Interesting. Would definitely cause some issues, but I’m doubtful it’s the core issue. The shrudder is way to consistent to be a sporadic grounding issue.

With that being said, I’ll perform the mod and report back.


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I'm looking forward to this update, as I would potentially be interested in what comes of this!

 

I'll give it a try what the heck. I may have missed it, but is there a link to a pic that shows where the ground frame bolt is. I'll report back if it improves things, basically I think this has to go down as one of the worst auto designs of the century so far. It should never have been brought to market but I assume Ford were contractually committed to taking this crap? It's done enough to put me off American cars now and for the remainder of my driving life.
Chevy Camaro 1976 - One Owner - Wonderful vehicle, many years left I hope, still running.
Buick Rainier 2005 - POS, currently dead in the garage awaiting replacement ECM after it died and car came to a stop, only has 67K miles on it. Will be sold as soon as I have it up and running.
Ford Focus 2015 - Did someone mention ...DCT? This vehicle will also be gone within 12 months max. Replacement will only be Japanese and built in Japan, and I'm someone who has always liked Yankee Iron going back as far as the 50's. The quality is just not there at the moment, hopefully it will change.

 

I had this fix done shortly after the TSB came out. I think it helped temporarily just due to the fact that it's unhooking the battery and the TCM has to re-learn the shift strategy. My shudder eventually came back. It's probably still a worthwhile fix if the grounding actually is poor.

 

When you did it, was the original clutch pack and TCM? Do you still have your Focus and if so, which revision of clutch/seals are you on, and how recently was your TCM replaced?

What you're saying about having the TCM re-learn - and therefore reduces shudder - makes sense, and certainly rings true given my doubt that this could possibly be the fix...but if the theory is correct and if your TCM was already damaged and if the latest clutch pack assembly and seals revision actually fixed an issue, maybe this could work for folks?

That's a lot of ifs and it's not just wishful thinking on my part or anything, I'm just trying to work through the variables.

 

Tune

 

Adaptive will have its learning done after a few driving cycles. It doesn’t take as long as a lot of people think.

Will hopefully be able to drive it some next week (my teenage daughters car) and see if it made any difference.

Saw no signs of bad connectivity, no heat, no arcing, etc.

I’m not expected any change other than the trans relearning shift points for however long.

Firmly believe it’s in the tune, and if I still have it after warranty is gone I’ll get toms tune for sure.

Whoever said “make it feel like an automatic trans” needs to be kicked squarely in the privates.


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... I will say here what I said on reddit: I'm skeptical for the same reason I'm skeptical of Tom's tune. If it's really this easy, I have a hard time reconciling the fact that Ford engineers have completely missed it.

...

Concerning the 'Tune' side of your argument, Ford's engineers most likely did NOT miss it. The problem is with the Managers at Ford who wanted the DTC to shift and feel *exactly* like an normal hydraulic automatic. The only way to do that was to have the clutch slip and be feathered waaay more than a manual transmission should be. I'm sure the engineers knew the clutch glazing and shudder issues this would cause... But depending on the culture at Ford they may not have raised those concerns too strongly or if they did they were completely ignored.

I do not have Tom's tune, so Im no expert, but from what Ive read about it the reason it works is that it makes it shift more like a manual transmission. This does result in jerkier shifts, but honestly I like that and think most Ford drivers would as well.

It would be interesting to get Ford's opinion on Tom's tune, or any other 'sporty' shift tune that may be out there. It seems like it would be incredibly easy to add a tune to a software update and have it available as a Sporty mode that you could toggle between in a setting somewhere.

 

Concerning the 'Tune' side of your argument, Ford's engineers most likely did NOT miss it. The problem is with the Managers at Ford who wanted the DTC to shift and feel *exactly* like an normal hydraulic automatic. The only way to do that was to have the clutch slip and be feathered waaay more than a manual transmission should be. I'm sure the engineers knew the clutch glazing and shudder issues this would cause... But depending on the culture at Ford they may not have raised those concerns too strongly or if they did they were completely ignored.

I don't agree. I don't see them spending hundreds of thousands (probably over a million dollars at this point) in hardware and shop time to keep replacing clutch packs. And why is the TCM being replaced? Are you saying it's being worn out by too much feathering? This is a lot of money for Ford the lose just so that the ride is a little smoother. People might complain about the "rough" shifting (and only rough compared to a slushbox), but I assume they complain more about taking their cars in for new clutch packs every 15k miles.

When it comes down to it, neither of us can know and we're just swapping opinions.

I do not have Tom's tune, so Im no expert, but from what Ive read about it the reason it works is that it makes it shift more like a manual transmission. This does result in jerkier shifts, but honestly I like that and think most Ford drivers would as well.

Doesn't the Sport mode also shift more like a real manual? Or does it just increase the RPMs at which the shifts take place?

It would be interesting to get Ford's opinion on Tom's tune, or any other 'sporty' shift tune that may be out there. It seems like it would be incredibly easy to add a tune to a software update and have it available as a Sporty mode that you could toggle between in a setting somewhere.

