep paying attention to the tach.
I tried to snag a video, you can see it happen twice in this video, but it's shaky and I apologize for that, couldn't really help it though.
First hiccup around 0:17-0:18, second around 0:55. Also, pardon the music, didn't bother changing the station when I got in. I'm more of a punk/rock/ska kinda guy.
Sorry, I couldn't really see anything in that video, but, our cars are equipped with "smart" cruise control when equipped with the DCT. Basically the car will use the transmission to downshift momentarily to maintain the set speed exactly, this prevents the car from coasting and gaining extra speed. It talks about it in the manual....I like to hypermile, so I don't use cruise control on hilly areas on the highway because of that. Even very slight inclines can get annoying.
Yeah, it's subtle because you're at low RPM but I think it's going into 5th either to climb a hill or for slight engine breaking (what you feel when it slows for a second).
Try this: jump on the highway or wherever you can cruise at 50 like usual. Turn cruise control on and swap to S then hit the + button to make it go into 6th and watch to see if it still does it... As far as I know if it's in S+ the cruise control will not up or downshift by itself unless it *really* needs to. If the problem persists I'd say take it to the dealer.
I'm in Florida, so no hills here, no engine braking for any reason, no upshifting/downshifting, just literally a blip where the RPMs rise about 2-300 and the car feels like it's got no power, as if the clutch is disengaged. I'll try to get a more steady video, but I thought the hiccup at :55 was pretty obvious. It's just literally a split second that the needle moves, so it's tough to catch, but it's there.
Not trying to be an a$$, but do you really call this a "quirk" ? Because this can be caused even by the irregularity of the road or the quality of the gasoline.
I'm calling it a quirk because it's only happened regularly after the newest update. This has NEVER happened to me before, regardless of what gas station I used, what grade of gasoline I used, and where I've driven. I drive the same roads every day of the week, so... yes, I call it a quirk.
I don't regret the update at all, I just have this one issue with it. It seems that after watching that video that maybe these reflashes are inconsistent, mine doesn't grind gears, it used to though. Mine also doesn't clunk at all, and it's only been jerky in low gears once for me, the last 2 flashes have been much more frequent.
I saw the two hiccups. That sucks man. I don't like the update either. Someone said that your car is trying to go back into 5th??!! I sure as hell hope not at your speed. Why oh why can't we have the option of reverting back to the old software... my transmission worked perfectly for me and was as smooth as glass. [mecry]
Hope you may get that sorted, feta. That is a strange one. I'm not sure the purpose of allyy's video link? All I got from it was an adolescent driving a Titanium?
Maybe others will chime-in with some hiccups, as well!
Glad some of you saw the blips with the RPMs. Definitely a weird one, it's not something that really affects driveability but it does make me miss the old update, it can be a little annoying to just be cruising then feel the car hiccup repeatedly throughout the drive, it's harder to see in the video but it's easy to notice when you're driving. I'll give it a little while longer before bringing it back into the dealership.
...it can be a little annoying to just be cruising then feel the car hiccup repeatedly throughout the drive, it's harder to see in the video but it's easy to notice when you're driving. I'll give it a little while longer before bringing it back into the dealership.
How's your Focus been operating over the past month? Please PM me some details (VIN, mileage, phone #, and dealer info), if you haven't done so already. []
...I contacted the Ford Customer Service Rep, Thomas, on this site and he and Ford Customer Service have been extremely helpful. I'm taking my car back in to the dealer this week...
I just got off of the phone with the service department at the dealer. He is telling me that it is hesitating because of my air conditioner and that it is normal for a 4 cylinder...Either way, it's going to the service department on Wed.
And I also meant to write that it is hesitating or missing without the cruise on. I usually notice it when I am on a slight incline and accelerating with the car probably in 3rd or 4th gear.
I've noticed something similar after getting the 12B37 update. I don't have CC, and my Focus is my daily commuter car. It's infrequent, and I haven't been able to reproduce it at will. When it happens, I'm usually accelerating slightly in traffic, have to step off the gas for a couple / few seconds, the step back on the gas. The RPM's spike and I get no acceleration. I then step off / step on the gas again and the RPM's and acceleration return to normal. I've already sent a PM to FordCustomerService on this board about it...
I just responded to your PM earlier today. [thumb] Do you plan on having a dealer inspect it soon? If so, please PM me your VIN, mileage, phone #, and dealer info; your Customer Service Manager will coordinate with you and your dealer on any repairs (if needed).
I have the same post 12b37 experience. For me, cruise and a/c have to be on and I have noticed it's much more likely to occur when cruise is set for around 60mph than at 75mph...
One of the pre-12b37 complaints was a reluctance to downshift; maybe Ford tinkered with the downshift logic and this is the outcome. When I took mine in with this complaint, they applied 2 post-12b37 updates. Don't know yet if this solved the problem.
Hi...I'm experiencing the same thing as I'm accelerating, the car is hesitating and feels like it's "missing" - not sure how to describe it. But this didn't happen until after the update. I contacted the Ford Customer Service Rep, Thomas, on this site and he and Ford Customer Service have been extremely helpful. I'm taking my car back in to the dealer this week. Please let me know if your issue has been resolved.
I'm not sure it's the DCT, feta. This is something I experience occasionally while using CC myself...and I have a manual transmission. It seems kind of like a misfire. I've never thrown any codes that I know of so it would be hard to get to the bottom of it.
That it happens on manual transmissions as well is interesting. [scratch]
Would think that rules out the DCT's downshifting to use engine braking.
