Complete Work Order that fixed my DCT problems in my 2012

[dan50]

Originally Posted by JesseE1981

Just another update....not jumping the gun here yet, but the car, while it's not doing the shudder between first and second, and second into third now, nor is it grinding, the shifting has once again "reverted" (there really is no other word I can think of here to describe that) to a somewhat rough shift in the early gears. I even put the car into S Mode this morning, and coming up to a stop sign I stopped, stepped on the gas to go, and nothing happened....the car then jerked into gear and away I went.

At least this seems to be the kind of behavior that the DCT could "learn" its way out of...maybe.

[kam327]

Add me to the list having gotten their clutch packs replaced. Mine is a 12/11 build, 9,500 miles. I took it in compliaining of clutch slippage while accelerating and they performed TSB 11-12-13 and did the replacement. Mine didn't shudder or grind much at all. Just poor shift quality.

I asked the service advisor if they found a fluid leak and he said no, it was just a defective clutch pack. He couldn't say how it was defective other than something about it wasn't releasing properly.

I still believe this is primarily a software issue, or at least the hardware issues are exacerbated by the software. My DCT was perfectly smooth until I had the 12B37 update done. So how was it smooth if the clutches were defective from the factory as the dealer basically said? I don't buy it.

[Just Tom]

Originally Posted by PratoN

They're going to have to kiss ass if they ever want me to buy another new Ford product. I already bought an ESP, but it's useless if:

1) They deny it's broken
2) They charge me with $125 in "diagnosis fees" because [see point 1]

I've done all that I can and I can't lose $6k by selling this car. My options are now:

1) Live with it
2) Crash the car into a tree to ensure I'll either total the car or need a new transmission (hmmm http://www.impactauto.ca/runList?act...FOCUS&rowpos=0)
3) Drive like an ass to ensure the clutch falls apart within the warranty period
4) Have a private shop fix it/fix it myself

I don't really like any of those options. The car has 38k miles, so it's well past lemonability. I'm open to your suggestions.

Current plan is somewhere between "Live with it" or taking it to the dealer once more (there is a possibility that I'll get charged $125) if that happens, I'll pay it and then ask to purchase $800 in new parts and do it myself. It's well-documented that they can only deny warranty claims if they have proof that what you did damaged the vehicle. So if I go to a mom&pop shop and pay a tech to loosen the bolts on my bell housing and oil starts coming out. Can I then have it towed to Ford and just pay the shop the $15 of their time I wasted? I could certainly do it myself, but I feel like that would be more difficult to say "I didn't break it."

The lemon law should be an option. It sounds like you haven't looked to deeply in to it. In most cases whether the warranty has expired or not is irrelevent; assuming that is the issue was present earlier on. Every state has a lemon law and if repeated attempts to have your car repaired have failed and the problem persists, then you might look in to hiring an attorney who specializes in lemon law cases. Typically attorney's don't charge you anything if they accept the case, instead they seek their attorney's fees from the manufacturer when the case settles. Believe me the manufacture doesn't want these cases to go to trial, so they have a healthy incentive to resolve these issues before they go to court. Your first step should be to contact Crystal at FOMOCO to see if she can escalate the issue to a Regional Manager who can enure that they have the right people working on your problem.

If that fails, then you always have the option of using the lemon law. The way it works is when your car is accepted as a lemon, the manufacturer buys the car back from you. Under (California) law, that means you get ALL OF YOUR MONEY BACK. This includes downpayment, all of yor monthly payments, taxes, title, licensing fees, service charges and any money spent on parts and accessories. They do subtract out prorated mileage for your use of the vehicle (per mile) beginning with the first service visit where the defective issue originated. This is why I say the fact that your car is out of warranty with 38,000 is irrelevant because the claim begins with the first service visit, not your existing mileage. If the car was accepted under the lemon law for transmission issues and you waited until 15,000 miles before having the vehicle serviced for that specific issue, but the car now has 38,000 miles on it, the first 15,000 miles are subtracted out using a mileage calculation, such as 0.20 per mile. eg.. 15,000x0.50=$3,000. So in this example you would be charged $3,000 for the use of the vehicle during the first 15,000 miles where the car was "defect free". This money would be deducted from the amount they owe you. So let's assume the total you've invested equaled $13,000 (payments, downpayment, etc, etc) they would subtract the $3,000 and you would receive a check for $10,000. This is the option that most people prefer, because then you can use that money to buy any make/model vehicle you want or use it for something else if you like. Option 2 would be to have the car replaced with a new one. If you plan on buying another Ford, then this may not be a bad option. Obviously as a manufacturer it costs them less to build a car than it does you to buy one. The point here is they may reward you for sticking with the brand and upgrade you in to a different model or higher trim package than the car you have now.

So before doing anything, I'd recommend that you take a deeper look in to the lemon law for your state or even better contact a lemon law attorney and request a free consultatation. That would be a very good start.

