Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUSPENSION | |||||
| 17591 | 03/01/2004 | 10007388 | Diagonal wear or cupping on the rear tires. *tt | 06/17/2004 | |
| 03202 | 01/01/2004 | 0461 | 10004885 | Front end creaking, crunching, grinding and/or rattling noise from the front suspension while driving at slow speeds and/or while turning. *tt *mj | 01/14/2004 |
| 03135 | 07/07/2003 | 10003730 | Rear tire inner edge wear. 2004 model included. *tt | 10/29/2003 | |
| 03153 | 08/04/2003 | 10003186 | Front end creaking, crunching, grinding and or rattling noise from the front suspension while driving at slow speeds and/or while turning. *tt | 10/10/2003 | |
| SUSPENSION - FRONT | |||||
| 16778 | 04/01/2003 | 10002662 | Front end creaking, crunching noise at low speeds while turning. *tt | 09/10/2003 | |
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - WHEEL BEARING | |||||
| 17920 | 07/01/2004 | 10009337 | Front wheel bearing replacement procedure. service tip. *tt | 09/24/2004 | |
| SUSPENSION - REAR | |||||
| 17298 | 10/01/2003 | 10004940 | Rear shock noise from the rear of the vehicle over bumps. *tt | 01/20/2004 | |
| 16861 | 05/01/2003 | 10002764 | Light rattling/chucking noise from the rear suspension while driving over small repetitive bumps (washboard) at speeds less than 30 mph. *tt | 09/16/2003 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| SUSPENSION | |||
| 03/08/2013 | 41000 | ||
| Right side coil spring broke, cut into tire. ford will not fix, they know the focus spring breaks tsb expired sept 2012 ( i called ford!); don't drive these cars. replace your springs first. | |||
| 07/01/2012 | 90000 | ||
| I was driving my 2003 ford focus on the road when this incident happened. suddenly i heard a crash sound in the right front side of my vehicle. i felt there was a force on the right front side tire. then i noticed black smokes behind my car and then i stopped. i called aaa to have roadside assistant. the aaa guy came and checked my car and told me the coil spring was broken and the broken part damaged my tire too. i found there was a recall for the coil spring on 2000-2003 focus then i called a local ford dealer to get it fixed. however, the local ford dealer told me my focus was not eligible for the recall. clearly this is the fault of ford. the aaa guy told me if this happened on the freeway, i would probably be killed. i urged the nhtsa to contact ford about this issue before this actually killed lots of people. i also urged ford to place a recall to check all the coil spring on all cars they make to make sure this part has no problems. | |||
| 01/01/2005 | 30000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2003 ford focus. the vehicle was parked when the contact noticed the rear drivers side tire was severely worn. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer as well as an independent repair shop where the suspension was realigned approximately 4 times. the contact also stated the vehicle went through a new set of tires every 20,000 miles. the failure mileage was 30,000 and the current mileage was 241,000. the vin was unavailable. sm. | |||
| 12/05/2008 | 1 | ||
| Back tire sits in and keeps going through tires and had the bearing replaced and drum on both sides and shocks and it still does it and the rear end jumps to the side its bad. *tr | |||
| 05/15/2006 | 17709 | 1 | 07/01/2003 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 ford focus. while driving 30 mph, the contact heard several squeaking noises coming from the front of the vehicle. the dealer inspected the front suspension and found the spring rubbing on the strut cover. the failure affected the front shocks on both sides of the vehicle. the dealer stated that the strut needs to be replaced, but it is not under warranty. the contact had it replaced and paid $550.62. the current and failure mileages were 17,709. | |||
| 02/27/2006 | 31500 | 2 | 12/04/2002 |
| Dt*: the contact stated there was premature wear on the rear tires. the tires have been replaced twice, and need replacing a third time. the brand of tire has been changed. the manufacturer determined the tires should be rotated every other oil change, but the tires had never been rotated. updated 3/17/2006 - the first set of tires went bald at 22568 miles. the second set went bald at 31500. the dealer aligned the rear to specs and aligned the front end and straightened the steering wheel. *nm | |||
| 06/01/2005 | 5 | 05/01/2003 | |
| Dt: 2003 ford focus. when the vehicle was first purchased front window came out. the dealership fixed it. then, the trunk started popping open, the vehicle was fixed at the dealership where she purchased it. the vehicle was taken to another dealership, because she moved. they stated the vehicle needsednew brake pads. te consumer told the dealership the vehicle made a noise on the passenger side by the front tire. the dealership did nothing about it. the vehicle was then taken to a tire company, they found the front rotors wore out, and this was a manufacturering problem. the vehicle was taken back to the dealership and they stated the vehicle needed new rotors and brake pads. also a piece was coming off the vehicle between the two doors on the driver side between the windows. this vehicle just went over 15,000 miles when she was leaving the dealership. in addition, there iwas something wrong with the steering wheel, it was too hard to pull back, and it swerved in the other lane. the trunk was still coming open.*ak | |||
