2011 Ford Focus Sport, Transmission Shudders :(

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So last Saturday I picked up an LW Ford Focus Sport Hatch with a Powershift Transmission, build date Dec 2011. Anyhow at low speeds (e.g. around town) I get frequent shudders and it feels like the cars constantly searching for gears. At high speeds its fine. BUT going up hills it feels as though it doesn't stop shuddering, going down hills it's no constant but near enough. It's ruining the drive of the car. I realise the transmission and clutch has to be run in, but my Focus has 17,000kms on it. Surely it is run in by now. It is still covered under warranty but from what I've read will Ford do anything to fix it. it seems to me that in the US they've solved it with a reflash of the Powertrain Control Module. Can this or will this be done here?

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Originally Posted by Golfer

Had our diesel powershift for 12 months. Done 15,000km. No problems at all. Did have the software upgraded and it made a great gearbox even better. The changes in both normal and sport mode are very smooth. The sport mode is great on hilly and windy roads with quite agressive up and down shifting. The powershift is much, much better than conventional automatics.

I may have found a clue in the cars service history, it had the 3 month inspection, missed the 7,500km service and the 15,000km service was done at Ultratune. Could the car have missed a software update or something?

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I forgot to mention it is a petrol engine. I still thought the quote was relevant.

[martinijosh]

I'm afraid to say that this is normal for Ford's dual clutch gearboxes.

Our wt fiesta does it too from brand new. Generally only if you are very light on the throttle, though.

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Its just tonight on the drive home it was doing it violently on a slight lope and on and off the whole time around town. We didn't notice it on our drive home from Melbourne because we were on a freeway for 4 hours.

[wombat66]

Our cars only do it occasionally at slow speeds but otherwise drive really well. Maybe your car still needs a firmware update.

[paul-r-d]

I find if I hit the accelerator really quick from the brake it only very lightly shakes. Other than that once working through the gears they are smooth and don't feel anything. Mines a Fiesta though.

[aaaaplay]

Well thats what I think has happened, the first inspection was in april of 2012 then it is missed a service and had a service at ultratune where I doubt it would get software updates.

[jonohoang]

Originally Posted by aaaaplay

Well thats what I think has happened, the first inspection was in april of 2012 then it is missed a service and had a service at ultratune where I doubt it would get software updates.

Just take it to your local dealership if you are concerned.
It takes them 2 mins to hook it up and check if you have the latest software for the transmission.
We had the exact same concerns as you when we bought our titanium petrol powershift. Unfortunately this is how the transmission is, and as others have said it usually happens if you are light on the throttle in the first 2 forward gears.

[Samurai_Chris]

I have the same year Sport. It is essentially a manual transmission without the clutch and shifting.. So it is normal.. Not normal to be violent like you have said, but yes, it does have to think at lower speeds... For example, if I am on a hill and don't give it enough, it almost stalls.. But as a manual driver would do, it quickly puts the car into gear and you go.. Its quirky for an auto, but I love it..

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by aaaaplay

I may have found a clue in the cars service history, it had the 3 month inspection, missed the 7,500km service and the 15,000km service was done at Ultratune. Could the car have missed a software update or something?

The 7.5km service?? I don't think there is one. If you did this it would be an oil change and possibly a filter and that's it.

If you want an update, take it into Ford for the next service and mention that the box is acting up. They should do updates as part of a service if they know of one available, but you saying that the gearbox is erratic will make sure they see if the software is updated.

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So I am currently having my Focus serviced. The dealer said he is currently downloading and then installing a new software update, the dealer hasn't performed on any Focus before. I'll report back and tell you the results

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Originally Posted by Yellow_Festiva

The 7.5km service?? I don't think there is one. If you did this it would be an oil change and possibly a filter and that's it.

If you want an update, take it into Ford for the next service and mention that the box is acting up. They should do updates as part of a service if they know of one available, but you saying that the gearbox is erratic will make sure they see if the software is updated.

There is however it is a type C so it is optional.

[vztrt]

There were issues with the DSC when they were first launched it. There was also a software update that apparently fixed it.

Edit:

http://fordforums.com.au/showthread.php?t=11347138

That's the thread and it seems to be drivability issues at low speed.

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So apprently it had 2/3 of a software update and while at the dealer it had the final 3rd installed. The upgrade has improved the shuddering at medium speeds and a little bit at low speeds. Sport seems to be worse though Drive has less shuddering. Overall improved but I expected better.

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I found this which anyone with issues might find interesting. It is about the update:
http://www.fordservicecontent.com/pu...sb13-04-05.pdf

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Is it normal to have a slight 'jump' while idling?

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So I've discovered two oil leaks since bringing it in. Maybe it is related going to book it in for Monday.

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Ford looked at the oil leak and turned out to be an oil leak on the rear crankshaft seal, drop the gear box, clutch and starter motor. Then replace the clutch (if contaminated with oil) , starter motor (is contaminate) and crankshaft seal (causing all the problems and gearbox slippage). Thank god I bought a used car with new car warranty therefor it is free.

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I got terrible news today, after being told it would be done under warranty and having my car pulled to bits, the dealer doesn't want to honor my warranty. They say this is due to the seal being not fitted correctly by another ford dealer during a repair! As I see it Ford is a company as a whole and should be responsible for all repairs no matter what ford dealer carried them out! Currently my car is sitting at the dealer without a gearbox. to me it is unacceptable and if it isnt fixed trust me I'll make it a PR S%!TSTORM!

[WILDB]

If it is due to poor workmanship on behalf of another dealer they will need to charge the other dealer for the rework.

Ford Motor Company will not pay for poor workmanship.

I would be asking for proof that this has been replaced previously - i.e. information from Servis2 to suggest that this had been fixed previously under warranty by another dealer etc. If they cannot produce reasonable evidence I would be questioning the credibility of their story.

