Tl*the contact owns a 2001 ford focus. When the contact attempted to start the vehicle, the key became stuck in the ignition. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and they stated that the ignition switch needed to be replaced. Prior to the failure, the contact noticed that the key would occasionaly become stuck in the ignition, but could be removed. The current mileage was 97,000 and failure mileage was 75,000.
2001 Ford Focus electrical complaints
Page 4 of 18: complaints 71 to 100 of 496, newest first, as owners wrote them.
My ford focus ignition just stopped working! No problems before, the key would only go in half way, then I got it to go in with a slight tap of a hammer! Then the key would not turn over! This is a major problem!! Got it towed to the dealership, they said this problem is very common! A common problem that cost me $426.27!
Ignition lock broke and the car would not start. This left me stranded in a pretty rough neighborhood. After getting a lift home, I see this is an incredibly common problem with the 2001 ford focus, leaving people stranded in some pretty dangerous places.
2001 ford focus ignition lock up.
1. I own a 2001 ford focus. 2. The ignition locked. There was no indication that anything was going wrong. As a result, I could not go to work, as I work an hour away. 3. Ford is not willing to extend a "goodwill repair or warranty" on my behalf, and so I will have to pay to replace the ignition. Research has proven that in some cases, the replacement will result in the same problem. Also, this is a frequent problem in ford focus models from 2000-2003 and yet ford has not taken ownership of the problem. I will ultimately have to have my car towed at my own expense and the ignition repaired at my own expense, for a manufactured problem. The total of both will likely be more than half of the current blue-book value of my car.
The ford focus 2001 key will not turn in the ignition, I have spent many hours, and a large sum of money trying to repair the problem to no avail. I have gotten stranded at night alone, many hours from home on more than one occasion. It is frightening to drive my car any long distance for fear of being stranded.
Key will not turn in ignition. Car had to be towed to hertrich in milford de and ignition replaced and key programmed to new ignition. The first time happened at approx 30,000 miles and the second time at 87,000 miles. Service tech said cylinders were jammed and it took beating it with a hammer to release them to unlock the steering wheel. My daughter had driven to walmart to have her oil changed. They called her back to tell her they could not start her car to drive it into the service bay. Called ford to report their problem as my daughters friend also has had the same problem with her ford focus.
I own a ford focus and the ignition would not turn on. It just locked up for no reason. Had to have ignition replaced at 85,000. Miles.
2001 ford focus ignition switch not turning when trying to start vehicle. My started early morning after work -20 outside. Lucky I was home. Googled and somebody said hit it with hammer and it will turn or replace new ignition switch. Hit it many times and now it got worse. Fix is not cheap and it is a very common complaints from many people all over the country. This is a safety issue due to it could happen while driving or in severe weather condition or safety evacuation that would not be possible if you can't start your vehicle. Can somebody do something about this because ford is getting away with negligence or I suppose will just bail them out so they can keep ripping people off with expensive vehicles and faulty equipments. Is that how this works. Screw the tax payers and consumers who keep this country productive. Ford needs to be responsible for their products and their commitments to their customers. Please recall this defect.
The ignition switch so called 'safety' lock on my 2001 ford focus wagon refused to release, after repeated tries, so I couldn't start my car, the wheel wouldn't turn, and I was left stranded away from home. These cars should be recalled and ford made to repair the defective merchandise that they pumped out into the market. This is a safety hazard and apparently a common complaint with focus owners.
Just paid 401.00 at the dealership to create a new tumber on a key ignition.
Key keeps getting stuck in ignition, having to leave key in car. Happens multiple times during the day and during the week. Will have the ignition replaced.
Battery positive terminal corrosion on my 2001 ford focus have replaced battery twice and alternator once because of no start, dead battery and alternator. Battery cable shows battery corrosion.
Out of nowhere the key would not turn in my ignition. I have had my car for 3 years and never had a problem, I stopped to buy xmas gifts at the mall, and when I returned, I could not turn the key in my ignition. And now every day I spend 20 minutes or more just trying to start my car. I have been late for work on several occasions since this happened. And the worst thing is never knowing when it will be really bad, or if I will end up stranded in the middle of nowhere! Being that this could end up in being stranded, I believe that this should be a safety recall on the 2001 ford focus.
While driving my 2001 ford focus back in november of 2008', I experienced the engine stalling while driving on the freeway. The headlights started to flicker along with the dashlights going haywire. I then drove the vehicle home and had it towed to my auto repair facility. They found nothing wrong and could not do what I described to them. Approx. 1 week later it did the same thing again, this time the check engine light stayed on, and they were able to receive some diagnostic codes. They cleaned some ground wires but stated that was all they could find, the same thing happened a few days later, I called my mechanic, and we both agreed that I should send it to the ford dealer. I had it towed again, this time to the ford dealer where I stated that the problem only occurs while it is being driven. After approx. 1 week, the dealer stated they were unable to duplicate the problem, but they advised me that the alternator dropped to 11.5 volts. I advised them to replace with a new alternator. They advised me that they were sure that is what the problem was. On or about 1/2/09, I experienced they same electrical problems that I have been having over the last 2 months. I drove it to the dealership immediately and advise them I was having the same problem and that it was not the $ 550.00 alternator that I paid for. I again reiterated to them that it has to be driven, to have the symptoms occur. Since I had the new alternator installed I only put on 325 miles. My service manager kory foster with gosch ford in hemet, ca has only called me twice since 1/2/09. When he calls he has always stated that he cannot find anything and he does not no what the problem is he has not heard of this type of problem with the ford focus. I have told him everytime I have seen him and when he calls to drive it ! It is the only way to get it to stall out. The last time he called me which was last week sometime, that I could come get my car if I needed it. I advised him to keep it until it is fixed.