| 02/09/2005 | 22869 | 3 | 12/05/2003 |
| The vehicle hit a pot hole with the passenger side tire , causing the air bags to deploy on its own. the owner informed the manufacturer that the vehicle was involved in a side impact accident a year prior to this incident, and the air bags did not deploy. *ak another issue was that the left rear rotor had broken while the vehicle was in motion and the rear sensor assembly/abs was replaced. the root of this problem stemmed from the left rear wheel bearing which had fallen apart and damaged the rotor and the wheel sensor. the left rear knuckle was replaced along with the left rear rotor. *sc *jb | |||
| 12/01/2004 | 1 | ||
| Tires wear confined to rear wheels. *bf the consumer believed the vehicle has an alignment problem which originated from the factory. *jb | |||
| 02/01/2003 | 3 | 05/17/2002 | |
| Vehicle has been taken to have repairs done three times and vibration problems has not been resolved.*mr the consumer expects ford to repurchase the vehicle under the provisions of the applicable lemon law in the state of maryland, because of consistent problems with the vehicle. *cb the consumer stated the vehicle had a defective tie rod bushing, bearing assembly, axle shaft and joint, front end alignments and numerous wheel and tire adjustments *jb | |||
| 06/17/2004 | 13000 | 4 | |
| At about 13,000 miles my 2003 ford focus began to vibrate in the front (steering wheel and gear shift). i took it to my local dealership and they told me that i had a tire out of balance. i then took my car to my local tire center and had the tires balanced. i then went on vacation in my car. the car continued to vibrate through the trip. when i returned i took my car to a second dealership. i was then told that my goodyear integrity tires have premature wear causing the vibration. my tires also have scalloping, but the dealership stated that the aligment was within ford specifications. i now have a car less than a year old and just over 16,000 miles in need of new tires. i am concerned about the rapid wear of the tires and that this may cause accidents with other drivers of the 2003 ford focus. my dealership told me that this was a common problem with the 2003 ford focus because the goodyear tires had a very soft rubber compound. i have been told that this is not a manufacturers defect, but premature wear and that i am responsible for replacing the tires at my expense. i am now planning on going to my local tire dealer and replacing the tires. *ak | |||
| 10/31/2003 | 3000 | 2 | 10/17/2003 |
| Squealing brakes, grabbing brakes, grinding noises from brakes, premature wear in front rotors, knocking noise from rear suspension, loud sqeaking noises from all suspension. brought car into 3 different service departments a total of 10 times for all and no solution. service didn't care enough and very rude.*ak | |||
| 10/15/2003 | 14000 | ||
| Metal peice on the back of the car like tie rod ends needs to be replaced it is broke and cause the car to go out of alignment and ruin all tires. have to replace the metal piece with one that is adjustable. have take the car to three different places to get the job done. we live in wyoming so that means that we have to travel a ways to get to these places. sheidan and gillette. thunder basin ford is currently ordering the part so that we can get the rear alligned properly. they stated that the peice was probably bent from the manufacture. | |||
| 01/26/2004 | 3000 | 1 | 09/19/2003 |
| While driving the vehicle suddenly began to jerk. as a resulted the consumer lost control of the van and hit a tree. the van was totaled. *nm *sc | |||
| 08/01/2003 | 1 | ||
| While traveling on the highway and without prior warning engine shakes and vibrates. *ak | |||
| 10/01/2002 | |||
| The vehicle vibrates while traveling speed 40 to 50mph. due to bad suspension rear of vehicle wobbles. please provide additional information dealer is aware of the problem ts | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT | |||
| 12/06/2010 | 150100 | ||
| I was turning and i heard a very loud snap! my car then began to pop extremely loud everytime i turned. it turned out to be a snapped front coil spring. this is very dangerous because the spring could very easily have ripped into the tire causing a blow out which leads to accidents in many occassions!! the more i talk about it, the more people who say they have had the same thing happed on their focus! | |||
| 02/23/2010 | 21500 | 1 | |
| The front passenger suspension spring snapped causing a blow out of the tire on my 03 ford focus, vehicle was taken to dealership who advised that the recall for this problem on this vehicle was no longer in effect as the vehicle was manufactured some 3 months after the close out of the re-call. *tr | |||
| 07/11/2008 | 79595 | 1 | |
| Failure of front right-side oem coil spring due to excessive corrosion under rubber sleeve on coil spring. coil spring was replaced. *tr | |||
| 06/30/2008 | 79370 | 1 | |
| Driving under normal conditions at 45 mph i heard a pop followed by a grinding noise from the front passenger side wheel. i immediately pulled over to find my car leaning noticeably to the front passenger side. car was towed to ford dealership and i was told that both front coil springs as well as the front right tire needed replaced due to coil spring corrosion and resulting failure of the front right coil spring. *tr | |||