[SpoolMan]

Originally Posted by aaaaplay

I got terrible news today, after being told it would be done under warranty and having my car pulled to bits, the dealer doesn't want to honor my warranty. They say this is due to the seal being not fitted correctly by another ford dealer during a repair! As I see it Ford is a company as a whole and should be responsible for all repairs no matter what ford dealer carried them out! Currently my car is sitting at the dealer without a gearbox. to me it is unacceptable and if it isnt fixed trust me I'll make it a PR S%!TSTORM!

Should be covered if it was done by an authorised Ford dealer, contact : Ford Customer Relationship Centre Phone: 13 FORD (13 3673) I hope you find some joy with them.

[Yellow_Festiva]

Originally Posted by aaaaplay

I got terrible news today, after being told it would be done under warranty and having my car pulled to bits, the dealer doesn't want to honor my warranty. They say this is due to the seal being not fitted correctly by another ford dealer during a repair! As I see it Ford is a company as a whole and should be responsible for all repairs no matter what ford dealer carried them out! Currently my car is sitting at the dealer without a gearbox. to me it is unacceptable and if it isnt fixed trust me I'll make it a PR S%!TSTORM!

This sort of response from the dealer really makes my blood boil....

Lets make some assumptions. Your car was bought with remaining factory warranty, your car has had minimal use, if your car was found with a defect it would have been repaired by a Ford service centre.

If they have records to show that part was worked on by another dealer why are YOU the one that has to make the calls, sort out who stuffed up etc etc etc.

I have been there myself, believe me. My car is right now in getting work done. That only happened after A LOT of calls.

Why must threads like this have posts like the above??? Why must you follow up and investigate these issues? If you are good with words, and persistent the job will get done, but like me, time after time, I found myself banging my head against a brick wall with the stupidity and ridiculousness of the whole situation.

You must first ascertain exactly who did the previous work and why. If it was done all above board, then don't pay a red cent, and don't let them put the car back together and send you on your merry way to chase up the other dealer. You have a Ford warranty, not a dealer warranty, and as such your car can be repaired at any centre.

Ford really needs to get on top of this sort of behaviour. A customer should never be told that they will not fix a car due to another Ford service centre stuff up. Let the managers / CRC sort out who pays what behind the scenes and just do the right thing by the customer to stop these sorts of threads / posts from showing up.

Was your car bought privately? Was it bought from a car lot or from a Ford dealer??

Privately, you may have an issue with your Factory warranty. It may have gone past a service date or they may find some other 'out' to not honour the warranty. ( I say this because when I was buying my Focus I also found one private that was 4K below the dealer one. When I called a dealer for more info I was lucky to have a chap on the phone who looked up the plate and advised me that that particular car certainly had NO factory warranty) That car was near new and had minimal km.

Car yard?? You would then have the 3 month / 5000km stat warranty.

Ford lot? Well they will fix it then. I would very much doubt they would condone selling a car that wasn't covered with factory warranty.

Keep us informed of what eventuates....

[iammap]

One ford dealer blaming another astounds me. In comparison, my daughter had her car drop all its oil about two weeks after a service by one Kmart autotune and had to get it towed to a garage. It got towed to another Kmart autotune for them to look at. Expecting a big bill she was pleasantly surprised to be told that they had fixed it for free. No reason given as to why, but I guess it was related to the earlier service. The two Kmart centres must have sorted it out between them without needing to involve my daughter. This is what should be happening between the ford dealers.

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Ok so I got it back last Monday after the local dealership (Blacklocks) had been in long talks with Ford Australia about who was responsible for the cost of repair. Turns out it was Bayford Coburg who hadn't carried out the repair properly so now their Ford Australia's problem. Anyhow they ended up replacing the sump tank, crankshaft seal (source of all issues), clutch and starter motor. We were told to expect a bit of roughness due to the new clutch and we have but it is soooooo much better then before, we can actually enjoy driving the car now. I'm glad it's all done with, crossing my fingers there won't be any more problems.

[Nolz]

Good news mate. I hope that's the end of all the problems and you'll now have a trouble free run!

You bought it second hand yeah? I wonder if the previous owner got jack of the issues and traded it in. The same troubles that you've just had sorted.

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They had looked up previous repairs with that being the replacement of the Crankshaft Seal due to the previous owner complaining of the exact same issue shudders.

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NEW PROBLEM!!!!! So I was driving today and 2,4,6th and Reverse gears failed turning into virtually neutral gears. Managed to limp it to the dealer using sport mode to select the odd gears. They've told me it is the Electronic Rail Selector that has failed. Due to having brought it in later in the day the part won't be ordered till Monday and I won't get the car back till Tuesday!!! At least tomorrow morning I'll be supplied with a courtesy car. This car seems to me to be a bit of a lemon

[Nolz]

That's terrible! I really do hope its a quick and simple fix for you :(

[mrmavx]

well i just got my focus titanium petrol back today after a week off the road and it had both clutch packs replaced. all very strange as there was no paperwork and when i asked about what was the problem that caused my cars shudders (in 2 4 6 below 2200 rpm, felt like someone had pulled a plug lead off) i was told we dont know exactly as we send the gearbox off to bayfords to do the work and they sort it out with ford not us. i thought it was strange that both sets of clutches required replacing yet there was apparently no oil leak on to them which according to a lot of reports is what causes constant shuddering in gear. the only other information i could get out of them is that they have seen "quite a few" boxes with clutch issues, doesnt exactly fill you with confidence that it will not happen again which is a worry as this car spends 90% of its life cruising at 110 kph on the highway and not going up and down thru the gears like a city car would

ps hope this is your last issue aaaaplay