[suss6052]

Originally Posted by Just Tom

The lemon law should be an option. It sounds like you haven't looked to deeply in to it. In most cases whether the warranty has expired or not is irrelevent; assuming that is the issue was present earlier on. Every state has a lemon law and if repeated attempts to have your car repaired have failed and the problem persists, then you might look in to hiring an attorney who specializes in lemon law cases. Typically attorney's don't charge you anything if they accept the case, instead they seek their attorney's fees from the manufacturer when the case settles. Believe me the manufacture doesn't want these cases to go to trial, so they have a healthy incentive to resolve these issues before they go to court. Your first step should be to contact Crystal at FOMOCO to see if she can escalate the issue to a Regional Manager who can enure that they have the right people working on your problem.

If the vehicle is now either out of the base warranty or out of the first year then it can't directly qualify if the issues were not documented before this.

http://www.dot.wisconsin.gov/safety/...s/lemonlaw.htm

What is a "lemon"?
A new vehicle - no more than a year old and still under warranty - is a "lemon" if:

It has a serious defect the dealer can't fix in four tries, or
It has one or many defects that prevent you from using it for 30 days or more (the 30 days need not be consecutive)
What is a defect?
A defect covered by the Lemon Law must seriously affect the use, value or safety of your vehicle and must be covered by the warranty. An irritating rattle may not be "serious" enough to make your car a lemon. Stalling probably is.

How long are you covered?
The lemon law includes no deadline for filing a lemon law suit; a court would decide if your case were too old.

Is your vehicle a lemon?
Your vehicle is a lemon if all of the following statements are true:

You bought or leased a new vehicle.
The vehicle is a car, truck, motorcycle or motor home.
The vehicle developed a defect or defects during its first year and before the warranty expired.
The defect seriously harms the vehicle's use, value or safety.
One of the following happened during the vehicle's first year and before the warranty expired:
The dealer failed four times to fix the same defect; OR
The vehicle was out of service for 30 days or more due to defects

I also have to say esclating things through the forum goes nowhere. The regional rep only ever listened to the dealer, who had been lying through its teeth to either me or Ford. They wouldn't fix the factory body alignment issues with the tail lamp/ headlamp since they claimed the car was hit when there was no evidence to support the collsion theory. They also claimed that the seat heaters were getting up to the 125F service specification to Ford, when they told me they only measured 90-100F via the IDS tool. They failed to do the proper diagnostics which would involve taking things apart and checking things with the volt/ amp/ resistance meter to verify that the car is working properly or not, etc.

[Just Tom]

Originally Posted by NemesisS197

Before taking the vehicle in I was experiencing:

- Shuddering between 1st-2nd shift
- Rattleing in transmission and general post 2nd gear shift sounded like rocks rolling around the tranny.
- Car shuddering bad when going up slight inclines






All issues are now gone. Hope this helps others in their dealings with their dealership.

By the way, this is a GREAT thread that you started. Details such as your service order I think is the kind of useful thread that benefits everyone. As of today, my car has just under 800 miles on it. I began experiencing some of the same issues already that many Focus owners have complained about. I will be taking my car in at 1,000 miles to have this issue looked at. You can bet I will print out your service record and take it to the dealership with me. I find sometimes the service writers and the mechanics benefit from knowing what issues other people are experiencing and where to begin looking.

Thanks for sharing this.

[kam327]

Originally Posted by suss6052

I also have to say esclating things through the forum goes nowhere. The regional rep only ever listened to the dealer, who had been lying through its teeth to either me or Ford. They wouldn't fix the factory body alignment issues with the tail lamp/ headlamp since they claimed the car was hit when there was no evidence to support the collsion theory. They also claimed that the seat heaters were getting up to the 125F service specification to Ford, when they told me they only measured 90-100F via the IDS tool. They failed to do the proper diagnostics which would involve taking things apart and checking things with the volt/ amp/ resistance meter to verify that the car is working properly or not, etc.

Not sayin' you're wrong here, but I guess I just don't understand why any dealer would lie to the manufacturer they represent to get out of doing work. If anything I would expect them to bend the truth as much as possible in order to be able to do the work and get reimbursed by the manufacturer.

Originally Posted by Just Tom

As of today, my car has just under 800 miles on it. I began experiencing some of the same issues already that many Focus owners have complained about. I will be taking my car in at 1,000 miles to have this issue looked at.

Mine started shuddering around 800 miles too, last March or so. I went out and did 5 hard accelerations and then generally drove it pretty aggressively over a tank of gas and the shuddering went away. Until I got the 12B37 update......

[suss6052]

Originally Posted by kam327

Not sayin' you're wrong here, but I guess I just don't understand why any dealer would lie to the manufacturer they represent to get out of doing work. If anything I would expect them to bend the truth as much as possible in order to be able to do the work and get reimbursed by the manufacturer.

It doesn't make much sense to me either, but the assistant service manager claimed over the phone that the tech had claimed that the cloth seats don't get as hot as the leather ones, despite what the service manual says. At one point they tried to give me a BS answer about how the cloth would catch fire if it got that hot. Um no, the seats got hotter than this in the sun during the summer even in Michigan at 80-90F outside, the seats were over 120F before the windows were tinted, but they didn't catch on fire.

