Issues with new 2012 Ford Focus

[Jen299]

Well it's been a week and no word on it yet. Will keep you posted. But wondering what did they give you on a trade?

[Jen299]

The way I see things is If we don't stand up for what's right us little ppl get shoved in the corner and forgotten about. This is my first time posting anything like this but I'm not taking it any more. I'm so sorry this happened to you it's really a shame :(

[stripp7310]

Same issues with my car from about 500 miles into the purchase; car now has 15,000 miles on it. I have it into the dealership 3 times complaining about the shifting and occasional grinding noises during in town shift patterns. The dealership hears the noise, reports it to Ford, Ford replies the noise is typical. I have talked to a regional customer service manager for Ford who says they can't do anything until the dealership deems the noise not "typical", the delearship will only deem the noise not typical if Ford tells them too. I'm stuck.
Ford has lost a customer over this deal. I will also persuade my 5 kids and anyone else in my family to avoid Ford. I have owned 2 Taurus', an Escort, a Fusion, and an F150. So sad.

Case # 349582582

[Jen299]

Try going to a different dealership you can to any ford dealership. The grinding noise same as mine shifting thing same steering pulls to the left not safe keep pushing the matter do not take it at all. Raise hell if you have to. That's why I went on here is to get ppl to push that matter.

[ruthrj]

You basically did the right thing by refusing the car while waiting on parts. I can tell you from personal experience that should you feel there is a problem with the car that severely impairs the value, use, or safety of the vehicle, STOP DRIVING IT IF AT ALL POSSIBLE (use a second car if you have one). The mileage that you put on the car will be used against you in court by Ford. So you know what? There is a problem with your car, you shouldn't have to put up with it everyday, so just leave it parked.

Keep your paperwork organized, follow the law to the letter (sending out defect notifications, etc), and take notes of names and conversations that have taken place thus far. Certified Mail via USPS will become your new best friend. These are your only tools should you need to persue your Lemon Law rights in your state.

[ruthrj]

Originally Posted by B-lou

No what really is a shame is that you have to threaten a lawsuit just to get your "in warranty car fixed" that is the shame of it...wish I would have thought of the lawsuit part......B-lou

B-lou, don't worry about it. Threatening a lawsuit is your last resort. You shouldn't bend over and take it, but you do have to keep your cool and allow the dealership their repair attempts. As soon as I invoked my Lemon Law rights and allowed a Final Repair Attempt, Mother FMC and the dealership buttoned up and buried their heads in the sand. They started to blatantly ignore the issues and sent me on my merry way. Lemon Law is a BS process, but it's all we have as consumers to protect us. Get in touch with a lawyer if you feel you have to and follow their advice. Their consulatation should be free. Maybe you live in a state that allows attorney's fees to be awarded should you win your Lemon Law case. FL doesn't, I had to pay for the lawyer. But I'm out of the car, it worked for me!

[JimsFocus]

I was in the same situation. The service managers said I had excessive transmission noise. Two different dealers. I even sent a video to my regional manager in which the noise could be heard. The engineers told me to roll up my windows and turn the radio on. If I couldn't hear the noise, then I didn't have a problem. (the service manager said he knows others who were told the same thing). Corporate Ford told me to go back to the dealer and drive another Focus to compare. I told them I was not interested in what any other Focus does, only mine.

The issues with my car were bad, but Ford customer service was worse. I can understand having problems, but is it too much to expect them to be fixed? I've bought new cars for the last 25 years, including some first year models and only one time was I in for service. (recall). My Focus is gone. The trade-in loss was not as bad as the headaches from dealing with Ford.

[Jen299]

I'm from Canada and we have no lemon law so got to fight for what we get

[ruthrj]

I'm really sorry to hear that Jen! In your case, I definitely would have threatened the lawsuit if there were no alternative means of recourse. I sincerely hope the fixes work for you. I know that if Ford could have fixed my vehicle I'd be loving it right now. Unfortunately they chose to ignore my car's issues and lose all dignity in the process.

[ruthrj]

And just to clarify, I leave my advice for those that may tread here in the future. I know those here right now have already traded/sold their vehicles or are continuing to work with FMC. I lurked in these threads for months while I let the legal stuff work out and followed others stories