| 10/15/2007 | 1 | 10/04/2007 | |
| I recently took my 2003 ford focus in for suspension noise in the front. the shop took a look at it and said he had seen a lot of focus' and escorts that have the spring on the strut break. he said there is no warning signs. the noise he was hearing was coming from the top of the strut which he said didn't appear to be a hazard but suggest i replace both front struts just in case. he said a lot of the time people won't know that their spring is broken because it will stay intact in the bottom and top strut housing. he said on other occasions the spring will come out of the housings and possibly puncture the tire. he said aftermarket brands have a stronger steel they use in their springs and recommended using the aftermarket brand instead of ford genuine parts. that is ok with me because the aftermarket brand is cheaper. *tr | |||
| 11/20/2003 | 12000 | 2 | 08/20/2003 |
| There is serious problems w/ the front end of this vehicle. it was purchased approx. 17 months ago. since then, i have had 3 major brake jobs. twice, the pads were replaced and once both the pads and the rotors have had to be replaced. the vehicle also resonates at high speeds. everything shakes including the sterring wheel and the states. it appears my two front tires are out of round. ford originally said it was defect in the tire, which i replaced, however the new tire is out of round as well. an independent garage says that there is a problem with the front struts. ford has numerous complaints from me reguarding both the brakes and the suspension system. also the vehicle is very loud and it appears to be air coming in when. ford initially resealed the windshield, however the problem has persisted.*ak | |||
| 03/13/2003 | 996 | 12 | |
| Front end shimmies and pulls to the left at speed of 70 mph and faster. if vehicle isn't serviced immediately the problem will progress and occur at lower speeds. dealership balanced and rotated the tires several times, and replaced all 4 tires twice. this only provides a temporary solution because the problem recurs. *ak | |||
| 600 | |||
| While driving at 75 mph abruptly vehicle started swerving from side to side. this caused loss of control, vehicle spun around, and impacted a guard rail. as a result, driver sustained back and head injuries.*ak | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - CONTROL ARM - LOWER ARM | |||
| 04/25/2004 | 10000 | 1 | 10/23/2003 |
| 1) prior to incident, car had been returned to dealer with clunking noise complaint, sounding like from left front. dealer referenced tsb 03-20-02, replaced sway bar end links (twice), tightened loose strut mount body bolts. owner still heard popping noise. 2) day of failure, driver had just exited curve to left and driving in straight section. car lurched to left, across centerline. driver (over)corrected, veering off road to right, striking tree with left rear. driver side front wheel askew due to broken lower control arm and broken sway bar link, which resulted in disconnected cv shaft. damage patterns indicate failure preceeded off-road excursion. 3) car probable total loss. *la | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - SPRINGS - COIL SPRINGS | |||
| 12/25/2007 | 76000 | 1 | |
| I had a front right suspension spring break while the car sat in my driveway overnight. this could have killed me if it happened on the road as a jagged point was engaged with the tread of the tire. dealer admits this to be a common problem with the focus and the taurus, but would not cover the part or labor. *tr | |||
| 06/25/2007 | 44169 | 3 | 06/30/2003 |
| Rear wheel bearing failure on ford focus 2003. this part which is usually good for 75,000 to 100,000 miles failed due to corrosion on both rear wheels. the axle was almost cut off without warning. a known problem on previous model years 2000, 2001 & 2002. after this incident i was informed by my niece and brother-in-law that there ford focus models of the same year had also failed in exactly the same way. ford claims that they have no knowledge of this. this is a very serious situation. while the service department inspected the vehicle they also found a broken front spring; from corrosion; which ford acknowledges and is paying for the replacement of the springs; due to a previous recall. this is a very expensive repair at $323.00 for the axle and additional costs for alignment etc. after the parts are replaced. *tr | |||
| SUSPENSION - FRONT - WHEEL BEARING | |||
| 03/16/2004 | 10000 | 3 | |
| While driving at 60 mph the consumer heard a loud grinding sound coming from beneath the vehicle. the dealer examined the vehicle and replaced the wheel bracket and bearing on the right front side of the vehicle. now the problem is occurring again on the exact same side of the vehicle. also when the vehicle is at a stop sign the engine will rev up severely, even when the consumer's foot is on the brakes. *nm | |||
| SUSPENSION - REAR | |||
| 12/06/2010 | 155000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2003 ford focus. while driving on wet road conditions approximately 30 mph, the rear end of the vehicle began to skid uncontrollably. the contact was able to gain control and continued to drive. the failure occurred whenever encountering snow and wet road surfaces. the vehicle was taken to the dealer where they performed a four wheel alignment and tire balancing. also, the rear suspension arm was replaced. the failure persisted after the repairs. the vehicle was taken back to the dealer and the technician informed that the vehicle performance was a manufacturer design. the vehicle had not been repaired. the failure mileage was approximately 155,000. js | |||
