Ford's Subcompact: Out of Focus

The brakes screech and grind. They wear out in a year or less…
Fire breaks out under the hood…
The cruise control throttle sticks…
Rear wheels fall off…
The gas tank falls off…
Windshield wipers fall off…
A roof pillar inflicts head injuries…
The engine stalls…
Airbags deploy when they are not needed…
The deployed airbag burns motorists’ arms and hands…
Seat backs don’t adjust properly; in some positions the safety belt don’t latch correctly…
The front suspension collapses sending the car veering out of control…

If this sounds a bit like Humpty-Dumpty, welcome to quality, Ford-style:  some re-assembly required.

The car is Focus, the "hot" subcompact with which Ford is wooing the 35-and-under motoring public.  Ford promotions talk about its stylishness and fun to drive, but fail to mention that it has had to recall the car, introduced to the public in the 2000 model year, no less than nine times:

•	To correct a sticking cruise control throttle (three recalls).
•	To fix seat latches – two recalls, one for the hinge pivot on some models’ fold-down back seats and the other to fix front seats’ recliner handle springs.
•	To replace the A-pillar trim panel, which failed to meet federal safety design standards.
•	To install a retention cap to keep the left rear wheel and brake drum assembly from flying off the car.
•	To replace a wire harness at the trunk lid that was prone to fray and short out the tail and brake lights.
•	To replace the windshield wiper motor gear case, which was overheating and causing the wipers to shut down.

Nor does Ford advertise that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is looking into complaints of no fewer than six other Focus defects:

•	The rear wheel bearing failures that cause the wheels to fall off the car in year 2000 models.
•	Air bag deployments that cause burn injuries and vehicle fires, in both 2000 and 2001 models.
•	Inappropriate deployment of air bags in low-speed impacts – or no impacts at all – in both 2000 and 2001 models.
•	Seventy-two cases of sudden stalling, in 2000 and 2001 models, that caused at least seven reported crashes.
•	Seven failures of lower control arms that resulted in collapse of the front suspension, causing at least six crashes, in 2000, 2001 and 2002 models.
•	Engine compartment electrical fires, in 2000, 2001 and 2002 models.

It was also learned in 2002 that a new "hot" version, the RS Focus, failed crash tests in Sweden.  Reportedly, heavy fuel leaks were found after the tests. 

As of mid-summer 2002, five of the NHTSA’s six investigations were still in the preliminary inquiry stage, in which the agency and auto maker exchange documents.  The sixth case, investigating engine compartment fires, was opened as a preliminary inquiry in March 2002 based on seven reports of fires or melting parts near the battery.  Since then, however, NHTSA received two more complaints and learned that Ford knows of yet another 61 complaints and 286 warranty claims for fires, melted parts, smoke or burning odors from the engine compartment.   In July 2002, the agency upgraded the inquiry to an engineering analysis, in which government engineers examine parts for a possible defect, in all 690,000 Focus models that Ford has sold in the United States since 2000.  The engineering analysis could lead to recall of the cars.

‘At Ford, Quality Is Job #1’

Ford euphemistically refers to complaints about such defects as "quality issues," as when spokesman Todd Nissen told the Associated Press in April 2002:  "There is no doubt that the Focus did early on have some quality issues, which we take seriously and are addressing." 

Ford has successfully marketed the Focus to buyers under 35 as a fuel-efficient little car with style and"zip."  The company makes Focus available in seven youth-friendly and young-family-friendly variations – including sedans, wagons, hatchbacks, and a suped-up SVT version with "juiced performance and styling."  Ford even makes two "special" models for "enthusiasts" who want a car to do more than transport them from place to place.  One has a 220-watt stereo system, presumably for the more sedentary music-appreciation types, and the other comes with a mountain bike and removable nylon seat covers, presumably for more athletic young adults.  To help entice the young-buyer market even more, Ford is investing heavily in a World Rally Championship campaign for the Focus, which won the Argentina Rally in 2002.