Nevermind most of the people with cloth seats also report that the seats roast them out on a cold day, but here was supposedly absolutely nothing wrong and I was wasting their time for even asking was the feeling I get from Ford and the Dealer.

Its the series of little things that they don't fix or refuse to acknowledge that bother me the most.

Most of the time that I take surface measurements with the i.r. thermometer its only reading 90F tops. Most of the time its closer to 85F at the seat cover on the base or the back of the seat. Its not meeting the specification per the published information, yet they dgaf about it. One of the advisors claimed they would love to help but since Ford said no (on the basis of what the dealer said in the first place) they can't touch it, etc.... WTF.

The dealer also claimed to ask ford about the temperature specs (although the email they printed out said they had asked for an F150 even though they told me the regional rep knew it was for a Focus) which said that there was no published temperature set point. The regional rep had called to tell me that there was nothing wrong with the seats and that the dealer told them it had hit 125 F on 5. The copy of the repair order I have states that they only measured 90-100F so some one lied to get out of fixing the car.

That was the electrical/ mecanical defect that they failed to resolve so far.

Then there was the common issue with the tail lamp rubbing through the paint, but they told ford / sent pictures focusing on a tiny little black mark on the lamp and then telling ford it's been hit and we shouldn't repair it, even though there is no evidence that the damage to the fender from the lamp was caused by something actually hitting just the lamp. The bumper cover wasn't pushed back or anything. They also refused to adjust the headlamp and fix the chip in the paint on the hood when it was too far down and rearward in vehicle from the assembly plant.

The regional rep took great pains to tell me that I should use my insurance for something that was a factory defect that they refused to fix. Again I have to say this dealer sucked, but when I mentioned issues to another dealer if they even thought Ford might have said no since the original dealer wouldn't fix it they wouldn't touch it either, telling me to return to the first one or contact ford directly.

Both of which has gone exactly no where. So idk, the customer service has sucked pretty badly so far. So I'm not holding out much hope for them to have resolved the suspension issues either. I've been told that at least per the video while driving the car might suffer from this as well, so idk.

Of course as soon as the car was fixed from the bumper getting damaged it got hit again on the same damned side not 2 hrs later by a piece of sheet metal, so what am I supposed to do now? Idk, I'm getting pretty tired of the way Ford is handling things.

I love the way the car drives, but the service leaves much to be desired.

[FordCustomerService]

Originally Posted by JesseE1981

...I even put the car into S Mode this morning, and coming up to a stop sign I stopped, stepped on the gas to go, and nothing happened....the car then jerked into gear and away I went.

I see you still have a follow-up with Rachel set up, JesseE1981; please let me know via PM if you’d like me to have her call sooner.

Originally Posted by kam327

...Mine started shuddering around 800 miles too, last March or so...

kam327,

I want to lend a hand with you concern by escalating this up the line to your regional customer service manager. Please send me a PM with your contact details. Be sure to include your VIN, best daytime phone number, full name, mileage, and dealer name/state.

Originally Posted by Just Tom

...Your first step should be to contact Crystal at FOMOCO to see if she can escalate the issue to a Regional Manager who can enure that they have the right people working on your problem...

Originally Posted by Just Tom

...I began experiencing some of the same issues already that many Focus owners have complained about. I will be taking my car in at 1,000 miles to have this issue looked at....

Thanks for the great advice, Just Tom. I’m confident your dealer will take care of you.

Originally Posted by suss6052

...Of course as soon as the car was fixed from the bumper getting damaged it got hit again on the same damned side not 2 hrs later by a piece of sheet metal...I love the way the car drives, but the service leaves much to be desired.

suss6052,

You’ve had some bad luck ; I want to see your ride fixed. I have your VIN from before, so please PM me with your current mileage and I’ll help out.

Cory

[JesseE1981]

Originally Posted by suss6052

If the vehicle is now either out of the base warranty or out of the first year then it can't directly qualify if the issues were not documented before this.

http://www.dot.wisconsin.gov/safety/...s/lemonlaw.htm



I also have to say esclating things through the forum goes nowhere. The regional rep only ever listened to the dealer, who had been lying through its teeth to either me or Ford. They wouldn't fix the factory body alignment issues with the tail lamp/ headlamp since they claimed the car was hit when there was no evidence to support the collsion theory. They also claimed that the seat heaters were getting up to the 125F service specification to Ford, when they told me they only measured 90-100F via the IDS tool. They failed to do the proper diagnostics which would involve taking things apart and checking things with the volt/ amp/ resistance meter to verify that the car is working properly or not, etc.

Well mine has definitely been into the Ford dealer at least 4 times now for the transmission issues, I'd say mine qualifies.

[JesseE1981]

Originally Posted by dan50

At least this seems to be the kind of behavior that the DCT could "learn" its way out of...maybe.

My car has a learning disability then, because it has ALWAYS done this, after every software update, and every TSB for the transmission, it's fine for about a week, and goes right back to some sort of rough shifting. The smoothness never lasts, ever.

Now that it's been into the dealer 4 times for the transmission (software updates, and TSB's), how would I claim this under the lemon law? Would this count?