15th Jun 2004, 08:02
My Focus 01 Hatchback has finally given me a problem at 49000 miles: the key is not turning in the tumbler until I fiddle with it for five, ten, fifteen and more minutes.
I first blamed Ford because I took it in last week for an oil change; funny, but the problem started as soon as I got home. Well, truth is, I and many owners suffer from paranoia over repair shops and their ethics-rightly so on too many occasions...BUT...FAIR IS FAIR... sometimes we owners are indeed paranoid.
That is why sites like this are important: I found out that other owners do have problems with their ignition tumblers. So, after nearly 50000 mile of flawless performance and no problems, I finally have one.
My point is the Ford Focus in my opinion is a great car at the price. It performs well on all terrains (I do sales and put these miles on in less than three years). As for brakes, I often wonder when I see these maniacal tailgates who ALWAYS ACCELERATE and ALWAYS RIDE BUMPERS... HAVING TO USE THEIR BRAKES A hundred times more than average-how do we blame brakes for goofballs who won't buy a $50000 dollar sports car, but expect the same performance in a normal Focus?
19th Jul 2004, 14:18
I just traded a 2001 Focus SE in yesterday due to continued mechanical problems and unsolved recall issues. At 4k miles I took it in for 2 separate recalls. At 6k miles the fuel pump went out trying to get over the Sandia Mt.'s in N. Mex. while on road trip. At 10k miles the first recall part went bad, Ford refused to replace it even though it was a safety item in the suspension. The front end continued to clunk and rattle due to this. The brakes at 20K were bad enough to warranty replacement of pads and rotors, and again at 31K the rotors were shot. I live in Hawaii so there is not a lot of long trips here and I don't tailgate or drive erratically. As far as performance, it was pretty much a dog when attempting to pass or gain speed on hills or sometimes on even surfaces. No repeat, no Ford, period.
25th Mar 2005, 07:38
My 2000 Ford Focus zx3 currenty has 47,000 miles. I've taken it for 5 recalls probably in the first 2 years of owning it. My brakes and rotors needed replaced at 30,000 miles. The CD player works intermittently. Seems that if I listen to a CD for too long, when I insert the next CD, there is a grinding/clicking sound for about 30 seconds, and then my CD is spit back out. The area beneath the hatchback window is rusting. The molding along the top of the car is coming loose (actually has been since I bought the car new, but I never bothered with it.)
And now, the most serious issue is that my ignition is locking up, which seems to be a common problem. I spend 5 - 10 minutes sometimes getting my key to turn. I'm tempted to just leave my spare key in the ignition so that I don't have to fool with it. Maybe them, someone will steal it.
7th Jun 2006, 11:21
I have a 2000 SE, and I recently passed 100K miles. No real serious problems have cropped up until this disaster with the ignition. It was a minor annoyance until recently. Since, I have decided to leave the key in there. I have an alarm with an engine kill on it, so I am really not that worried. I park it in my driveway most of the time anyway, but I do leave they key in while it is parked on the street while I'm at work. I don't think its noticeable, nor do I think some one will try and steal my crappy little car. Anyone have a problem doing this? There is no way I am paying 400 bucks out of pocket to get this fixed.
2nd Sep 2006, 06:32
I have a 2001 Ford Focus 4Dr ZTS. Now I just may be crazy, but I just tried to turn on my car and all the appropriate lights came on as usual. The car wouldn't start though. Instead when I turned the key it just made a clicking noise. I don't know what it could be? I am baffled. Can someone help me?
11th Jan 2007, 17:42
It almost sounds like your starter is shot. I had the same problem with my Buick after it was broken into in the middle of winter and the battery killed.
11th Jan 2007, 18:17
My brother has a Ford Focus ZTS 2001 model that he just payed off. It has over 100,000 miles and he puts in over 100 miles a day. This car has no problems at all. He did regular oil/filter changes and has change one set of tires and brakes.
He still likes the way the car accelerates and corners. There is no match for its driving dynamics in its price range.
12th Jan 2007, 08:54
Your brother has a rare Focus indeed. If he had had my friend's (which had endless recalls and trips to the shop) he would have felt differently indeed.
20th Jan 2007, 07:24
I had a key get stuck in the ignition as well. I was not going to pay the $350 to get the car repaired from the dealer. I purchased the ignition tumbler set from for ($95) and paid my friend who is a mechanic $20 to fix the problem. It took him about 20 minutes to fix the it once he got the key cylinder out. I am happy now :)
This car has been a fantastic car for me. $100,000 miles and going strong. Just replced the plugs, wires and battery. I did have the fuel pump replaced by Ford (recall issue) but other than that, very low cost car to drive.
29th Aug 2007, 15:19
Other than a few manufacturer recalls, my 2001 Ford Focus had been running okay until recently. This past Saturday, my engine ceased while I was on a major highway near my home. I had it towed. Both the tow truck driver, the first repair shop, and the mechanic who has it now says that it's pretty much useless to try to repair it. Basically, I need a new engine. How is it that a car that is well-maintained and looking brand-new just dies? The mechanic says that two out of the four cylinders are not even compressing, and that it sounds like something broke loose inside the engine and bounced around damaging everything in its path. Have any of you had significant engine failure? I have about 117,000 miles on it, but I have gotten regular oil changes and taken care of it. What's the deal??? Help.
8th Sep 2007, 21:50
To the person who posted on Aug. 6, 2007 about a Ford Focus that won't start after driving on hot days:
My fiance and I are having exactly the same problem with our Focus. We bought our car around the same time, but it is an SE (the 4 door sedan).
Up until about a year ago everything was fine, but then all of the sudden we began having car problems. On a hot day, if you stop, the car won't start again. We've discovered that parking in a shady spot and letting the car sit for around 30 minutes is the best way to make sure it starts again. (We've had to wait up to two hours once or twice). The car has been to a Ford dealership several times for this problem, but the mechanics haven't been able to find anything wrong.
Have you had any luck getting your car fixed?
18th Oct 2007, 01:42
Perhaps this is a faulty soldering issue?
The starting issue sounds familiar to the Honda Accords. There were faulty solder joints in the main relay. I just fixed one of these for a guy in my shop.
In the heat the terminals expand and crack the solder joints in the main relay. The connection is lost until the terminals contract (cool down) and make contact again.
These links explain the issue:
http://techauto.tripod.com/mainrelaydefine.htm
I had similar issues with a 2001 Alero, but in my hazard switch. My turn signals stopped working for blocks at a time. It was into the dealer several times, but they could never fix it. I started to despise the car. I decided it was time to sell my new car due to the safety issue. When I finally got rid of the car, I received a recall notice of faulty solder connections in the hazard switch
Hope this helps. Good luck.
1st Jun 2004, 23:33
Exact same problem with my car. Ignition tumbler seized at 55 000 km (canadian car) and now again at 85 000. This on top of new brakes AND rotor at 65 000, and a fuel pump at 68 000. This car is a complete lemon. Ford will be bankrupt in a decade if their quality remains at this level.