Well, the guy who posted the YouTube video is (or was) a Ford tech. That's about as close to an opinion from Ford that we'll ever get.

What you just said only reinforces my view (at least, so it seems to me): if it's just tuning, you'd think it would be a nut Ford engineers could crack. Maybe Tom is a Einstein-level genius when it comes to the DCT, I don't know. Still, he claims a Ford dealership would buy his tune for each DCT Focus they sold used; seems to me word of his miracle fix should have made it back to Ford by now.

I know Tom takes offense at the very idea that I question his tune; I don't mean any disrespect or insult, I just have a healthy amount of skepticism for something that is only supported by advertisements and (by and large) the opinions of users with low post counts. No guarantee or warranty also makes me skeptical. Truly, I don't mean to imply that Tom is dishonest in any way, even though he has taken it that way several times.

 

Folks,
Where is this frame bolt located? I'm assuming it is not the negative battery frame post. That looks nice and clean. I might monkey around with it if I have time. I remember there was something like this supposedly would cure an ABS false error on the Chevy Trailblazer family of SUV's. ......it didn't fix anything for me. []
She goes in for the 250 rpm test soon, I need to do it before the 60K point. Very frustrating....fantastic looking car...what were they thinking.

 

Folks,

Where is this frame bolt located? I'm assuming it is not the negative battery frame post. That looks nice and clean. I might monkey around with it if I have time. I remember there was something like this supposedly would cure an ABS false error on the Chevy Trailblazer family of SUV's. ......it didn't fix anything for me. []

She goes in for the 250 rpm test soon, I need to do it before the 60K point. Very frustrating....fantastic looking car...what were they thinking.

It is the negative battery frame post.


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No change for me that I can tell. 200 miles so far.


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No change for me that I can tell. 200 miles so far.

So resetting the adaptive learning didn't even make a difference for you? Interesting.

I recently purchased my brothers Focus for my wife and we're having the same issue. Clean up the ground contact today and it drives much better. I'll report back in awhile to see if it changes.

Definitely do! As other have noted, it really ought to be "better" (or "different", at least) right off the bat due to the adaptive learning being reset. Only time will tell if this really does anything; more data, the better!

 

I recently purchased my brothers Focus for my wife and we're having the same issue. Clean up the ground contact today and it drives much better. I'll report back in awhile to see if it changes.

 

I've got some grease, I'll have a pop at it. Why not?

 

When trying this, Please keep in mind that dielectric grease doesn’t conduct energy. Grease is to be placed after the ground terminal is connected to the frame

 

Ford has definitely fixed the dct in its newest model cars. They chucked it completely. A normal auto is in its place now. Lol

My brother has a 15’ model with 35k on it. First clutch replaced in setember of last year. That one replaced two weeks ago.

I think the clutch itself is marginal as far as doing its job. Add in the terrible shift strategies and it quickly kills it off.


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Ford has definitely fixed the dct in its newest model cars. They chucked it completely. A normal auto is in its place now. Lol

My brother has a 15’ model with 35k on it. First clutch replaced in setember of last year. That one replaced two weeks ago.

I think the clutch itself is marginal as far as doing its job. Add in the terrible shift strategies and it quickly kills it off.


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You know, I was going to say something similar to this.

If Ford had indeed finally gotten the DCT's perfected, why just abandon it? Wouldn't a perfect DCT system be valuable to them?

No, they went back to hydraulic auto's because they know that the DCT's were crap and still are.

 

I wish you were correct about this but the date of that article is April 2018 and much more recently Ford announced the end of new Focus availability in the USA. This decision was precipitated by the new tariffs as well as their mission to phase out 'traditional' autos in favor of SUVs and the like. But they also stated that even if the tariff situation improved, the decision is final.

 

So I'm on my third clutchpack, which was great for a year and several months, and is now shuddering once again, worse than ever, even from 2nd to third (which it never did before). Two days ago, dry weather, 50-ish degrees, worst day ever. I drove it normally to and from work, doing one errand after work, shuddering the whole time, even getting some of the ratcheting noise I used to get. Next day, rain all day, same temperature 50-ish degrees, IT DROVE FINE. Smooth as silk. Granted, I didn't drive it the one errand extra, but come on. Why would it drive terribly on a cool, dry day as compared to a cool, wet one? This monster is driving me insane.

 

The Mazda 3 wagon is a great alternative. I'm actually kicking myself in the ass for not getting that over the focus.

 

Yep, I had a 2010 Mazda3 hatch which I sold when I got the 2014 Focus. It was better in every way I can imagine (trim, style, fit and finish, little extras, materials, design, performance, made in Japan, etc) except fuel economy. Mazda had been working on their Skyactiv for years and so the engines they were throwing in these cars were old-school and pretty inefficient. It had a 2.5L I4 that got me only upper teens with winter gas.

The 2019 Mazda3 hatch looks almost exactly like the Kai concept and damn, that is a fine-looking car. Pricing should be in the same range as the Focus (SE-Titanium-ST). Better design and better tech for the same price? It's just as well that Ford has bowed out, as they couldn't have competed, anyway.

