NHTSA Complaint #10594579 — 2014 FORD FOCUS

THERE WERE FOUR INCIDENTS ON MY BRAND NEW 2014 FORD FOCUS LEADING UP TO COMPLETE ELECTRIC POWER ASSIST STEERING FAILURE. I BOUGHT THE CAR NEW ON A SATURDAY EVENING. I DROVE IT EVERYDAY SINCE THEN. I DROVE IT ABOUT 100 MILES SATURDAY NIGHT, THEN ANOTHER 100 ON SUNDAY. MONDAY AFTERNOON I LEFT FOR WORK. MY DRIVE CONSISTS OF ABOUT TWO MILES FROM MY RESIDENCE TO THE EXPRESSWAY THEN 18 MILES HIGHWAY AND LESS THAN A MILE TO THE PARKING LOT OFF THE EXIT. AS I GOT OFF THE EXIT I GOT INTO THE LEFT TURNING LANE WHICH CROSSES TWO SETS OF RAILROAD TRACKS AND TAKES A LONG SWOOPING LEFT HAND TURN TO A LIGHT. THEN THE PARKING LOT IS ABOUT A HALF MILE UP ON THE RIGHT. ACCELERATING OVER THE TRACKS AND IN MID TURN THE STEERING ASSIST FAULT SERVICE REQUIRED WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED IN THE INFORMATION BOX ON THE CLUSTER. I HAD NO POWER STEERING UP UNTIL I GOT IN THE PARKING LOT, TURNED THE VEHICLE OFF, OPENED THE DOOR, WAITED A MINUTE, THEN STARTED THE CAR BACK AND IT RESET. THEN TWO DAYS LATER, WEDNESDAY, THE SAME SCENARIO REPEATED ITSELF AND ONCE AGAIN ON FRIDAY. THEN SATURDAY EVENING I DROVE THE CAR TO A RESTAURANT FOR DINNER ABOUT 25 MILES FROM THE HOUSE, MOSTLY HIGHWAY, WITH NO ISSUES. ONCE WE LEFT THE RESTAURANT AND GOT BACK INTO TOWN THE STEERING FAILED ACCELERATING AROUND A TURN FROM A STOP LIGHT ABOUT 10 MILES FROM THE RESTAURANT. ONCE WE ARRIVED AT THE ICE CREAM PARLOR AND THEN LEFT AGAIN, IT RESET. WE LEFT THE PARLOR AND ABOUT 10 MILES FROM THE PARLOR I STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT, WENT TO ACCELERATE FROM THE LIGHT, DID NOT TURN IN EITHER DIRECTION, DRIVE PATH WAS STRAIGHT, AND NOTICED THE WARNING LIGHT APPEAR AGAIN WITH NO POWER STEERING THE REST OF THE WAY HOME. ONCE WE ARRIVED HOME I ASSUMED THAT IT WOULD RESET, HOWEVER THE NEXT MORNING (SUNDAY) I WENT TO START IT AND THE FIRST THING THAT POPPED UP WAS THE WARNING LIGHT AGAIN AND I HAVEN'T HAD POWER STEERING SINCE THEN. *TR