2000 Ford Focus problems

What is wrong

Certain passenger vehicles with four or five doors and originally sold in or currently registered in connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, wisconsin, and the district of columbia, a build-up of corrosion at the pawl pivot area of the rear door latch can cause a binding condition of the pawl that may affect proper engagement of the pawl into the catch. The occupant may experience difficulty opening or closing a rear door, and eventually the rear door may not latch properly.

Risk

If not latched properly, the door may open while the vehicle is in motion. If an occupant fell out of the vehicle, personal injuries could occur.

Remedy

Dealers will have a lower rocker seal added to the door and have the rear door latches evaluated free of charge. A latch that passes the evaluation will be lubricated to prevent future corrosion. A latch that does not pass the evaluation will be replaced. In addition, a sticker will be affixed to the rear doors advising the owners to use the recommended lubricant. The recall began on march 9, 2005. Owners may contact ford at 1‑800‑392‑3673.

Recall number 05V030000 · Recall details

What is wrong

On certain passenger vehicles, contamination of the filter in the fuel delivery module (fdm) can reduce, and eventually block, the flow of fuel to the engine.

Risk

This may cause engine hesitation, loss of power, surging, and other similar symptoms. Over time, the filter may become sufficiently blocked to cause the engine to stall, which could result in a crash.

Remedy

This action is deemed a safety improvement campaign and is not being conducted under the safety act. All owners will be notified of the problem, and dealers will replace the fdm with a new design at no charge if the owner reports that the vehicle exhibits any of the identified symptoms. The free replacement will be available for a period of 10 years following the original purchase of the vehicle, with no mileage limit. Owner notification is expected to begin during november 2003. Owners should contact ford at 1‑800‑392‑3673.

Recall number 03V482000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Certain passenger vehicles equipped with zetec engines, loose or broken attachments and misrouted battery cables could lead to cable insulation damage.

Risk

This, in turn, could cause the battery cables to short resulting in heat damage to the cables. Besides heat damage, the "check engine" light may illuminate, the vehicle may fail to start, or smoke, melting, or fire could also occur.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect the battery cables for the condition of the cable insulation and proper tightening of the terminal ends. As necessary, cables will be rerouted, retaining clips installed, and damaged battery cables replaced. Owner notification began february 10, 2003. Owners who do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford at 1‑866‑436‑7332.

Recall number 02V288000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Certain passenger vehicles have loose pinch bolts that secure the lower control arm to the steering knuckle have been reported.

Risk

Loose pinch bolts could exhibit noise, vibration and, in extreme cases if left uncorrected, separation of the joint or fracture of the ball joint stud, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect the steering knuckle pinch bolt for tightness and correct as necessary. Owner notification began february 10, 2003. Owners who do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford at 1‑866‑436‑7332.

Recall number 02V289000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Vehicle description: passenger cars, sport utility vehicles, and light and medium duty pickup trucks. A switch located in the plastic cover of the wiper motor gear case could malfunction and overheat, potentially resulting in loss of intermittent wiper function, loss of wiper park function, complete loss of wiper function, or ignition of the plastic cover material. Switch malfunction is most likely to occur when the intermittent setting of the wipers is being used, or when snow or ice obstructs the blades from returning to the "parked" position at the bottom of the windshield. These vehicles were built at the following assembly plants: atlanta plant from 2/11/00 through 7/31/00; chicago plant from 2/14/00 through 8/4/00; kansas city plant from 2/26/00 to 9/4/00; kentucky truck plant from 2/18/00 to 8/31/00; michigan truck plant from 2/23/00 through 8/3/00; norfolk plant from 2/21/00 through 7/27/00; wayne stamping and assembly plant from 2/25/00 through 8/15/00; and wixom plant from 2/15/00 through 8/8/00.

Risk

Loss of visibility while driving increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect the date code on the wiper motor. Motors built with the suspect time frame will have the wiper motor gear case cover replaced. Owner notification began august 20, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford at 1‑866‑436‑7332.

