Focus ignition locks.

In message , Eight Ball wrote

UK models seem to have different locks and keys.

Reply to
Alan
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"Alan" wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@amacleod.clara.co.uk...

My german made Focus has the same keys as the uk link. Common as it seems to be in North America, I have not seen anyone from Europe complain about seized ignition locks in this newsgroup during the last few years. Maybe more parts than we know differs between the Focus from Europe vs North America? Other issues not common i Europe are eg: excessive brake wear and motor surge from air con drag, /per

Reply to
per

Totally different locking system. The Vehicle manufacturers in this part of the globe have not been forced to address the problem of vehicle theft as they have in Europe.

Any how!

We do not need dead locking on the Ford Focus in North America. Because no thief in their right mind would want to steal a Focus: First the cars are not worth much used, and the ignition lock might jam on them, the rear wheel might fall off, the car might stop dead due to a defective fuel pump, the car could overheat, they might drown if it rains because of the water leaks and they would announce their presence by the squealing brakes, etc etc -

Now these comments will wind someone up for sure.

Reply to
Eight Ball

Not really, just wondering what guys build the american Focus, and why they're still not fired. Overhere in Europe it is considered as a reliable car.

Reply to
Zweef®

For the first few years, the NA Focus had some teething problems. Our=20 Focus SE wagon (estate) built in 2002 is a great car. It is my wife's=20 daily driver and she adores it. I drove it cross-country, and it=20 accommodated my 6'3" frame comfortably.

There will always be some people on this forum who will badmouth the NA=20 Focus, but saying once a bad car, always a bad car is a load of crud.

Reply to
Richard Ray
!

But Why would you believe that it is alright for any vehicle to have teething problems in the first few years, and that it is OK for the vehicle manufacturers to use their customers to works out all the bugs whilst paying for an inferior product . Why would Ford not do it right the first time???

For the first few years, the NA Focus had some teething problems. Our Focus SE wagon (estate) built in 2002 is a great car. It is my wife's daily driver and she adores it. I drove it cross-country, and it accommodated my 6'3" frame comfortably.

There will always be some people on this forum who will badmouth the NA Focus, but saying once a bad car, always a bad car is a load of crud.

Reply to
Eight Ball

And it could have been avoided! The european cars have been great right from the start, great handeling, sound quality, very little problems. Ofcourse there are always little problems that occur in daily use.

Why does it have to be different for the NA Focus? It seems to be more of a lemon factory overthere ;-)

The european division proved they can! That's why i wonder why the entire NA division has not been fired still ;-)

Reply to
Zweef®

"Eight Ball" wrote

Gross exaggeration. No rear wheels ever fell off. The recall saw to that. The pump problem caused hesitation not stopping, problems with water leaks were rare in North America, and most cars did not have noisy brakes (mine have never squealed). And if you look, you will see that the resale values are not that out of line with most cars in this market segment, certainly in line with other small domestics. And most important, Ford really tried to provide lasting fixes at reasonable prices (or free), and by all evidence has succeeded.

But the question "why did Ford not do it right the first time" is a valid one. I've seen a number of explanations over the years. Ford North America invited the local suppliers to participate in product development, hoping this would improve quality. Bad move. More than one supplier apparently used this opportunity to boost their profits rather than make a better car.

Another thing is timing. I understand that the North American operations were forced to rush their cars into production in the late summer of 1999, when they were still trying to incorporate the lessons of the first year of European production, which had revealed some problems. They would have preferred to wait until later in the year.

Reply to
Dave Gower

I disagree as there was a man I knew of that had a daughter injured or died in the car accident when her wheel fell off ...granted it was an early 2000 model but it happened...

I'll let you talk to my husband as we drove from PA. to Ohio with a fuel pump failing and it MOST ASSUREDLY DIED...while driving and you'd notice the car slowing down and the red light on so you'd have to shift to nuetral and restart the engine. So don't TELL ME IT DIDN'T !!@! That was a vacation from hell as we finally got to Columbus and it failed and the Ford dealer replaced it under warranty. Oh yes...when we got back to PA. and told the dealer about it..."OH yeah - we ordered you a fuel pump" and let us go on vacation with the car! I would never buy another car from them after that crap.

My 2000 wagon made all kinds of very high pitched squeals...my neighbors asked to back into my space so I could pull straight out and not use my brakes! I don't know what you had but I could never sneak up on anyone with that car and used to get all kinds of strange looks from people. Never managed to hit anyone though and never changed my brakes in the over 48,000 miles I had them. I will agree with you as far as the rest - I bought the car because I had seen it early on from spy pictures before production and fell in love with it and I was old enough then to know NEVER to buy a first year car. I had 11 recalls and a new transmission and a burnt out horn but I still went ahead and bought a

2003 ZX5 after they couldn't figure out why I was blowing starter fuses ($3 each time) every time the engine was started not cold...eventually after I traded the wagon in the car finally failed and they found out a wire was welded to the engine...but I got a more dependable car this time. So far no failures but still a stinky A/C. Thank god for Lysol. Linda
Reply to
HbgpodLW

Now this is really strange - if you are talking about the wheel bearing problem that caused the recall. A friend of mine is a Ford mechanic who fixed a number of these and he told me that no one would ever drive a car until the wheel fell off because it would be unbearably noisy. I doubt we are talking about the same problem.

OK I should have been more precise. The problem with the pumps is that early ones were too unforgiving of bad gas. That's why the problem would come and go. But I notice that you also say that the car restarted.

