dmpaul

Along with my Fiesta, I have a 2016 C-Max. Great car, though not the prettiest. It was cheap to buy because of no demand. I consistently get mid 40s except in wintertime when I need the heater. Never understood why some people had such a hard time getting decent mileage, but mileage depends a lot on how you drive it. I suspect every hybrid is the same. Lots of interstate high speed driving at 70+ mph will bring average MPG down, but it still does mid 30's even then. Replacement down the road will likely be an Escape hybrid I'm thinking.

As fordtech1 says, the new TCM makes a world of difference. I had a 2011 Fiesta, that had a clutch replaced at about 115k. The TCM was replaced under warranty a few months later under warranty, and it made a world of difference. Shifts seemed faster and more positive, and any other issues I had, such as slow speed driving in a parking lot, went away. It appears Ford has sorted out most of the issues with this transmission, but they didn't handle this well. Should have been more aggressive on helping customers early on, as they are paying for it now.

Back to original topic. Lawsuit claims Ford did nothing. In reality, Ford did something. They extended warranties and redesigned weak points of transmission. Clearly it was not handled perfectly and poor dealership experience is probably a contributing factor. Nevertheless I think Ford can show evidence they did something. As far as blaming customers, Ford published a video at one time explaining the DCT idiosyncracies. Is that blaming customers or educating them? The DCT just isn't as smooth as a tranny with a torque converter. Is VW or Hyundai still using DCT? I know Acura used them briefly then quit due to complaints. The VW used a wet clutch and wasn't as problematic as the dry clutch. It will be interesting to see where the lawsuit goes. Ford is not alone with their DCT issues: https://www.hyundai-forums.com/2016-tucson-ix35-models/454074-dangerous-horrible-dct.html

I've had two Fiestas with the DCT, a 2011 that was totalled and now a 2017. On the 2011 the clutch pack was replaced under warranty at 95k. At about 110k miles I paid to replace the clutch pack again as well as replace a failed seal, only to have the TCM fail a few months later. The TCM was replaced under warranty. After the TCM replacement the car drove noticeably better, which got me thinking it may have contributed to clutch failure. It always took two or three trips to get things right on the clutch, and I can't believe they didn't replace the seal when the clutch was replaced the first time. There were basically three issues with the DCT: a seal, a weak clutch/clutch plate , and the TCM. It seems to me the biggest problem was Ford would only authorize one warranty repair. If the car was in for one of those issues, they should repair all known issues. Don't replace the clutch pack without replacing the seal. Or replace entire tranny with rebuilt one. I asked the service manager about that and he said Ford wouldn't authorize it. It also seemed mechanics didn't know how to work on this transmission, or I wouldn't have had to make multiple trips. So far the 2017 has been great. It seems the later versions of the DCT have all the issues resolved and repair rates are pretty low. However, the reputation is there and will be hard to shake.

Regarding the Focus Active, I thought that was the plan. Import from China until North America production can come on line. I know that trade issues caused that plan to be scrapped, but it seems like it was given up very quickly. I still think Ford needs an affordable sedan or (preferably) hatchback. Not everyone wants to spend money on an all wheel drive CUV.

I agree, and the Fiesta is a fun car to drive, especially the ST. But Ford has not handled the Powershift issues in the best manner. There are three major problems with the original Powershift: the transmission seal, the clutch material, and the TCM. All three have been redesigned or updated. I had all three replaced on mine on three different occasions. Once my 2011 Fiesta was in for a new clutch, why not replace the seal and the TCM right then. The TCM failure left me stranded and I had to tow the car to dealer. That could have been avoided. I know it costs more money initially, but all three were eventually replaced, so I don't see any savings for Ford. And all people see are multiple transmission repairs. And these are not one day repairs, so the car is lost for week. I give credit to Ford for developing new technologies. I can understand flaws in the original design, but acknowledging and fixing problems buys a lot of good will. Speaking of DCT, I notice Honda is now putting them in several of their motorcycles. I don't know if it's wet or dry.

Ford isn't the only one using dry clutch. Hyundai also uses dry clutch DCT and has received lots of complaints, primarily the car failing to move due to excessive heat generated, typically in slow moving traffic. Creeping in slow traffic is not a good thing to do with a dry clutch. I personally am on my second Fiesta. I gave the old one to my son. The first one had the clutch replaced at about 96k, the seal at 116k and the TCM at 126k, both paid for by Ford, but otherwise the car has been great. My biggest beef is that they just didn't replace everything after first issue. It really amplifies the problem. I got a killer deal on the second Fiesta but I was concerned about reliability, so before I bought the second one I did some research. After the mid-cycle refresh the transmission repair rate appears to have dropped to where it is comparable with conventional automatics. The transmission in my new Fiesta is very good and never seems to get confused at low speeds like my first one occasionally did (interestingly, the new TCM in my old Fiesta also improved shifting). Bottom line, I think Ford has improved the transmission and it's very good now, but the bad reputation will be hard to shake.

I have two Fiestas with powershift transmission, a 2011 and a 2017. I had the transmission seal replaced and new clutch pack in the 2011 last December at 116k miles. I bought the 2017 in February, mainly because I got a great deal. Before buying and after learning the 100,000 mile extended warranty no longer applied, I did some research. It is true that after the mid-cycle refresh the warranty return rates were much better, so I would at least avoid pre refresh models. This is the case for the Fiesta, I assume the same would hold true for Focus. I don't know the extent of the changes after the refresh, but the new Fiesta tranny seems much improved. It is quieter, and has never gotten confused, especially during low speed driving maneuvers (I often kept the old one in L while in parking lots or stop and go traffic). That said, a DCT does have a different feel to it. I personally like it, especially after driving some rubber band CVT equipped cars. Others may disagree. Also, I agree with fuzzymoomoo, check the service records. My worst experience with this transmission is the fact the service department has a hard time repairing these. It took two visits to and several weeks to get my 2011 right, and they charged me for a motor mount that probably was not faulty. My 2 cents for what it's worth.

Something that hasn't been mentioned yet. The integrated trailer brake control.