With such high-octane marketing to help overcome its shortcomings, the Focus rapidly climbed to fifth place on the nation’s automotive best-seller list (behind Honda Accord, Toyota Camry, Ford Taurus and Honda Civic), a triumph of advertising over reality.  Among other things, this means that more and more of the defect-prone automobiles will be on the highways, waiting to malfunction.

Ford’s Dissatisfied Customers

Some Focus owners are so angry about their new cars that they’re posting their stories on an Internet website intended for just that purpose.  Since May 2001, more than 140 "cases" have been reported in postings on the website www.fordfocusbrakeproblems.com.  Most, but not all, describe noisy and rapidly deteriorating brakes.  The Focus-owners say they were unsuccessful in getting the auto maker to admit that the brakes are faulty.  Many postings end with stinging rebukes.  As one who signed only as a "Disgruntled Focus owner from Ottawa (Ontario), Canada" wrote: 

"I am thoroughly dissatisfied with Ford and am never buying another of their products."  This for the auto company that is marketing the Focus to improve its image among buyers following the market relations disaster of the recent Ford Explorer/Firestone tire recall.

A sampling of stories from the website:

1.  On April 26, 2002, after having driven her Focus only 14,800 miles, Melissa Ecker of Long Beach, CA, started hearing grinding noises from her brakes.  Her Ford dealer told her "it was basically my problem," that "normal wear and tear is not covered under warranty" and it would cost her $500 to replace the brake pads and rotors.  "The dealership manager and the Ford Motor Company told me that there was no known problem with this car and it was my problem to fix.  They even had the nerve to charge me a $32 diagnostic fee before they would let me have my car back."  She has filed a class action lawsuit against the auto maker.

2.  The Focus owned by Steven L., of Atlanta, had 18,000 miles on it when the brakes began to grind noisily.  He went to a dealership for his 15,000-mile check-up and requested brake repairs.  After several unproductive delays, he called Ford and "was told that they knew nothing of any problem with brakes and that I was responsible for any repairs because the warranty on the brakes (is) only good for 12 months or 12,000 miles."  He said he was putting his story on the Internet "simply to raise enough attention and awareness that Ford will have to recognize it and just maybe they will stand behind their product rather than look away and pretend it doesn't exist."

3.  "Last Saturday, my husband, my two-year-old son and I were driving about 35 miles an hour when we heard a dragging sound," a woman wrote about her 2000 Ford Focus, a car with barely 2000 miles on its odometer but two recalls already under its belt.  "We pulled over immediately to find our full gas tank lying on the ground!  It was still attached to the fuel line, but the single bolt had snapped clean off and it had been held on with one strap. The dealership, who initially thought of finding fault with me, quickly changed…tune (and is)…correcting these problems….  (B)ut what about other unsuspecting Ford Focus owners?  Will they be so lucky not to have been flying down the highway with (the) gas tank ready to fall off?"

4. "Samantha" bought her 2000 Focus in December 1999, her first new car.  By the following September, "the spring off of the windshield wiper (had) popped off, …the metal where you adjust your seat (was) rusting… (and) I have rust all over my driver’s seat…. I think I'm going to get a ten-speed and use my pedal power. It's a lot cheaper and easier to fix."

5.  "G. Kennedy" of Newfoundland, Canada, described an accident in mid-May 2002 that may have been caused by the sticking throttle.  His Focus had 30,000 kilometers on it (approximately 20,000 miles) at the time. "While pulling in to the coffee shop two weeks ago, I hit the brakes and the car kept going into the building.  Damage to the building (is) yet to be determined but it will be expensive.  My car cost over $5,000 to repair, plus cost of a loaner car."  Luckily, no one was injured, he reported.

Ford on Its Focus

Here’s what Ford’s website says about the Focus:  "Ford Focus will fit in nicely with your day-to-day life. And that’s not to mention all the fun you’ll have on evenings and weekends."  Just ask someone who owns one.

(08/20/02)