NHTSA Complaint #10903043 — 2010 FORD FUSION

SEVERAL MONTHS AGO, IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY INTERSECTION, MY CAR UNEXPECTEDLY SHOOK AND WENT TO "LIMP" MODE IN THE MIDDLE OF A BUSY INTERSECTION WITH THE WRENCH LIGHT COMING ON. I PULLED INTO THE CLOSEST DRIVEWAY AFTER PUTTING ON MY HAZARDS AND, AFTER TURNING OFF THE ENGINE, RESTARTED THE CAR, WHICH TOOK ABOUT ABOUT 5 SECONDS OF TRYING TO TURN OVER THE IGNITION. SINCE THAT TIME, THE SAME PROBLEM HAS HAPPENED AT LEAST TWO DOZEN TIMES, SOMETIMES SEVERAL TIMES IN A ROW; AND THE REST OF THE TIME, THE RPMS FLUTTER IN AN IRREGULAR WAY. I DO MOSTLY CITY DRIVING AND HAVE THANKFULLY BEEN ABLE TO AVOID AN ACCIDENT WHEN HAVING TO PULL OVER AND RESTART; BUT IN EACH CASE, IT IS NOT A GOOD SITUATION. BY ALL ACCOUNTS ONLINE, THIS IS A VERY FREQUENT PROBLEM AND DUE TO A FAULTY THROTTLE BODY. NOTABLY, THE PROBLEM WITH MY CAR BEGAN TO OCCUR AT AROUND 45,000 MILES, WHICH IS TYPICAL FROM WHAT I'VE READ OF OTHER COMPLAINTS. THIS SEEMS MUCH TOO EARLY, MUCH TOO COMMON, AND MUCH TOO DANGEROUS OF A PROBLEM FOR IT NOT TO BE COVERED UNDER AN EXTENDED WARRANTY OR RECALL. THERE WAS, IN FACT, AN EXTENDED WARRANTY, BUT IT EXPIRED IN EARLY 2015. I WAS TOLD BY THE LOCAL DEALER THAT IT WOULD COST $600 TO REPAIR.