2005 Ford Focus: ball joint or control arm failure

Filed Jul 11, 2017 · Steering, Suspension · 105,000 miles · MI

The left lower control arm on the front suspension failed at approximately 45 MPH on a 5 lane city road causing the wheel to fold under the vehicle. The car made an immediate left turn into oncoming traffic and control of the vehicle was lost. Fortunately the car came to a stop without hitting anything and no one was injured but the potential for a serious accident was certainly there. The control arm failed due to corrosion and upon inspection, it was found that the right front lower control arm is also rusted through and cracked and nearing failure as well. Pictures are attached. The car has approximately 105,000 miles on it and we are the second owner. It has been extremely well maintained throughout its life. In my 50 years of experience working on automobiles I've never seen a control arm failure like this.

Filed Feb 3, 2016 · Body, Electrical · 9,000 miles · NY

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 ford focus. While driving various speeds, the vehicle pulled without warning. The contact was unable to open the front passenger and driver doors from outside the vehicle. The rear passenger door failed to open. The rear driver side door handle was slightly detached. The electrical warning light was illuminated. A certified mechanic stated that the tie rods and wheel well needed to be replaced, and the rack and pinion tightened. The tie rod and wheel well were replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 9,000.

Filed Aug 1, 2014 · Suspension, Tires · 157,000 miles · IL

All 4 eagle gt tires that are only 6 months old are worn and scalloped due to a know problem to ford technical service bulletin id: 10034585 july 10, 2010 and service bulletin no.: tb-21399 component(s): tires the federal safety agency id number: 10034585. Our mechanic ran a diagnostic and service bulletin search for possible manufacturing issues to cause the tire wear. The solution that ford has come up with it to add 4 additional upper control arms at $140 a piece plus labor. When I spoke with ford they indicated that the problem is a known one but are unwilling to do anything to correct the problem. They are waiting until people are either injured or killed to correct the problem. Advised them that I will keep all receipts for new tires. This is the 4 set of tires in 3 years due to this problem. I advised them I will wait until the tires are totally worn and cause an accident and damage and then let my insurance carrier deal with their faulty vehicle.

Filed May 11, 2011 · Suspension · 65,000 miles · SC

For two weeks I heard and felt a slight pop in the front driverside wheel when accelerating from a stop and then when applying the brakes after gaining some momentum. Took it to get looked at by mechanic and actually looked at the area in question myself. (control arm, ball joint, cv, sway link, steering assembly and struts) we could not determine the problem nor could we recreate the 'pop' with the car on the lift. Was suggested that I have my engine mount bushings replaced which is fairly cheap and easy. While waiting for the bushings to arrive my ball joint 'failed'. It did not break, it just slipped out. I was driving approximately 30mph on secondary residential road which was free of bumps, dips, etc. Suddenly I hear a bang, the car jerks and tire screeches. I thought it must be a transmission problem so I put the car in neutral and steer it onto the shoulder. Upon exiting the vehicle I see the driverside wheel has unattached from the ball joint and is now kicked out @ 90degrees. The cv is torn from transmission, stabilizer link is twisted, strut was bent way back, tire has hole worn in it, slight body damage. I was extremely lucky that I had not made it o the highway yet. The ball joint was not broken in any way; it had just slipped from its cuff. I now have the ball joint and bolt that holds it to the suspension knuckle at home for my own inspection. There is clearly a safety issue here. This is an engineering and design flaw and should have never made it past the drawing board. Basically, you have barely 1/16" of the side of the 1/2" bolt exposed to a groove for roughly 1/4". I measured these with a pair of high grade calipers and was appalled, I was appalled when I just looked at the assembly,but those numbers are weak. My sister was in a near fatal auto accident last year. It was never understood what caused the accident. She was in a coma. Guess what... She was driving a ford focus.

