NHTSA Complaint #11173439 — 2012 FORD FOCUS

WHILE TRAVELING AT 65 MPH ON HIGHWAY, VEHICLE SUDDENLY LOST ALL POWER TRANSMISSION TO THE WHEELS WITH CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATING AND SERVICE TRANSMISSION WARNING APPEARING ON CONSOLE. VEHICLE COASTED TO A STOP, PARTIALLY OBSCURING RIGHT LANE OF HIGHWAY. VEHICLE NARROWLY AVOIDED LIFE-THREATENING COLLISIONS WITH VARIOUS PASSING VEHICLES UNTIL EMERGENCY PERSONNEL ARRIVED IN RESPONSE TO 911 CALL TO BLOCK TRAFFIC AND ALLOW TOWING. VEHICLE WAS TOWED FROM THE SCENE. UPON RESTART OF VEHICLE, POWER TRANSMISSION TO WHEELS WAS RESTORED, THOUGH CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AND SERVICE TRANSMISSION WARNING REMAINED ILLUMINATED. FORD SERVICE DEPARTMENT DIAGNOSED AS FAULTY TRANSMISSION CONTROL MODULE (TCM) AND REPLACED TCM UNDER FORD FIELD SERVICE ACTION 14M02. FORD HAS KNOWN OF FAULTY TCM ELECTRICAL SOLDERING DESIGN WITH POSSIBLE CONSEQUENCE OF INTERMITTENT LOSS OF POWER TRANSMISSION TO THE WHEELS SINCE AT LEAST 2015 WHEN 14M02 WAS ISSUED, BUT INEXPLICABLY NO TCM SAFETY RECALL OCCURRED AT THAT TIME. AS PART OF FORD "CUSTOMER SATISFACTION PROGRAM" 15B22 ISSUED IN 2015, VEHICLE RECEIVED A TCM COMPUTER REPROGRAM THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO DETECT IMPENDING TCM FAILURE SO THAT TCM COULD PROVIDE WARNING ABOUT THE NEED FOR TCM REPLACEMENT, IF NEED BE, PRIOR TO HAZARDOUS EVENTS OCCURRING. THIS SOFTWARE UPDATE PROVED TO BE INEFFECTIVE, AS VEHICLE'S TCM FAILED WITHOUT WARNING IN HIGHLY DANGEROUS SCENARIO. A SAFETY RECALL SHOULD BE ISSUED FOR ALL UN-REPLACED TCMS IN ALL VEHICLES REFERENCED IN FORD FIELD SERVICE ACTION 14M02, AS STOP-GAP SOFTWARE REPROGRAM LEVIED BY FORD "CUSTOMER SATISFACTION PROGRAM" 15B22 HAS PROVEN INSUFFICIENT TO DETECT IMPENDING TCM CATASTROPHIC FAILURE. WAITING TO REPLACE THE TCM UNTIL IT SHOWS SIGNS OF FAILURE WILL (AND PERHAPS ALREADY HAS) LEAD TO FATALITIES.