| 04/13/2009 | 180000 | 1 | 02/01/2009 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 ford focus. the contact stated that the rear tires were wearing badly and the top of the rubber was leaning into the vehicle. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and they stated that he needed to purchase a suspension bar to place in the back of the vehicle, which changes one degree. the contact will call the manufacturer to inquire about assistance towards the repair cost. the failure mileage was 180,000. updated 5/7/09 *cn updated 05/12/09.*jb | |||
| 06/25/2007 | 44169 | 3 | 06/30/2003 |
| Rear wheel bearing failure on ford focus 2003. this part which is usually good for 75,000 to 100,000 miles failed due to corrosion on both rear wheels. the axle was almost cut off without warning. a known problem on previous model years 2000, 2001 & 2002. after this incident i was informed by my niece and brother-in-law that there ford focus models of the same year had also failed in exactly the same way. ford claims that they have no knowledge of this. this is a very serious situation. while the service department inspected the vehicle they also found a broken front spring; from corrosion; which ford acknowledges and is paying for the replacement of the springs; due to a previous recall. this is a very expensive repair at $323.00 for the axle and additional costs for alignment etc. after the parts are replaced. *tr | |||
| 04/26/2007 | 36000 | 1 | 04/05/2004 |
| My 2003 ford focus se started to shake, pull hard to the right starting around 50 mph, takes bumps hard and back-end sways. it only has 36,000 miles on it. dealer says the left rear knuckle assembly and wheel bearing need to be replaced, that it was bent and i must've hit something with it. this is just not true. 2000 focus had a similar problem. i think a bolt came loose, weakening the assembly and allowing it to bend through normal use. *tr | |||
| 03/23/2006 | 63645 | 1 | 10/19/2005 |
| Dt*: the contact stated after driving for 30 to 45 minutes the rear passenger side hub is hot to the touch. the rear brakes are making a squealing noise. the vehicle was taken to an independent repair shop where both rear brakes and wheel bearings were replaced. however this did not correct the problem. the dealer and manufacturer have been alerted. | |||
| 10/11/2005 | 55000 | 7 | 07/19/2003 |
| Dt: the contact states she owns a 2003 ford focus. the rear tires kept going bald on the outside of the tire only. the vehicle is a front wheel drive. this happened four times. vehicle has 61,000 miles on it. the dealer had to replace the back frame two kits, one on each side due to an engineering notice put out on the tires. this did not fix the problem. the contact had to have the springs, struts, and shocks replaced recently with approximately 55,000 miles on the car, and the problem recurred. car bounced, and when she hit a bump the car picked up, and the rear end moved to the right or to the left. she had to have the car realigned at least six or seven times. sometimes the contact would have to go back the very next day to have it aligned again, and the dealer would not charge them for the service.. the front brake pad and the front rotors on the driver's side had to be replaced at 30,000 miles. she talked to the manufacturer ,and they told her she would have to continue to shell out money because there were no recalls on the vehicle regarding the tires, and the car was out of warranty. the warranty doid not cover the tires because it was blamed on uneven wear or/and the alignment. *ak | |||
| 10/05/2005 | 22400 | 1 | 08/15/2003 |
| Rear tire cupping and inner edge wear from misalignment of wheels. *jb | |||
| 11/01/2004 | 1 | ||
| The inside of the rear tire began to wear with less than 20000 miles. *nm when the consumer drove 60 mph on the freeway the rear end fish tailed. *tc the consumer was told the problem was due to the european suspension. *jb | |||
| SUSPENSION - REAR - AXLE - NON-POWERED AXLE ASSEMBLY | |||
| 12/22/2007 | 4 | 04/12/2003 | |
| I bought the vehicle new, it has 58,000 miles since purchased the vehicle i changed the tires 4 times. it makes a noise in the back axle, it broke twice already. i took it to the dealer alot of times they said that there was nothing wrong. the noise is still there. the noise is loud. *tr | |||
| 10/03/2004 | 21565 | 2 | 09/24/2004 |
| Ford focus 2003 loud crackling noise was heard when driving... next car dropped and bared to the right..off road tried to get vehicle under control, as a result the car veered to the left towards on coming traffic..vehicle and car, in oncoming traffic collided.. sending vehicle back to the right and into a guard rail..... complaint: the axle broke landing car on fender, while driving, newly purchased car on september 24, accident occurred on october 3, 2004.. attorney contacted said they need proof of the axle braking before accident... the damage to the car clearly indicates what happened...the front passenger tire that came off still has the axle attached to it with little damage to the tire it was picked up off the side of the road after accident...i received a ticket for failure to maintain lane..which really was no fault of my own.. | |||