Filed Jan 15, 2009 · Suspension · 100,000 miles · MN

My 2005 ford focus which I bought new off the dealership now has 100000 miles on it. Within the past year, while driving, the back end fishtails back and forth as if it is being hit by a strong wind. As soon as I told a repair shop this they immediately recognized the problem because they have had many other focus owners complaining about the same thing. The rear control arm assembly is defective. This is not something that should need to be ever changed on a vehicle. The repair shop said that when they order a new one from ford, the new one sent is much stronger and bulkier which tells them that ford is aware of this defect. The repair bill for this is over $1200! This is very dangerous as you feel you are loosing control of the vehicle at any time. Upon hearing this, I contacted my parents who also have a ford focus and they said that though they have only half the number of miles on their vehicle it is also a 2005 model and it has started to do this also to them but they didn't know what to think, if it was just bad roads or what. Very dangerous and ford has no response to my questions!

Filed Mar 26, 2007 · Airbags, Transmission · VA · crash · 2 injuries

The transmission on my 2005 focus was difficult to shift into 1st gear. The dealership replaced it under warranty during 7 - 16 march 2007. While doing the work they nicked the brake line just enough to create a slow leak. The location of the leak was near the front left tire. After one day of driving, all the fluid leaked out and the brakes failed while my wife was driving it. The dealership arranged to pick up the focus with a tow truck. They repaired the brakes (19-23 mar). On 23 mar, my wife picked up the focus. Approximately 1/2 mile from the dealership, the driver's side airbag deployed while she was turning left. The force of the impact pushed her left arm down and to the right, pulling the steering wheel to the left, causing her to hit the curb. No other vehicle was nearby or involved. She was able to maneuver the focus into the parking lot of a medical treatment facility, where she was treated for cervical injury. The dealership picked up the focus with a tow truck. At the dealership they put the focus up on a lift and I inspected the undercarriage along with the service manager and mechanic. The brake rotor was complete separated from the wheel and the lower control arm was bent at about a 20 degree angle from normal. The wheel was noticeably scratched and the tire was cut. The service manager suggested that my wife hit the curb causing the airbag to deploy. My wife is absolutely positive the airbag deployed causing her to hit the curb.

Filed Jun 12, 2006 · Transmission · 19,000 miles · NC

There was shaking in the front of my car...I finally went to the dealership where I bought my 2005 ford focus and when they checked it out, they said that they would have to replace the right front axle assembly....then in nov. 2005 I moved to sylva, and have been to andy shaw ford 3 or 4 different times for them to check the shaking in the front of my car, twice to be told that my tires were out of balance, and that nothing else was found at the time...the first couple times I went there, I was told that my tires were out of balance, and they charged me for balancing my tires...which this was not the problem, nor did it fix the problem...around the third time I went to the dealership in sylva, they did a test drive with me in the car and was told by two representatives of the dealership that nothing was wrong with my car and that it rode like any other ford focus...I purchased 4 new tires for my car at a local tire dealer this past saturday, and today I went to an auto repair shop and told them what was happening with my car, and they put my car up on a lift, and started my car and gave it the gas so that my two front tires would spin, and the driver's front side tire was not spinning right, but the other front tire was spinning smoothly...the fellow told me that it could be my wheel, or my tire, and I told him that I had just purchased new tires...then I went back to where I bought my new tires, and ask them would they put the driver's front tire on the new wheel that I had in my car and they did and I test drove the car, and the problem was not fixed...I talked to a ford certified mechanic that has his own shop and was told that it could be the tie rod, he went on to tell me that someone else had came to his shop with the same problem, same type of car, same year, and all... I have been to the ford dealership in salisbury, nc where I bought my car, as well have made several trips to the ford dealership here in sylva to be told that my tires were out of balance.

Filed Mar 14, 2006 · Brakes, Suspension · 12,000 miles · AL

Dt*: the contact stated while driving 15 MPH around a sharp curve, the brakes failed. Also, there was a loss of steering control which resulted in the vehicle running onto a sidewalk. The vehicle was towed to a dealership, where it was determined the steering and the brakes were not defective. The dealership further determined the ball joints were fractured as a result of the accident and needed to be replaced. The contact believed ball joint failure LED to the accident. Repairs were made to front and rear suspension, as well as a wheel alignment.