DCT / PowerShift Transmission Update TSB Thread

[chum567]

5/2011 Build

Got the update today in the mail.....when I saw the blue shiny package i knew exactly what it was....installing right now and will test everything throughout the weekend and will report back.

[Silver 2012 Focus]

Originally Posted by chum567

5/2011 Build

Got the update today in the mail.....when I saw the blue shiny package i knew exactly what it was....installing right now and will test everything throughout the weekend and will report back.

They sent you a transmission update in the mail?

[allyy]

Take it back to the dealer they will put a new version of software in the computer and it will be all better on your way home .Make yourself a happy focus owner and get it done.

[forceflow2]

Originally Posted by Silver 2012 Focus

They sent you a transmission update in the mail?

MFT, they posted in the wrong thread.

[6769MOPARS]

Originally Posted by Silver 2012 Focus

They sent you a transmission update in the mail?

I think he meant to post in the MFT thread.

[pra2veen]

My transmission acted weird at two different occasions. I took a right turn at a light and tried to accelerate away, when the car would rev but wouldn't move. It felt like I was revving in Neutral (I was in D). I tried shifting the car to S and back but that didn't help. Same thing with Neutral. Luckily I could pull to the side and turn off the engine and turn it back on and it started working fine again. It kinda freaked me out and would've been bad if there was another car coming behind me. This happened only twice and the service guy couldn't replicate it, obviously.
Anyway, I got my first service done (at 9100mi) and, although I didn't ask them to, they applied the TSB 12-1-4.
The car feels no different to me and I'm happy the service guys at least did something to fix the issue :)
I will update if I face the issue again.

edit: I also got the TSB 11-10-1, to fix the issue where the remote lock doesn't work for a few seconds after turning off the car. This delay was almost 10 seconds at times.

[mmmoose]

Originally Posted by pra2veen

My transmission acted weird at two different occasions. I took a right turn at a light and tried to accelerate away, when the car would rev but wouldn't move. It felt like I was revving in Neutral (I was in D). I tried shifting the car to S and back but that didn't help. Same thing with Neutral. Luckily I could pull to the side and turn off the engine and turn it back on and it started working fine again. It kinda freaked me out and would've been bad if there was another car coming behind me. This happened only twice and the service guy couldn't replicate it, obviously.

The same exact thing happened to me 2 weeks ago while I test drove a brand new 2012 Focus (SE sedan). I was taking a left turn into a side road and the PowerShift transmission decided to stop shifting without any warning. Out of frustration I tried to floor it and the revs simply bounced off the limiter like I was in neutral. It wasn't until I took my foot off completely and pushed on the gas pedal again when it finally decided to shift and let me accelerate.

I glanced over at the salesman while all of this was happening and he just shrugged at me with a stupid look on his face. Luckily I cleared the intersection before this fun moment started, because both of us would've been pancaked by an incoming 18-wheeler. TSB or not I don't have much confidence in PowerShift after my brief test drive. It's a shame because aside from that it really was fun to drive. I mostly liked the fact that there was absolutely no noticeable throttle delay—which is definitely a rarity with cars these days.

The other thing that bugged me were the terrible Ford dealerships in my area. I've checked out FOUR separate dealerships in person and every single one of them had idiotic salesmen. They either had a very poor "don't give a shit" attitude with me or they simply didn't know a damn thing about their own cars. One of them stubbornly insisted a Fiesta sedan was a Focus. Another one at another dealership brought me over to a Fusion! Seriously??!



For the record I love what Ford is doing with their new lineup. It's not hard to see that they've come a long way. It just sucks that the actual dealership network sours the experience badly. On top of that I don't think a car's transmission should take a dump during a potential customer's first test drive. I guess I'll have to wait and see how the 2013 model turns out. So far it looks like I'm favoring the Golf TDI more. :-/

[kam327]

Originally Posted by mmmoose

The same exact thing happened to me 2 weeks ago while I test drove a brand new 2012 Focus (SE sedan). I was taking a left turn into a side road and the PowerShift transmission decided to stop shifting without any warning. Out of frustration I tried to floor it and the revs simply bounced off the limiter like I was in neutral. It wasn't until I took my foot off completely and pushed on the gas pedal again when it finally decided to shift and let me accelerate.

I mostly liked the fact that there was absolutely no noticeable throttle delay—which is definitely a rarity with cars these days.

It's kind of amazing the wide variety of experiences people are having with this car. You experienced a tranny meltdown but no throttle delay. I've never had any significant tranny hesitation, but the thottle delay is generally much worse for me than on any conventional auto car I've driven. A bunch of folks on another thread a few weeks ago agreed.

Is there really such a wide range of behavior with these DCTs or is it all about the driver's frame of reference and experience?

[allyy]

Originally Posted by feta_mgp

I was so mad yesterday, my car seemed to revert back to it's old jerky sluggish ways... but I'm hoping that was just the last day of the re-learning process, because today it was silky smooth, better than it's ever been, and it felt great!



I wouldn't wait if I can help it... just gives them another reason to say no, in case they try to give you the business about "waiting too long with a problem making it worse" or something stupid like that.

I dont agree with the relearning of the transmission . Once the software is updated it is going to follow that program and nothing else. I had mine done and it is shifting right that is because it is following the new program on the software update.Your clutch may have to resaet itself and make a new wear pattern.

[mmmoose]

Originally Posted by kam327

It's kind of amazing the wide variety of experiences people are having with this car. You experienced a tranny meltdown but no throttle delay. I've never had any significant tranny hesitation, but the thottle delay is generally much worse for me than on any conventional auto car I've driven. A bunch of folks on another thread a few weeks ago agreed.

Is there really such a wide range of behavior with these DCTs or is it all about the driver's frame of reference and experience?

Did you have the latest TSB done to your Focus? Do you think the delay is maybe a failsafe feature that guarantees a proper gear change? For the record I was definitely driving in "D" mode at the time. I guess I should've specified that.

I can tell you right off the bat that I've never felt such a responsive car in quite a while until I got into the 2012 Focus SE. That was definitely the biggest highlight for me. By comparison, earlier that day I was playing around with the 2012 GTI and Golf TDI (both use a wet dual clutch system known as "DSG"). The VW's dual clutch system is smooth as butter and never gave me any issues. However the GTI felt like it had the same annoying throttle delay as my Rabbit. The Golf TDI felt way more fun and responsive... but that's because it had 236 lbs-ft of torque.

Gotta love diesels for that I guess. I'm still a little bitter that Ford decided not to bring the Focus TDCi over to America. I can assure you any throttle delay you feel can easily be overcome by having a proper engine with tremendous amounts of torque to play with. And a good chip/tune will bring you back up to the 160 hp range, if horsepower is a huge concern...