Ford has been under increased scrutiny due to alleged defects in the DPS6 transmission that it uses in some Ford Focus and Fiesta models. The transmission has drawn complaints going back for years, but things heated up for Ford when a Detroit Free Press story was published recently that alleges Ford sold the car despite knowing the DPS6 transmission was faulty. Ford recently outright denied those claims going so far as to say the Detroit Free Press story was factually inaccurate.
The Detroit Free Press has published another story claiming that Ford has quietly reached out to its dealer network and told them to expand warranty coverage for the 2011-2017 Ford Fiesta and Focus vehicles within 24 hours of the original report going live. The publication claims to have gotten hands-on a memo to dealers that was dated July 12 that instructed dealers to not solicit owners for the free repair offers.
2017 Ford Fiesta profile
One dealer allegedly referred to the repair offer as a “carte blanche” repair order and said that it expired July 19th. The memo allegedly listed a Ford spokesman named TR Reid as a contact, he noted that additional updates would be provided on July 19th. One of the most interesting things on the memo is that the 2017 model year cars are included, the Detroit Free Press notes that this is the first time any issues have been hinted at with that vehicle.
Ford discontinued the DPS6 transmission for the 2018 model year. The memo tells dealers that if a customer calls in with a symptom asking about the DPS6 media coverage, they are to direct the customers to an 800 number for the Customer Relationship Center. The memo also orders the dealer to address and transmission symptoms for customers and repair as necessary. The big thing here is that these fixes are being given for free despite any warranty coverage. The automaker is facing several class action lawsuits over the DPS6 transmission.
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Source: Detroit Free Press
Comments
Our 2014 Focus SE had 5 complete clutch replacements in 55,000 miles. Ford extended the warranty for us to 10 years 100,000 miles. We traded it just as it was making sounds like #6 was in the cards. The dealer said “if it breaks, we fix it”.
I have a 2017 focus that has 3 clutches replaced an has 64k miles. An I was told that I only had a 12,000 warranty with the clutch an once it passes that mileage I was out.
In regards to vehicle warranty. If you feel you are not getting the answers you need I recommend you contact your state’s attorney general and file a complaint.