Issues with new 2012 Ford Focus

[danc8]

Purchased a 2012 Focus Titanium from Yorkdale (Toronto) two weeks ago for my wife. After driving it for two days she complained that it shudders when idling, lurches when accelerating and the steering makes noises when turning. Brought it to dealer. One service consultant said its a known problem but no fix as yet. Service manager says it is unknown problem but bring it in.

Won't go into the unbelievably poor customer service (in 2012 you treat customers like this, seriously?), but service mgr says he cannot duplicate problem and no code comes up on computer. Says he'll re-flash the computer. Keeps it overnight.

Re-flash done, wife still notices same problems with lurch and shudders and steering. Added bonus: one touch window down no longer working. Thanks for checking the car before giving it back Yorkdale.

Now they say they will come to my wife and fix window problem (another re-flash apparently). Okay, but they previously said to leave it overnight to fix the window problem.

As a side note, they say shudder will go away after system re-learns wife's driving behaviour. She asks: "what about the multiple drivers on this car with different behaviours, how does the system 'know' who to match to?" Yorkdale: "We never thought of that."

Real confidence booster all round.

[CAFordDriver]

Originally Posted by Beepster

You say your car is a Manual transmission but you talk about the six speed.Which is it?There are no 6 speed manual transmission in 2012 Focus.

My mistake I ment to say automatic...I'm thinking of taking it in for service I will let you know the results.

Thanks!

[jsmichael]

Originally Posted by blacktoe

I too am experiencing some minor transmission irregularities. I get a slight vibration sound at low speed shifting (sort of like the catalyic converter rattling), doesn't occur when using a bit more acceleration power. I also get a slight shuddering when in idiling in reverse (this is due to the clutches disengaing/reengaging) and is not a problem with the transmission.

I have also had the My Ford Touch system lock up and "reboot" a couple of times. Occasionally when I start the the car I get the warning mesage about not using the system while driving (I hope that it is not supposed to do this).

I am also getting a whine at highway speeds I cannot tell exactly where it is coming from (I hope that it is not a transmission noise).

Overall I am very pleased with my car I have about 2200 miles on it and am getting decent mileage economy.

I will mention the problems to the dealership next time I am in, unless it gets worse.

If I'm not mistaken, there is a reflash available from Ford for the MyTouch reboot problem.

[TonyTDYagain]

Originally Posted by danc8

Purchased a 2012 Focus Titanium from Yorkdale (Toronto) two weeks ago for my wife. After driving it for two days she complained that it shudders when idling, lurches when accelerating and the steering makes noises when turning. Brought it to dealer. One service consultant said its a known problem but no fix as yet. Service manager says it is unknown problem but bring it in.

Won't go into the unbelievably poor customer service (in 2012 you treat customers like this, seriously?), but service mgr says he cannot duplicate problem and no code comes up on computer. Says he'll re-flash the computer. Keeps it overnight.

Re-flash done, wife still notices same problems with lurch and shudders and steering. Added bonus: one touch window down no longer working. Thanks for checking the car before giving it back Yorkdale.

Now they say they will come to my wife and fix window problem (another re-flash apparently). Okay, but they previously said to leave it overnight to fix the window problem.

As a side note, they say shudder will go away after system re-learns wife's driving behaviour. She asks: "what about the multiple drivers on this car with different behaviours, how does the system 'know' who to match to?" Yorkdale: "We never thought of that."

Real confidence booster all round.

I had the same issue with my 2012 Titanium. There is a TSB 2011-0724 I think it is, it should fix the transmission shudder. After that TSB, my one-touch down windows also didn't work and my Navigation was messed up. There is another patch, they didn't tell me what it was, they have to run to fix all of that. Good luck.

[TonyTDYagain]

Originally Posted by TonyTDYagain

Here is an odd one for all you out there that live in a lightning prone area of the country. I was driving my 2012 Titanium home the other night during one of the worst thunderstorms of the year. While I was driving under a freeway overpass, a lightning bolt hit just outside the overpass knocking out all power to the surrounding area, including the traffic signal in front of me.

