NHTSA Complaint #10705989 — 2012 FORD FOCUS

I WAS DRIVING AT A STEADY SPEED OF 40 MPH ON A FLAT ROAD. I WAS GRADUALLY SLOWING DOWN AS I WAS COMING TOWARDS AN INTERSECTION AND GRADUALLY APPLYING THE BRAKE. THE CAR WAS GOING AT ABOUT 10 MPH AND THEN I ATTEMPTED TO ACCELERATE AS I WAS ABOUT TO DRIVE ON PASS THE INTERSECTION. HOWEVER, THE CAR SUDDENLY LOST POWER COMPLETELY AND IT COULD NOT ACCELERATE AT ALL. I WAS STUCK ON THE ROAD. I REPEATEDLY PRESSED ON THE GAS PEDAL TO ATTEMPT ACCELERATING A FEW MORE TIMES AND THE CAR JUST WOULD NOT MOVE. EACH TIME I PRESS THE GAS PEDAL, I HEARD A LOUD NOISE COMING FROM THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE BUT THE CAR DIDN'T MOVE. THE ENGINE CONTINUED TO REMAIN RUNNING AND BOTH WARNING INDICATOR AND TRACTION LIGHT SUDDENLY CAME ON. I HAD TO SHUT OFF THE ENGINE BY TURNING THE KEY, AND ATTEMPTED TO RESTART THE CAR, BOTH THE WARNING INDICATOR LIGHT AND THE TRACTION LIGHT WENT AWAY AND THE CAR SEEMED TO BEHAVE LIKE NORMAL AS I COULD MOVE MY CAR AGAIN. I THEN TOOK THE CAR TO THE FORD DEALER TO INVESTIGATE THE CAUSE, BUT THE TECHNICIAN SAID THAT THERE WERE ERROR CODES WITHIN THE ABS MODULE BUT THEY COULD NOT EXPLAIN OR FIGURE OUT WHY THE ABS MODULE WOULD SUDDENLY STALL THE CAR. ALL THEY DID WAS TO CLEAR THE CODE IN THE ABS MODULE, BUT THAT DOES NOT APPEAR TO SOLVE THE UNDERLYING PROBLEM. PLUS, THERE WAS NO ASSURANCE THAT THIS PROBLEM WOULD NOT HAPPEN AGAIN. SUDDEN LOST OF POWER CAN LEAD TO EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SITUATION AND I EARNESTLY NHTSA COULD TAKE ACTION TO THIS INVESTIGATION TO IMPROVE SAFETY FOR ME AND FOR OTHERS DRIVING THE SAME CAR MODEL. *TR