NHTSA Complaint #11590327 — 2018 FORD FOCUS

The contact owns a 2018 Ford Focus. The contact stated that after purchasing the vehicle and attempting to reverse out of the dealer, the vehicle hesitated before reversing, however, the contact continued to drive the vehicle to the residence. The contact stated that approximately 2 weeks after purchasing the vehicle while attempting to reverse out of a parking space, the vehicle failed to respond. The contact was assisted by people nearby in pushing the vehicle out of the parking space. The contact was able to drive the vehicle; however, the failure to reverse persisted. The contact stated that while approximately 55 MPH was back to the residence, the vehicle failed to properly accelerate and stalled. The contact stated that the message “Transmission Overheating - Switch Off Engine for 5 Minutes” was displayed. The contact was able to coast to the side of the roadway and had the vehicle towed. The contact related to the failure of NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train) however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the clutch had failed and needed to be replaced. The mechanic had not repaired the vehicle. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to the dealer who confirmed that the clutch had failed and that the transmission needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The dealer confirmed that the VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 18V845000 (Power Train). The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The manufacturer referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to file a safety complaint. The failure mileage was 105,000.