After waiting for cross traffic to go through, all of my cars idiot lights came on, and a slow progression of failure errors came up on the dash screen. Engine Failure Service Now, Transmission Failure Service Now, Breaking, Parking Brake, etc, etc. I turned off the car for about thirty seconds hoping that would clear the faults. I started it back up, but when I did, the faults came back and no matter what gear position I put it in, it still thought it was in park.

Towed it to my Ford dealer and left it for them to figure it out, this was on 13 September. They still have it and now have the Ford computer engineers baffled as to why it lost it's mind. They have checked every component and still cannot get it fixed. After talking this over with some of my very smart engineer friends, we have come to the conclusion, and have passed this off to Ford, that the close proximity of the lightning bolt, and the channeling effect of the overpass, caused the electro-magnetic pulse of the lightning to go through the circuitry of the car and made it start to lose components.

We are still waiting on the final consensus of the big brains at Ford. There is no date when I will, if ever, get my car back. They can always give me another one and take this one back to the laboratory and dissect it.

YEA!!! My car is supposedly ready after Ford having my car for nine days. They had to replace the hard drive, re-flash every eprom on every module in the car. Whatever the lightning did, it messed up a ton of things on my car. My service rep said that if this didn't work, Ford was going to get me a new Titanium and send this one back on a flatbed truck to Detroit. I pick it up in the morning and will update you all if things aren't on the up and up.

[yankeelpn]

Originally Posted by lifocus

That grinding noise you hear at low speeds seems to be coming from the strut bearings. Have a friend sit in car with it running ,put your hand on the spring and have them turn the wheel back and forth alittle bit ( watch your fingers) and you can feel it. I have been to the dealer 3 times for the same problem and finally the last dealership thinks they know what it is. Ordered strut bearings and bushings for both sides. Still on backorder since august 23rd. Hope this solves the problem.

I have the same issues since I bought my 2012 last May! It was making the grinding noises the day I bought it and already had new strut bearings replaced. One month later my strut bearings are making the same grinding noise and need to replaced again Grrrrrrrr! This car has issues and wishing I could get rid of it!

[FordCustomerService]

Originally Posted by yankeelpn

But guess what the grinding has returned and now back to the dealer!!!

Hi yankeelpn,

I received your PM, and I will respond as soon as possible. Thanks!

Originally Posted by CAFordDriver

When I drive at low speeds I hear a light grinding noise. Also when accelerating from a stop or moving very slow the car jerks someone hard When the car is idle there is some rumbling and vibration

CAFordDriver,

Congrats on your new Focus! The PowerShift transmission has a dry dual-clutch gearbox that uses electronics to change gears instead of hydraulic pressure. That results in a different sound and feel than basic automatics, and helps increase performance & fuel efficiency. Since your dealer advised it was normal, it is fine to wait and see if your concern increases by your next service appointment.

Originally Posted by lifocus

I have been to the dealer 3 times for the same problem and finally the last dealership thinks they know what it is. Ordered strut bearings and bushings for both sides. Still on backorder since august 23rd.

Hey lifocus,

Please PM me with your VIN, contact information, mileage, & servicing dealer name/state so I can try to expedite your order.

Originally Posted by blacktoe

I am also getting a whine at highway speeds I cannot tell exactly where it is coming from (I hope that it is not a transmission noise). Overall I am very pleased with my car I have about 2200 miles on it and am getting decent mileage economy.

Hello blacktoe,

I'm happy to hear of your satisfaction with your Focus! Since the whine is still present, having the dealer take a look at your next service appointment will be the perfect next step. And I am here if you need me.

Originally Posted by danc8

Purchased a 2012 Focus Titanium from Yorkdale (Toronto) two weeks ago for my wife. After driving it for two days she complained that it shudders when idling, lurches when accelerating and the steering makes noises when turning. Brought it to dealer.

danc8,

I responded to your other post, but just wanted to make sure you saw my response. I'm sorry to hear of your issues and the negative dealer experience. I recommend contacting Ford of Canada Customer Relationship Centre at 1.800.565.3673 so they can help.