Recall number 01V258000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Vehicle description: station wagons and 3-door vehicles. The subject vehicles have a folding 60/40 second seat that becomes a load floor in the folded position. When the 60% portion of the seat is folded down and a load is applied to the front edge of the load floor, the outboard hinge pivot could disengage from the hinge.

Risk

If the seat is then returned to the upright position without re-engaging the hinge pivot, the seat and seat belts may not provide the intended level of performance in the event of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will install a revised seat back hinge pivot.

Recall number 00V418000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. A decklid wire harness can fatigue and develop broken wires in the bend area of the wire harness.

Risk

This could result in either a loss of individual lamp functions, or in the case of a short of the broken wires that causes a fuse to open, in the loss of stop lamp or tail lamp function. Loss of stop lamp or tail lamp function could increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the decklid wire harness.

Recall number 00V411000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Vehicle description: passenger vehicles equipped with speed control and automatic transmission. A speed control cable could have a core wire that is long enough to catch on the sleeve at the throttle body end of the cable during wide-open throttle acceleration.

Risk

A throttle that does not return to idle could result in reduced vehicle control and, potentially, a vehicle crash.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect these vehicles and, if necessary, replace the speed control cable. Owner notification began october 12, 2000. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford at 1‑800‑392‑3673.

Recall number 00V302000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. The rear wheel hub retaining nuts can loosen and allow the left rear wheel and brake drum assembly to separate from the vehicle.

Risk

This condition could result in a vehicle crash.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect the rear wheel bearings and install a rear wheel retention cap to prevent left rear wheel separation. Owner notification began october 12, 2000. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact ford at 1‑800‑392‑3673.

Recall number 00V303000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Vehicle description: passenger vehicles. Certain vehicles fail to comply with requirements of fmvss no. 201, "occupant protection in interior impact." the resultant hic(d) value at one target location ap1, located on the trim panel at the juncture of the a-pillar and roof side rail, may be greater than design intent.

Risk

In the event of a crash, an occupant contacting that location may not be provided the interior impact protection intended.

Remedy

Dealers will remove the left and right side b-pillar and a-pillar trim panels, revise the headliner edge near the tops of the a-pillars to accept the new a-pillar trim panels with their energy absorbing tubes, and install the new a-pillar and the old b-pillar trim panels.

Recall number 00V218000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Vehicle description: passenger vehicles equipped with speed control. The speed control cable end fitting can allow water to enter the speed control servo assembly. If this occurs, corrosion in the servo assembly could develop and cause intermittent speed control operation or prevent the throttle from returning to idle.

Risk

A throttle that does not return to idle could result in unexpected acceleration, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the speed control cable (with a new cable that incorporates a glass-filled end cap) and inspect the assembly for internal corrosion. Servos with evidence of corrosion will also be replaced. Owners are advised not to use the speed control until the vehicles are repaired.

Recall number 99V346000 · Recall details

On November 18, 2010, the federal safety agency's Recall Management Division (RMD) opened an audit query (AQ10-001) to investigate recall remedy completion by rental car companies on safety recall campaigns.It was expected to provide the agency an indication of how completely and how quickly rental car fleets perform necessary recall-related remedies on the vehicles owned and then rented/leased for use on the roadways.RMD queried three (3) major motor vehicle manufacturers (Ford, Chrysler, and General Motors) and requested data regarding completion figures for fifteen (15) discreet safety recalls.Analysis of this data demonstrated that rental car recalls completion was neither complete nor consistent.The rental car companies representing the largest market share in the industry were then queried as to their respective policies for the rental, lease, and sale of vehicles with open recalls.The data and responses from the manufacturers and the rental car companies can be found in the document repository by accessing the ?Associated Documents link above.In December 2015, Congress enacted the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act.One section of the Act prohibits rental car companies from renting, leasing, or selling motor vehicles subject to open safety recalls.With the passage of the FAST Act and its prohibition, there is no continuing need for the agency to investigate rental car recall completions.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The agency reserves the right to open any future investigations, including audits of individual recalls, or groups of recalls, or rental car companies, to examine more closely safety recalls performance and completion issues in this area.