I recall experiencing it pre-12EB37 on mine (with a DCT), but I don't use cruise control very often so I never gave it much thought. [idea]
Does seem kind of like a misfire, although my experience is it only occurs while cruise is engaged. If it's a misfire, I would expect it to do that during steady driving (without using cruise) as well. [dunno]
I just got off of the phone with the service department at the dealer. He is telling me that it is hesitating because of my air conditioner and that it is normal for a 4 cylinder. I have had many 4 cylinder cars and have never had this problem. If it was normal, why didn't it do it prior to the last update?? Either way, it's going to the service department on Wed.
Keep us posted if they find something conclusive. [wrenchin]
I'm not sure the air-conditioning explanation makes sense. I've felt it compressors cycling on manual transmission cars(trucks), but it's never caused a 2-300 RPM increase/hiccup. [confused]
And I also meant to write that it is hesitating or missing without the cruise on. I usually notice it when I am on a slight incline and accelerating with the car probably in 3rd or 4th gear.
I've noticed something similar after getting the 12B37 update. I don't have CC, and my Focus is my daily commuter car. It's infrequent, and I haven't been able to reproduce it at will. When it happens, I'm usually accelerating slightly in traffic, have to step off the gas for a couple / few seconds, the step back on the gas. The RPM's spike and I get no acceleration. I then step off / step on the gas again and the RPM's and acceleration return to normal. I've already sent a PM to FordCustomerService on this board about it. I haven't noticed it when I'm moving at a steady speed; accelerating at least moderately; or under ~ 20-25mph.
I have the same post 12b37 experience. For me, cruise and a/c have to be on and I have noticed it's much more likely to occur when cruise is set for around 60mph than at 75mph. It may very well be that the a/c cycling on in the right circumstances suggests a downshift is needed but the car quickly changes its mind. That it's more likely to occur when the engine is lower in the power band may support this hypothesis.
One of the pre-12b37 complaints was a reluctance to downshift; maybe Ford tinkered with the downshift logic and this is the outcome. When I took mine in with this complaint, they applied 2 post-12b37 updates. Don't know yet if this solved the problem.
I've noticed the hiccup as well, almost as though the clutch is slightly releasing for a fraction of a second. I've never tried to iron out a specific speed and don't really remember noticing it pre-tsb. I don't usually hear it due to my music volume, but I feel it through the car. Maybe only a jump of a couple hundred rpm (max) on my car.
I just shrug it off. Not the right answer, I know.
Something similar was happening on my Explorer. Turned out the torque converter needed to be replaced (at only 57k miles!). Obviously that's irrelevent here, except that I was also tempted there to just ignore the rythmic rpm blips at steady 35-45mph speed (only about a 50 rpm bump, hardly noticeable). Glad I didn't - the torque converted could've exploded and I would've had much bigger problems....
I meant to post back here after I took my Focus back in for servicing. Unfortunately, my issues were not resolved and I left the dealer feeling like no one believed the problems that I had been experiencing (engine shudders or hesitates - air conditioner fan blows inconsistently). Once again, the service manager tells me that it's driving like this because it's a 4 cylinder. I have owned and driven MANY 4 cylinder cars and I have never experienced anything like this before. I drive roughly 500 miles a week but I just couldn't handle driving this car any longer. I traded it in on a 2012 Kia Optima SX this past weekend and I am not having any issues with this 4 cylinder car and the air conditioner.
I really, really wanted to love my Focus and I know that I lost a pile of money by trading it in, but I couldn't justify driving something that made me so unhappy.
Good luck everyone!
I too am very disappointed with my local dealership's service manager... I actually just got off the phone with him and after explaining the issue I was given the runaround.
He went through all the things being thrown around in this thread early on... such things as the car is just compensating for starting to speed up or slow down, the car is just changing it's gear range (what? it's not shifting gears if that's what he means...) and yadda yadda yadda... although the issue occurs at a flat 50mph for me (this speed is the most replicable I've found) on a FLAT road with NO inclines/declines and it's NOT the car trying to shift gears or compensate...
He said "I've driven many cars with cruise control and this happens in all of them" to which I replied "I've driven many cars with cruise control and this has NEVER happened, I know what it feels like when the car tries to compensate and adjusts for speed for instance on an incline or decline, and on top of that before the latest reflash this NEVER occurred."
He just kept telling me he didn't think it was a concern.
This is the same dealership however that has had my car in for 8 1/2 hrs when I asked them to do "the works", check MFT, perform the 12B37 reflash to begin with, and a few other odds and ends... after all that time they hadn't even changed my oil, and then a week later I get a letter in the mail saying "it's time for an oil change come on in!"
from them... ugh.
I have the same experience with my SEL. It happens so quick that I have not been able to observe the tach, it is like the engine cuts out for a fraction of a second and occurs both with the cruise control on and without the cruise control on at interstate speeds. This did not occur prior to the re-flash for the transmission. I have taken it to two dealers and both say they have never heard of this and have no (flight recorders) so can't help me. On average it happens two or three times in a 90 mile trip. In the Red River Valley of the North (I-29) it is completely flat . I have observed this even occurring once during acceleration. Never have observed it driving around town at 40 mph or less. So, don't know if the clutch is disengaging or the engine is shutting down but again, it is sorta like a hesitation and loss of power for only a 1/4 or a second or so while traveling at the same speed with or without cruise engaged on a level road.
Sounds exactly like what would happen with my vehicle though it seems my occurrences were much more frequent. I've just stopped using cruise control so much. I know I shouldn't have to and I used to use it every time I drove on the interstate to school and back, but that's my only workaround since my dealership seems "unable to reproduce the issue" and is unwilling to go any further than that.
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