 

I did a search and didn't find a thread that mentions better ground contact, but if I missed it, I apologize.

I try not to rely on one forum for everything and was poking around the Ford Focus subreddit and came across these threads:

DCT shudder mitigation.
2015 SE shudder disappeared temporarily

The idea seems to be that the grounding design is flawed, providing insufficient contact due to the ground point being painted and so contact is only using the bolt. This could cause signal problems for the TCM, producing the shudder when it has no idea what to do, and potentially damaging it over time (and part of the reason the TCM is being replaced so often). Side note: this grounding issue seems to be the cause to some intermittent A/C issues folks have experienced.

The solution is to sand off the paint at the contact point and use some dielectric grease for good measure. The video below provides a demonstration (I've skipped ahead to the demo). In the comments, someone mentioned not sanding off the paint to reduce corrosion, but to add a serrated lock washer to the grease, thereby increasing contact with minimal damage.

Thoughts? There isn't a whole lot of feedback, but of what feedback there is, it's positive. I will say here what I said on reddit: I'm skeptical for the same reason I'm skeptical of Tom's tune. If it's really this easy, I have a hard time reconciling the fact that Ford engineers have completely missed it.

But hey, this "fix" is dirt cheap and shouldn't hurt anything.

Ford Focus & Fiesta Multiple Transmission Problems One Easy Fix

EDIT: fun fact, the YouTube video was done by FordTechMakuloco, who is makuloco2000 on here and the OP of the 2012+ Transmission Shudder Issue Explained thread. The video above was made before he created the thread and as far as I can tell, he never references the video in that thread. Not sure why, but he hasn't been active since April of 2015.

Well, there is another grounding point I found on the front of the trans only visible once the bottom apron is removed. I cleaned both. Still shuddered for about 50 miles but I must say it has been much better. I'm on my third trans and must say I really doubted this fix or approach. But damn, it's been really behaving better than ever before. 400 miles and all is good so far.

 

This TSB most likely WILL NOT fix shuddering. There's other issues that this TSB addresses better.

Three things contribute to the shuddering.

Most of the shuddering is caused by the leaking input shaft seal. No amount of grounding is going to repair that seal, and these clutches aren't designed to get wet. Dry clutches start to fail, and slip when they get wet.

The second factor is heat. These clutches are not cooled properly. Clutches that are too hot wear very quickly causing them to slip more easily as time goes on.

The third cause of shuddering is TCM programming. Ford programmed these things to behave like a traditional automatic as much as physically possible. That means that they have a tendency to spend a lot of time slipping the clutch in attempts to get smooth starts, crawling, and other things that people like about traditional automatics. The problem is that slipping the clutch heats it up even further, and the now that the clutch is wet from the leaking seal, it doesn't grab like the TCM is expecting it to. That further adds to clutch slipping/shuddering.

Well, how does Tom improve/stop shuddering with a tune then?

A while back I was curious, so I asked him. This was his reply.

"I change a lot of things , times , psi , shift times , slippage allowed and much much more"

It's vague, I know. There's a lot more information here than you would think, though. Two causes of the shuddering are heat, and TCM programming. Tunning can definitely address the TCM programming, and from what I can gleam, help alleviate the heat issue. Not to mention the part where the transmission can be adjusted to suit your driving style better.

Less time with the clutch partially engaged = less heat/wear

The tunning can't make the seal stop leaking, but from what I understand, Tom can adjust the control of the transmission to make it either much less noticable, or cause it to be almost non-existent. I think this also has much to do with the transmission spending more time fully engaged after tunning seeing as it seems like most of the slipping happens when the clutches aren't fully engaged.

I imagine there is probably a few rare cases where the clutches were just too far gone as well.

So yeah, I don't know exactly what Tom does to help with the shuddering, but he's given us a pretty good idea, and I find it to be fairly believable. I actually intend to purchase the tune myself at some point in the near future.

 

interesting. Maybe I should just unconnect my battery every couple weeks as I like how it drives each time after i do so

 

Probably better to do the Forscan mod and use sport mode in the city. There are other things that get reset by disconneting the battery that you are probably better off not resetting.

Losing things like learned fuel trim will impact economy and the life of the catalytic converter. It's also a pain to reset clocks, radio presets and the like.

 

Funny thing is my mileage GOES UP after battery disconnect.
Why will the catalytic converter get affected? Sorry to be ignorant

 

Funny thing is my mileage GOES UP after battery disconnect.

I doubt that. At least, not in any meaningful way.

IIRC, learning is generally complete after a couple of hundred miles (I suppose it depends how many of those require frequent shifting, though). That's not even a full tank. Certainly mileage can differ from tank to tank (and day to day and season to season, etc), so that's not really enough time to see any significant or permanent improvements to mileage.

I'm guessing you're looking at the dash to get your MPG estimate? Some people swear theirs are spot-on; mine has overestimated every single tank since the day I bought the car, and by at least 2MPG (and frequently 3-4MPG). I keep track of my mileage in Fuelly, and my dash MPG calculator is garbage.