This came out of nowhere. One day the key would not turn over. It was as if the steering column was locked. We googled the problem and found that it is very common in ford focus's built between 2000-2003. The quick fix was to carry a hammer around and give it a hit when the key gets stuck. This has worked pretty well until this morning. It took me 15 minutes to start the car.
I have a 2001 ford focus and as I was leaving work one day, I went to start my car and the key wouldn't fit in the ignition. After I was finally able to put my key in it would not turn. I had to call ford and they told me that this is common with ford focus' and told me to hammer in my key because a barrel was defective in the ignition. I hammered in my key and was able to start my car; however, this is an ongoing problem.
2001 ford focus iginition key does not turn to start vehicle.
The problem I'm have with my 2001 is my key will not turning my ignition. After review the complaints I see several people is having the same problem. Can you review the complaints with the ignitions.
This is the 2nd time my ignition in my 2001 ford focus has had to be replaced. I called the dealership they acknowledged this is a recurring problem with ford focuses. I have been stranded with out resources and this happens at random with no warning. The cost of towing, parts, and labor cost around 500.00. I find this very frustrating that ford will not recall the ignition switch, full well knowing this is a problem. I find this to be a safety issue, not knowing if you are going to be stranded in the middle of no where. It is a financial burden as well as an inconvenience, that after being fixed once should not occur again with in 2 years, my car only has 66,000 miles on it.
My daughter was driving on the freeway when her car just died, while driving. It started up again immediately, but it has happened several times in the last month. I went online to view recalls, and it stated that 2001 ford focus had a recall on this issue. I also found 2 other items that are happening to this vehicle that were also recalls. I made an appointment with the dealer to have these recalls fixed, but when they pulled up the VIN number, they said that there were no recalls for this particular car. The other recall I found was the electrical system, and battery failure. I have already burned up one battery because of this issue. The recall states that the cabes overheat and may melt. This vehicle did this as well. The other recall is where the latch on the back door begins to not latch properly, causing the door to come open while driving. The back door will not latch properly on this vehicle either and at times we have to open and close it several times in order to get it to latch. These 3 recalls are all things that have happened on 2001 ford focus vehicles, which our vehicle is, but because our VIN # doesn't match the recalls, they refuse to fix them. These are true safety issues. My daughter could be killed because of these issues. How can I have my vehicle added to these recalls? I am extremely upset and concerned that these items will not be addresses when ford knows that they are a problem on other 2001 focus vehicles. I will sue should something happen to my daughter due to this issue and fords unwillingness to correct the problems.
To best describe what is happening your website has a campaign for my complaint here: http://www-odi.the federal safety agency.dot.gov/cars/problems/defect/results.cfm?action_number=ea02014&searchtype=quicksearch&summary=true the federal safety agency campaign id number is 02v288000. My wife drives a 2001 ford focus se. The battery cables and battery are going through extreme corrosion that requires me to clean the connections at least once every 2 weeks. The corrosion is also causing heat that is melting the cables insulation. When the corrosion goes untreated, within 2 weeks the car will not start due to bad connection. The problem right now is that the original complaint was in 2002 and ford is not recognizing the problem even after me telling them about the recall information I linked above. I have called in a complaint already to the federal safety agency but have not heard back. Any help in dealing with this matter is greatly appreciated. Thank you.
I was trying to leave work to go home. I put the key in the ignition and the key would not turn. I was told to take it to a ford dealership, where they told me I needed to replace the ignition, a cost of $500.
Ignition switch wont turned on.
2001 ford focus caught on fire under the hood, it started near battery, car is a total loss.
Tl*the contact owns a 2001 ford focus. The contact stated that the vehicle was experiencing numerous failures. The main failures were the electrical system, brake system, bent tie rod, shaking and vibrating, rear window mechanisms, and flooding after it rains. The leak occurs on the passenger side and the water rises 2 to 3 inches. The vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealer due to the inspection costs. The failure mileage was 130,473.
My daughter tried to start the car to go to school and couldn't get the key to turn in the ignition. Fortunately, she was at home when it happened, unlike the many others that have had the same problem at a repair cost of over $300, and the number of bad ignitions that are in the ford focus cars, it should be ford's responsibility to replace the defective ignitions. We have had many cars that were older than our focus and have never had this happen before.
My ignition locked up. I had to have my car towed home. I searched the internet to find repair methods and found tons of complaints from fellow focus owners. This problem is extremely common and cannot be fixed, it has to be replaced adding up to a total of $500.00. My car is no longer under warranty, but I have found that ford is aware of the situation and is doing nothing about it. My wife also owns a focus and I'm just waiting for that phone call. Hopefully she's not stranded in a bad neighborhood. Please do something about this. Search focaljet.com and focusfanatics.com for complaints. Theres also an online petition for ford that has been signed by over 2,000 focus owners to date. Thank you.
The ignition lock cylinder on my 2001 ford focus zx3 locked up, left me stranded. Unable to start the car. Ignition lock cylinder had to be replaced. The mechanic stated to me this is a very common problem with ford focus 2000 -2003 models. Ford refuses to admit to a problem. I have the old part if needed. Repair cost $333.
I own 2 separate ford focuses - both 2001 models. One is a zts and the other an sx. About a year ago, the sx ignition locked up and the car would not start. We had to have the ignition cylinder replaced. Now, barely a year later, the zts model is having the exact same problem. Searching online for a cheaper solution (the dealer charges upwards of $300 to fix the issue), I found that this is a very common problem and widely known but not acknowledged. I've been stranded twice alone with this car and now the ignition won't turn at all no matter how much I try to jiggle the key. This is unacceptable and could lead to very dangerous situations. The problem needs to be acknowledged by ford and repaired.
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