Originally Posted by TonyTDYagain

YEA!!! My car is supposedly ready after Ford having my car for nine days. They had to replace the hard drive, re-flash every eprom on every module in the car. Whatever the lightning did, it messed up a ton of things on my car.

Hey TonyTDYagain,

That's great they replaced all the electric components affected by the lightning! It must have been scary having it strike so close; glad you are ok!

~Natasha

[s&hford_owners]

Hello everybody. We joined this forum to share our story. I bought a brand new 2008 Focus SES coupe and traded it in for the new 2012 Ford Focus. My 2008 was perfect and never had any issues...

Within the first week of owning our 2012 Focus, it started having the shuddering and acceleration problems that have been greatly documented now in this thread. Our dealership ran all the diagnositics but found nothing. We took the car back again as the problem got worse (by now we had 250 miles on it). This time the dealer kept it for almost a month trying to figure out what was going on. We allowed the shop foreman to drive the car in order to replicate the problem. When we picked up the car, the dealer was unable to do anything to fix this and they put 700 miles on the car. While the car was there for this period, our dealer made a rep from Ford come out to inspect the car. The rep only told our dealer that this is normal and would go away.

We felt that the dealer did everything they could for us, so we filed a complaint direclty with Ford Motor Company. We explained that this is a safety issue and tried for a lemon law buy back. Our claim was denied. Instead Ford scheduled another appointment to go back to the dealer to see what they can for us (which most likely is nothing, and that is not the dealer's fault).

In the meantime, another person in this thread suggested that we Focus owners start alerting the NHSTA of this issue. (According this post, there were no complaints). I went on thier site today and there are now 12 complaints filed through them although not all are tansmission related. Since we feel that Ford isn't doing enough to get this issue resolved we filed a claim through the NHSTA as well and even suggested that they check out this forum.

This sutation is not fun at all...we love the car in the way it handles, the way it looks, and all the great extras. I honestly have a trouble calling this car a Focus because it is such a great leap from it's predecessors, and at first glance you think you're looking at an Audi. But this transmission issue needs to be clear up as soon as possbile. I have had Fords my whole life and they never need to break in or start running rough in at least the first 10 years.

On a side note, you can see all the complaints made on the NHSTA database and the Fiestas with the dual clutch system are having the same issues! (Thank goodness the new Fiesta we bought a month after the Focus is a manual)!

This car will not get out of the way itself. We live in CA where we have crazy drivers and a quick reponse time is definetly needed. There have been times where we felt the car was just going to stall out it was shaking so bad. We don't drive the car very often because we are afraid that it won't go when we are pulling out into traffic. This is a serious issue that needs to be address as soon as possible and as a loyal Ford owner, I am very disappointed in the way Ford has handled this issue.

Our car now has 2300 miles, and that includes a 825 mile round trip to LA to test out the "oh, you just need some miles on it" theory. It didn't work, things are getting worse.

We will keep you posted on our progess...

[jpaul]

My car has only 200 miles so far and is doing the same thing. Im going to drive it until I have 1000 miles and hope it stops doing that. I have never had a ford car that really needed to be broke in?

[s&hford_owners]

Originally Posted by jpaul

My car has only 200 miles so far and is doing the same thing. Im going to drive it until I have 1000 miles and hope it stops doing that. I have never had a ford car that really needed to be broke in?

I hope your car clears up as there have been a few posters of have had this go away. If not, I think the best course of action is to contact the National Highway Safety and Transportation Administration. We found an article that after 30 complaints through these guys they are now actively investigating faulty transmission in the 2011 and 2012 Mustangs. (It's a different transmission than the Focus). That maybe what it takes to get the ball rolling on this.

Good luck, and hopefully it's just some minor growing pains. It's a shame that a beautiful car like this as these kinds of problems.

The picture of your car's interior is awesome by the way!