NHTSA Complaint #10609722 — 2013 FORD FIESTA

FORD FIESTA 2013 (AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION) - STARTED CAR. PUT CAR IN REVERSE. CAR DID NOT REVERSE AND THERE WERE RATTLING AND GRINDING SOUNDS COMING FROM TRANSMISSION. RESTARTED CAR. CAR REVERSED. HOWEVER, ONCE CAR WAS PUT INTO DRIVE THE TRANSMISSION WAS RATTLING AND GRINDING AGAIN. ONCE I TRIED TO ACCELERATE, THE CAR LURCHED FORWARD, STOPPED AND LURCHED FORWARD AGAIN. THE ACCELERATION WAS NOT SMOOTH, IT FELT LIKE THE CAR MIGHT STALL. THE ENGINE NOISES WERE LOUD AND NOT TYPICAL. UNTIL I REACHED 45 MILES PER HOUR, THE ENGINE DID NOT QUIET DOWN. DRIVING IN TRAFFIC WAS TERRIBLE. I HAD TO LEAVE EXTRA ROOM TO STOP AS I DID NOT TRUST THE CAR TO DOWNSHIFT PROPERLY. I HAD TO LEAVE EXTRA ROOM TO ACCELERATE BECAUSE I COULD NOT PREDICT IF THE CAR WOULD GO AT ALL OR ACCELERATE AT AN UNPREDICTABLE SPEED BECAUSE THE TRANSMISSION WAS NOT TRUSTWORTHY AND THE CLUTCH KEPT SLIPPING. OVERALL, THE FIESTA'S TRANSMISSION ISSUE HAS TO DO WITH THE VEHICLE'S DESIGN, AND THIS IS NOT AN ISOLATED INCIDENT. FROM 20,000 MILES ON, I HAVE TAKEN THE CAR IN TWICE TO TRY AND FIX THIS DEFECT AND IT CONTINUES TO EXIST. I CURRENTLY DO NOT HAVE THE CAR AS IT IS AT THE DEALERSHIP AND HAS BEEN FOR 24 DAYS AND COUNTING. THEY CAN'T SEEM TO FIX THE DEFECTS AND THIS TRANSMISSION DESIGN SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED. I AM CURRENTLY WORKING WITH THE BBB AUTOLINE TO TRY AND RESOLVE THIS ISSUE. *TR