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My son lease-purchased the above vehicle new on July 10th 2014. Over the next 3 years the car was perfectly maintained and serviced according to the Ford service book recommendations.
On June 28th 2017, 13 days prior to the warranty expiration date of July 11th, the car broke down in Swindon and it was transported to our home in Hindhead by the AA. The following day, when I called Ford in Guidlford to seek advice on what to do next, I was informed that this problem would “not be covered under warranty” and I could get it towed to any local garage. It was taken to Liss Garage Services, who have been servicing and repairing our family’s vehicles for many years.
Stewart Roberts, the proprietor, suspected a problem with either the ECU or a fuel injector, but told me that the engine was so badly damaged that it would need replacing, which he did at a cost of over £3,000. On testing the car following this, the replacement engine failed and a third engine was installed. Alex eventually recovered his car on October 24th 2017.
The car’s engine started misfiring again in November, and Stewart suggested taking it to Ford in Guildford for a full diagnostic test. The car was taken in to them on November 23rd 2017 (mileage on the clock at that time was 31,440). On December 7th Ford finally informed us that they were unable to diagnose the problem without it costing a further £627.98 (£400 to flush the cooling system of oil residue – which Stewart had already done whilst replacing the engine(s)) and £227.98 for performing diagnostics for an injector or PCM problem). We declined to pay these costs, collected the car from Ford on December 18th 2017 and were charged £42.49 – a ‘token gesture’ of a 50% discount for a “Vehicle Health Check”.
At the beginning of February 2018, the car again showed signs of rough running and was taken to Liss Garage Services. Stewart checked the wiring to the fuel injectors, which was fine and so he suggested having the ECU tested and if necessary replaced. This was done at a cost of £760.20.
My son finally sold the car at the end of February for £5,600. It was less than four years old, and with less than 32,000 miles on the clock!
I am appalled that Ford mis-informed me about the warranty situation, and that we have had to finance over £3,700 worth of repairs to a vehicle that is less than 4 years old and has less than 32,000 miles on the clock. It appears, however, that this is not a isolated case with Focus Zetecs….
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