AQ10001

This investigation was opened on april 8, 2004 as pe04-033 and upgraded on august 18, 2004 to ea04-023.the complainants alleged that the rear door latches failed to keep the doors in a closed position, resulting in rear doors coming open while the vehicles were being driven.some complainants reported that at timesa rear door, or doors, could be difficult to close.others reported that corrosion of the door latch mechanism caused binding of the latch.ford has identified a condition of corrosion in the pawl pivot area of the door latch assembly that prevents proper engagement of the door latch catch to the latch striker on the vehicle body.by letter of february 1, 2005, ford motor company notified the agency that it will conduct a safety recall on model year 2000 through 2002 four and five-door focus vehicles registered in, or originally sold in, connecticut, delaware, the district of columbia, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, and wisconsin. Dealers will inspect rear door latches and replace binding latches as required.dealers will also lubricate all rear door latches to prevent future corrosion and binding.a lower rocker seal will also be added to the rear doors. See safety recall 05v030 for details.

EA04023

This investigation was opened on april 8, 2004, based on 17 reports that one or both rear door latches did not function properly.the complainants alleged that the doors were difficult to closeand that the door latches would not remain latched while the vehicles were being driven, resulting in a door coming open.several of the complainants reported that corrosion of the door latch mechanism caused binding of the latch.ford's response to the preliminary evaluation information request provided 19 consumer reports and 28 warranty claims attributed to the door latch where the doors came open while the vehicles were being driven.three (3) of the 17 opening odi reports were duplicated in ford's response.this investigation has been upgraded to engineering analysis ea04-023 for further study.

PE04033

Clogging of the fuel delivery module (fdm) filters in the subject vehicles can lead to stalling and other related symptoms.these symptoms become increasingly obvious to the driver as the clogging gradually increases over extended periods of driving.stalling in these vehicles is most likely to occur when accelerating through a right hand turn such as merging into freeway traffic when the fuel level in the fuel tank is less than 1/4 full.more than 90% of the stalling complaints pertain to the original design fdm installed in my 2000 and 2001 (partial year) focus vehicles. Ford has decided to conduct a campaign (03v‑482) to address stallingin these vehicles.the smaller number and rate of complaints associated with the interim and current fdm designs indicate improvement but also reflect a shorter time in service for these designs. Accordingly, odi will monitor the stalling performance of my 2001 - 2002 focus vehicles equipped with interim and current design fdms.

EA02022

See attached report.

EA02023

All of the consumer complaints allege an incident in which deployment of the driver frontal air bag caused some type of burn injury.most of these injuries are due to contact and/or abrasion with the air bag and are of relatively minor to moderate severity.it is possible that some drivers may have sustained burn injuries to the skin as a result of hot gases exhausting from the vents of the air bags in the subject vehicles, but the number of such incidents appears to be low.further details of the investigation are contained in subsequent pages of this report.based on the above, further expenditure of agency resources on this investigation does not appear to be warranted.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist.the agency may take further action if warranted by the circumstances.

EA02017

There is no summary currently available

EA02014

There is no summary currently available

PE02044

The primary concern of this pe is loss of engine power.stalling may occur at low speed or high speed.at the time of occurrence the average vehicle mileage is 30,000 miles.because these vehicles stall and/or hesitate unpredictably, an increased risk is inherent to these vehicles.if a driver expecting this vehicle to perform as designed, is trying to cross an intersection or merge into traffic when the vehicle stalls it places all motorists within the area at risk.a disabled vehicle is vulnerable to collisions not only within the roadway, but also along side the road as it waits for assistance.

PE02040

PE02032

There is no summary currently available

PE02026

Information disclosed during this pe shows allegations of burn injuries resulting from abrasion and/or termal causes.allegations of chemical burns also exist.several incidents allege vehicles fires resulting from deployment of the air bags.this pe has been upgraded to an engineering analysis (ea) to facilitate a thorough review of the complex issues in this matter.

PE02020

There is no summary currently available

PE02016