I own a 2002 ford focus I bought it used with 60000 miles. The rear camber has been out of alignment since I bought it. I had the used dealership replace the rear suspension thinking it would cure the problem. But it soon was out of camber again. I have had to replace the rear tires every 10000 miles. The ford dealership said there's no adjustment to fix the camber . I have had to replace the shocks twice both rear coil springs have broke I have replaced the lower control arms, but still have not fixed the problem. The car is very unsafe to dive on wet or snowy roads the rear end swerves all over the road . Guys that ride to work with me won't ride with me on rainy or Icy days because they feel unsafe. I know 4 other people that own ford focuses like mine and have the same problems that I have . Obvious a factory problem that ford should stand behind and fix but they won't. This is the last ford that I will ever buy.

Car rumbled when drove over bumps, clicking, clanky noise when turned left. Drove like that for about 3mos, thinking expensive repair. Noise got louder, thought something was going to fall off while driving. Took car to machanic,he wanted $550 to replace both front springs. Scheduled to have done in 4 days. I reserached car complaint on line, found that Ford may cover under Customer Satisfication extended warranty. Called Ford Service,was told never heard of this for a Focus, gave him the 03M02 Program #, fixed in 1 day @ no cost....Thank you for the info. Saved big time!

I brought my car to my local mechanic, not sure what the problem was. I got a call around 2 pm and was told that both of my coil springs had broken. I asked how that could happen and he said "normal wear and tear." He told me the price would be $900+ and I gasped at that. Seemed like a lot for 2 springs. He said the parts would come in tomorrow and it would be done then. I got off the phone and immediately went on the internet to research this and try to check the price. I learned about the possibility that my car had an "extended warranty" for these specific parts from Ford. I called back my mechanic and asked him if he had checked for a recall or warranty and he said he did and didn't find anything. I told him I was going to look into this further and he should not work on my car. He assured me that even if it is covered by a warranty, that they would be able to work on the car. I was driving home from work at 3:30 and he calls me and says the parts came in early and he wants to know if I want him to finish the car?! I said that I didn't want the car to be worked on. He told me that he was sure the warranty wouldn't be a problem. So, here's my car in surgery and the "doctor" tells me everything will work out with "insurance." So I tell him to finish the job but I'm annoyed. Maybe I should have told him to stop everything at that point. I don't know. So I get home and call my Ford dealership and customer service and learn about this warranty program. I ask for a copy an no one will give it to me. I hear from the dealer that there is an "emergency" clause regarding having the work done at non dealer. I ask what does "emergency" mean and Ford tells me they don't know and I should submit the bill and it will be reviewed! So some guy in the sky is going to agree to pay me 1K? Yeah. I then get a cust. service lady who tells me that "emergency" mean that there is no Ford dealer open or there is not one within hundreds of miles. To me "emergency" means if I drive the car any further, I could get into an accident and kill myself, my kids, or someone else if I drive the car anywhere. This was the case. So, I called my mechanic and told him to pull out the parts, which he offered to do when we were in the middle of this problem (he said it in an aggravated way). What I need is a copy of that letter, some way to compromise with my mechanic as I think he is charging too much but his work is always good and he is willing to negotiate the price. I also wonder if anyone knows what "emergency" means and should I get a lawyer and send the letter to Ford? That's my rant. I'm losing sleep over this mess.

Like many others have reported, my front passenger side coil spring broke. Mine did not separate and stayed basically contained in the production location but made a lot of noise when turning. I was able to keep driving the car for weeks like this. When I finally got the time to fix it, I searched the internet looking for diagrams of how to replace this spring and found this website. Thanks to all of the previous complaints, I was able to determine that this will be a covered repair at the dealership. After searching my own documents, sure enough, I found the letter from Ford outlining the extended warranty program. For the benefit of others, here are the details of the program (letter dated November, 2005).

Ford calls this "Customer Satisfaction Program 03M02 to owners of certain 2000 through 2003 model year Focus vehicles." The program says "Ford Motor Company is extending the warranty on both front coil springs for a total of 10 years or 150,000 miles from the warranty start date, whichever occurs first". And the benefit is "should either of the front coil springs fracture, your dealer will replace both front coil springs, check alignment and, if necessary, adjust alignment angle at no charge to you under the terms of this program." Hope this helps others out there. Thanks AutoBeef!

My front right coil spring broke. Strangely enough, it wasn't until I had the tires rotated, and the car was on the lift that the spring actually came loose- apparently the pressure of the car on the spring held the spring in place, even though it had broken at some point.

I am relieved, though, that this problem is common and that the springs have been recalled. Make sure you check with your local Ford dealership to see if you can get the springs replaced for free.

Now if only the rest of the suspension system was under recall- the swaybar, especially, is driving me nuts with its creaks and groans.

I had heard of problems with these cars, but never expected that I would have as many problems. Coil spring broke collapsing front suspension, at least it is covered by an extended warranty of 10 years or 240000km. rear tailgate leaks water in through the trim under the window causing both license plate lights to corrode and stop working (change the pair 2 times already and need to change again). very bouncy on roads, does not feel secure on snow covered roads always feels as if it is sliding around. alternator burnt up not causing a fire but totally ruining the complete alternator including the casing(very expensive alternator).

engine surges sometimes just after starting. engine also seems to run rough some times. not very satisfied with this car, not likely to buy another Ford.

Had to replace my struts which were leaking and the entire springs on both sides. So depressing, those springs should last for 100k miles easy. 54k miles are on the car. To replace the struts and springs for the front (because you have to replace them in pairs) it cost $800 bucks from Meineke. 258 for the springs 141 for each shock, 105 for each side in labor. This seemed ridiculously expensive considering I can purchase this: http://www.partsamerica.com/ProductDetail.aspx?MfrCode=MON&MfrPartNumber=171505&PartType=49&PTSet=A And do it myself.