I very occasionally feel a slight hesitation. A few times in the past four years the car has stalled on the over-run i.e. coasting out of gear (I have a manual). But when I put it back in gear it always started instantly. Recently it's running perfectly.

But my point was that the problem for most people, and the one that Ford is addressing with the warrantee extension, is hesitation on acceleration. The reason as I understand it why this problem persists is that Ford was able to address the stalling problem with software tweaks, but that emission rules (lean mixture) prevent them from fully eliminating the hesitation unless they replace the pump.

Now of course none of this will completely eliminate pump problems. These cause problems on all lines of cars, and are one of the major causes of towing.

Cheers

Reply to
Dave Gower

:>But Why would you believe that it is alright for any vehicle to have :>teething problems in the first few years, and that it is OK for the vehicle :>manufacturers to use their customers to works out all the bugs whilst paying :>for an inferior product . Why would Ford not do it right the first time???

Kind of sounds just like Bill Gates and Microsoft. :-)

They have been doing just that since DOS 1.0.

me/2

:>

:>

:>For the first few years, the NA Focus had some teething problems. Our :>Focus SE wagon (estate) built in 2002 is a great car. It is my wife's :>daily driver and she adores it. I drove it cross-country, and it :>accommodated my 6'3" frame comfortably. :>

:>There will always be some people on this forum who will badmouth the NA :>Focus, but saying once a bad car, always a bad car is a load of crud.

Reply to
me/2

Not as responsive as they did the last time I threatened them.

Now that it's not under warranty, they are attempting to charge $418. I have no problem with wear and tear. But twice in 4 years is too much for something like this. They know it's a problem, a common one, they replaced the switch in the 2004. I had 2 other keys on the ring only.

I have consulted with an attorney who suggested the first course of action. File complaints, and tell them you have collected enough evidence that the problem is widespread and you will consult with an attorney.

Call Ford Consumer Relations and overwhelm them with complaints:

800-392-3673

The woman there said she would do whatever she could to make me happy. But I am not optomistic.

I also filed a report with the Feds:

formatting link

We shall see!

Reply to
BubbaG

Or not see. All of this is much too time consuming, and the lawyer could wind up costing more than they want to charge for the repair.

The guy you want to contact spells his last name F-O-R-D. The current Ford Motor Company CEO. His first name escapes me, but if you get a little creative with Google you'll find it and a valid U.S. mailing address. It's the only way to fly. Odds are overwhelming that he'll never see your letter, but enough of his underlings, all the way down to the dealer, will be sent scurrying about like rats on a sinking ship. I've done the CEO trick twice, once to Ford and once to Chrystler for out of warranty repairs and it worked both times. Be courteous, complimentary of your Focus but for the most part but be firm.

Freddie

Reply to
Freddie the Crook Finder

And Honda and Toyota and Chrysler and Dodge and GM, etc. Gates is different though - he just doesn't give a grap.

Reply to
FanJet

I didn't say it was alright for Ford to bring a incompletely tested and=20 proven product to market, as the NA Focus differs in several ways from=20 its European sibling. But the argument that "they were bad in the=20 beginning, and they're surely bad now" isn't reasonable. The Focus is=20 quite a popular car in the NA, but viewed as a economy car, not a more=20 expensive car as it would be in Europe with the competition in much=20 smaller cars than the Focus.

Reply to
Richard Ray

I had the same problem with my 2000 Focus... First they quoted $95 to replace the lock. Then they called back and said they had to make new transponder keys. Total $225. Then they called again. The steering column had to be replaced. Total $650.

I told them I had to talk to my lawyer first... ;>)

I dropped in and examined the broken part. There is a molded pot-metal part that engages the back of the key cylinder and has a shaft that turns the ignition switch. It was sheared off right behind the lock cylinder. I spent a good bit of time examining it under a magnifier (and making them nervous). That part is not available separately. You have to buy a whole new steering column.

It would take me about 4 hours to make a duplicate part on the lathe and Bridgeport mill ... to save over $400.

In principle, I could start the car with a screwdriver if I taped the transponder key to the column nearby. The problem was that I would then have to insert the broken part and turn it to hold the steering wheel lock open. If that accidentally slipped while driving, the steering wheel would lock up.

I pointed out to the service manager that the part broke IN CLOCKWISE TORSION (rotation). When these molded metal parts fracture, they leave a sparkling crystal surface. But the high points were rubbed VERY SMOOTH. In other words, at the instant of fracture there was also a very strong PRESSURE being applied. The ONLY way that this could occur was when they were drilling out the old cylinder: The drill jammed when he was pressing hard on the drill. (The recommended procedure is to drill a small hole first and then carefully enlarge it.)

I really had them over a barrel at that point, and he promptly said he would "go see if he could get me some help". He looked up my VIN number, and reported that Ford would pay 80% and I would only have to pay 20% of the cost (which actually comes out cheaper than just replacing the cylinder and keys).

If you have a problem with steering column replacement, I would strongly suggest that you ask for the broken part. It is about 3-1/2 inches long and

7/8" diameter. If it is broken and there are shiny places (rubbed smooth) on the break, then it was broken while drilling out the cylinder.

The problem with the lock cylinders themselves is just more of the same problem. They are made out of cheap molded metal. The slide bars wear and gaul the metal and they eventually jam up. I am going to make sure my new cylinder gets a good lubrication.

--Dave

Reply to
DAVID HARRIS

Such as what?

Rob

Reply to
Basic Wedge

There are special lubricants for locks. A graphite-based lubricant is long lasting and non-gumming, but you may have to wipe your key off for a few days.

Reply to
DAVID HARRIS

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