NHTSA Complaint #11448882 — 2014 FORD FOCUS

The contact's wife owns a 2014 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the vehicle had been shuddering, hesitating, and lunging while driving. The vehicle was taken to several unknown dealers and the dealers informed the contact that it was a known failure and that the TCM was reprogramed; however, the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the transmission clutch was replaced in 2019; however, the failure reoccurred while driving. The contact stated that while his wife was driving approximately 60 MPH, the vehicle inadvertently stalled. The check engine warning light and the warning message "Service transmission immediately" illuminated. The contact's wife was able to restart the vehicle after several minutes and veered to the side of the road. The vehicle was towed to a second dealer - Pacifico Ford (6701 Essington Ave, Philadelphia, PA 19153) who diagnosed that the transmission control module had failed and needed to be replaced. The dealer repaired the vehicle under an unknown extended warranty; however, the failure reoccurred while driving. The vehicle was then taken to Lawrenceville Ford Service (2920 Brunswick Pike, Lawrence Township, NJ 08648) who diagnosed that the transmission clutch needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and informed the contact that they could not cover the repair because the transmission clutch was not covered by the extended warranty. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 31,000.