Part 1
This is a write up of my experiences with the 2012 Ford Focus. I will talk about the good, the bad, the ugly, and the very ugly. Names will be dropped.
A year ago today, I was looking to trade in my 2006 Ford Escape for something more fuel efficient. I stopped at a local Ford dealer, Dana Ford in Staten Island - just to look around. As soon as I walked in with my father, a salesman bearhugs my father out of the blue. Turns out, this salesman was a childhood friend of my father and they haven't seen each other in years.
This was good news for me.
Needless to say I got a great deal on my Sterling Grey DCT sedan.
However, the one I wanted was at a different lot, and they said they would get it for me. After we had worked out the numbers for it (it was an SE with the black painted wheels and winter package, no MFT) the salesman offered me the SEL for the same negotiated price as the SE. The one feature I had really wanted was the winter package which he assured me this one had. I was also weary on MFT but since the deal was too good to be true, I accepted.
Welp, turns out the car DID NOT HAVE the winter package. He offered me a price of $200 dollars to have factory remote start installed - which I gladly took him up on. REMOTE START IS AWESOME.
My car how it looked exactly one year ago:
This was my first new car. At the time I thought it drove like a dream. Small, quick handling, great features, great fit and finish. It felt so sporty after coming from 2 previous SUV's (2002 explorer, 2006 escape)
After driving it a lot on the highway back and forth between NY and PA, I noticed I was getting fatigued from driving it on the highway, the car swayed left and right a lot. This is when I finally decided to google it which lead me to these very forums. The problem - the dreaded steering wander TSB 12-02-17.
It was now the end of July. I made an appointment with Bay Ridge Ford in Brooklyn to have it looked at. They were preparing to move service department locations. They had a beautiful computer drawn sketch of their new building in the office. They found the TSB but warned me the steering rack was back ordered and will take 4-6 weeks to arrive, and by that time they would be moved into their new location. I was fine with this.
5 weeks later I get the call that the rack is in, and to bring the car in. It is now early September. I go to drop the car off at their new service department, AND THE BUILDING IS NOT FINISHED BEING BUILT. IT HAS NO WALLS YET THEY ARE SET UP INSIDE. FROM THE STREET YOU CAN SEE THE COMPLETE INTERIOR OF THE BUILDING. I KNEW from this point my car was going to not turn out correctly.
After 3 days, my father picks up my car because I am at work. He immediately calls me to tell me the steering wheel is very crooked and the alignment is off. I call back the service manager Rich who tries to tell me the alignment is fine and asks if I drove it. I inform him my father has been driving for well over 45 years and I think he knows if the wheel is crooked and the alignment is off. Rich goes on to tell me that "if it was up to him he would not have taken my car in for repair because they are not set up completely in their new building and their alignment machine may have been knocked out of calibration." I tell him straight up that is NOT MY PROBLEM. They accepted to fix my car, and it was not fixed. I make plans to bring it back for them to fix the alignment.
Which they still do not do correctly. The wheel is straight but the car is still driving funny.[!]
to be continued...
This is a write up of my experiences with the 2012 Ford Focus. I will talk about the good, the bad, the ugly, and the very ugly. Names will be dropped.
A year ago today, I was looking to trade in my 2006 Ford Escape for something more fuel efficient. I stopped at a local Ford dealer, Dana Ford in Staten Island - just to look around. As soon as I walked in with my father, a salesman bearhugs my father out of the blue. Turns out, this salesman was a childhood friend of my father and they haven't seen each other in years.
This was good news for me.
Needless to say I got a great deal on my Sterling Grey DCT sedan.
However, the one I wanted was at a different lot, and they said they would get it for me. After we had worked out the numbers for it (it was an SE with the black painted wheels and winter package, no MFT) the salesman offered me the SEL for the same negotiated price as the SE. The one feature I had really wanted was the winter package which he assured me this one had. I was also weary on MFT but since the deal was too good to be true, I accepted.
Welp, turns out the car DID NOT HAVE the winter package. He offered me a price of $200 dollars to have factory remote start installed - which I gladly took him up on. REMOTE START IS AWESOME.
My car how it looked exactly one year ago:
This was my first new car. At the time I thought it drove like a dream. Small, quick handling, great features, great fit and finish. It felt so sporty after coming from 2 previous SUV's (2002 explorer, 2006 escape)
After driving it a lot on the highway back and forth between NY and PA, I noticed I was getting fatigued from driving it on the highway, the car swayed left and right a lot. This is when I finally decided to google it which lead me to these very forums. The problem - the dreaded steering wander TSB 12-02-17.
It was now the end of July. I made an appointment with Bay Ridge Ford in Brooklyn to have it looked at. They were preparing to move service department locations. They had a beautiful computer drawn sketch of their new building in the office. They found the TSB but warned me the steering rack was back ordered and will take 4-6 weeks to arrive, and by that time they would be moved into their new location. I was fine with this.
5 weeks later I get the call that the rack is in, and to bring the car in. It is now early September. I go to drop the car off at their new service department, AND THE BUILDING IS NOT FINISHED BEING BUILT. IT HAS NO WALLS YET THEY ARE SET UP INSIDE. FROM THE STREET YOU CAN SEE THE COMPLETE INTERIOR OF THE BUILDING. I KNEW from this point my car was going to not turn out correctly.
After 3 days, my father picks up my car because I am at work. He immediately calls me to tell me the steering wheel is very crooked and the alignment is off. I call back the service manager Rich who tries to tell me the alignment is fine and asks if I drove it. I inform him my father has been driving for well over 45 years and I think he knows if the wheel is crooked and the alignment is off. Rich goes on to tell me that "if it was up to him he would not have taken my car in for repair because they are not set up completely in their new building and their alignment machine may have been knocked out of calibration." I tell him straight up that is NOT MY PROBLEM. They accepted to fix my car, and it was not fixed. I make plans to bring it back for them to fix the alignment.
Which they still do not do correctly. The wheel is straight but the car is still driving funny.[!]
to be continued...