CarComplaints.com Notes: For the third year in a row, the 3rd generation Focus is experiencing massive transmission problems.
Most notably owners keep complaining about how there's bad hesitation and jerking when starting from a stop. This isn't the result of an old, worn out part. In fact, the average mileage it's reported to us is just over 15k miles.
Just got this car as used (44,000 miles), when the winter started to cool down (late december) the car started to do a loud whistling/screeching the first minutes of being turned on, the sound disappears after the engine warmed up but I don't know what the problem is.
Loud whistling/screeching noise from engine after the engine was turned off. It would start a couple minutes after engine had been turned off then last for about 10 seconds, silence for 30 seconds, and then start again for 10 seconds. The noise continued like this for awhile. Definitely a reoccurring issue and a bit concerning?
This noise in the engine compartment first occurred in October of 2014 (at about 8,000 miles) after winter arrived. The noises did not begin until about 15 minutes after the car was turned off. Because it was quite COLD, I didn't stand around in the garage waiting for the noise to happen every time I drove the car. In April of 2015, after spring arrived, I checked every 15 minutes or so to see if I could hear it. On April 3 I got lucky. I recorded three videos and uploaded them to YouTube. April 3 was the last time I heard the noises because the weather warmed up.
Other Focus owners have reported strange noises from under the hood, usually in cold weather. The noises did not occur during the first summer I owned my Focus; nor have they occurred this past (second) summer.
I was the first person to provide documentation of the noises. The engineers at Ford thought the problem might originate in the AC system. They swapped out the condenser unit and some hoses. Under warranty, of course.
HOWEVER, whether or not the problem has been solved remains UNKNOWN at this point. When winter arrives again, we'll see...
- dkgotham,
Bessemer, MI, US
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Just got this car as used (44,000 miles), when the winter started to cool down (late december) the car started to do a loud whistling/screeching the first minutes of being turned on, the sound disappears after the engine warmed up but I don't know what the problem is.
- abe10mx, Rochester Hills, US