DCT Complaints Thread

[copernicium112]

What is DCT? Kidding, I kid.

I've never had a problem with mine and the way this thread is going, everyone, myself included, putting their 0.02 in the only thing that won't show up in this thread is people actually complaining about their DCT. Perhaps they are saving the complaints for other unrelated threads?

[BetaDnB]

Originally Posted by copernicium112

What is DCT? Kidding, I kid.

I've never had a problem with mine and the way this thread is going, everyone, myself included, putting their 0.02 in the only thing that won't show up in this thread is people actually complaining about their DCT. Perhaps they are saving the complaints for other unrelated threads?

I like your style. Hopefully with the word "complaint" in the thread topic it will still show up in searches.

[Visioned]

Hey look! It's another thread about DCT!!

[MyThIc3LiTe]

Complaints about the DCT in a thread about complaints on the DCT.

My department of redundancy department is bristling in anticipation.

[milkweed]

i don't have any issues with my DCT.

[gambit293]

Originally Posted by MyThIc3LiTe

Your fault if you didn't properly understand what you paid money for.

I think that's being a bit harsh. Let's be honest here: to most people, there are automatics and there are manuals. Heck, I'd bet that many people don't even really understand what a transmission even does, let alone relatively new tech like a DCT. Does that mean that they shouldn't drive cars? It's not as if Ford draws particular attention to the different characteristics of a DCT when selling the car to you.

As for myself, I intentionally testdrove the DCT having read various consumer reviews complaining about the transmission. During the testdrive, I decided up front that I could live with the quirks. It's only been a few weeks, but so far I'm generally fine with its behavior.

I tend to notice the hesitation much more in reverse. That will take some getting used to. Also, the car seems to idle a bit roughly. Not sure if that is a tranny or just plain engine issue.

[MyThIc3LiTe]

Originally Posted by gambit293

I think that's being a bit harsh. Let's be honest here: to most people, there are automatics and there are manuals. Heck, I'd bet that many people don't even really understand what a transmission even does, let alone relatively new tech like a DCT. Does that mean that they shouldn't drive cars? It's not as if Ford draws particular attention to the different characteristics of a DCT when selling the car to you.

As for myself, I intentionally testdrove the DCT having read various consumer reviews complaining about the transmission. During the testdrive, I decided up front that I could live with the quirks. It's only been a few weeks, but so far I'm generally fine with its behavior.

I tend to notice the hesitation much more in reverse. That will take some getting used to. Also, the car seems to idle a bit roughly. Not sure if that is a tranny or just plain engine issue.

Fair enough.

It's just that I spent quite a few weeks researching and driving, spending 30k was no easy task.

Previous exposure to MFT made it easy for me to deal with its quirks and my repeated sessions with the DCT left me happy. Not that I had a choice, when I purchased, the MT Titanium was only a pipe dream.

[jdetzel]

So, this is the thread for people to complain about people who complain about the DCT.

[Timthom62]

When we bought our first Focus a year ago, I'd done a considerable amount of research on the car in general and the DCT in particular including a lot of time reading the threads that were active here on the subject at the time. Our salesman went to great lengths to explain the DCT and and during out 30 mile test drive spent about ten minutes going over specific differences from a normal automatic. Then, when we went back last April to buy our second Focus, he gave me the same speech word for word.

Not everyone has the time to invest in the research or the car experience to understand it if they did. Not everyone is fortunate enough to have a salesman who is as technically sharp and as concerned about the customer being happy as we did. More importantly, not everyone cares about the differences until something goes wrong. Then they come here.

While we've been fortunate not to experience any problems with our DCTs, that doesn't mean that there aren't people whose transmissions have real problems. That much should be clear to anyone who has been here for any length of time. Ford knows this and continues to work on the issues. They've got too much invested in the DCT not to.

The people who have problems need a place to go to bring up their issues rather than starting a thousand new threads about it. If we have one place for them to do so, it's more likely Ford won't miss seeing it.

I think the idea of this thread, and having it as a sticky, are good ones. If I were to change anything about it, I would have named it:

"The Focus Automatic Transmission (DCT) Problem/Complaint/Issue/Question/Update Thread"

That way nobody could miss it.

[Kaaru]

Originally Posted by MyThIc3LiTe

Your fault if you didn't properly understand what you paid money for.

That's a bit harsch indeed. In order to fully understand what I have paid for, it has to be fully understood by the sales people in order to them to explain it to me before I put my signature at the bottom on the sales act. Seriously, if my salesman would have told me all the quirks and behavior of the DCT, I would have purchased another car.

And oh, yeah, I did test drive twice. One time I test drove it by doing my comute back and forth. No problems. I test drove it another time on the highway, again no noticable weird behavior.

Back in october 2011 there wasnt as much information about the DCT floating around for the regular Joe that I am. The damm thing was sold to me as an automatic. I was expecting the car to behave like an automatic. Hell, the sales people were probably less informed than some of you guys.

I now understand that DCT's are becomming a new trend, so, my next car will probably be equiped by such a ''feature''. Hopefully, the next one will benefit from what Ford is going tru right now. My previous car had a CVT with a shifttronic feature. The thing was solid, smooth and deliverd as expercted. I'm NOT bashing Ford or ALL of the Focus's around. Mine isnt just going well and is a source of frustration and worryness. It's hard to swallow when you shed 29K for a car that doesnt deliver.

Oh and by the way, I did the air filter swap last weekend. Didnt see any change in the behavior of the car. Weather is slowly getting fresher and cooler, so the car boggs less and seems to better perform in cool weather. DCT affected by heat/cool...I think not. It must be sensor related or something else. My uneducated 2 cents about my issues: It looks like the trottle message from the gaz pedal doesnt go correclty to the engine.

We'll see. I'll be happy to report back when someone at Ford or my dealer finds whatever is wrong with Gertrude.

/end rant