— A Ford class action lawsuit alleges Ford fails to diagnose and repair transmission problems in California that should be covered for 15 years or 150,000 miles.
California plaintiff Victoria Berghuis owns a 2014 Ford Focus that she brought to a Ford dealer in December 2021 when the car had about 77,000 on the odometer.
Berghuis told the dealer how the car would hesitate and jerk when increasing the speed, something she blamed on the transmission. The work order indicated a $180 diagnostic fee, and the plaintiff says Ford refused to cover the repair under the California emissions warranty.
The lawsuit alleges the plaintiff was stuck with the fee "even though the defect increased regulated emissions, the vehicle had been in service less than 15 years, and the vehicle had been driven less than 150,000 miles."
According to the plaintiff, she paid the diagnostic fee out-of-pocket and was advised she would have to pay for repairs to the transmission.
The class action lawsuit includes all partial zero emissions vehicles (PZEVs) in California for which Ford has received a zero emissions credit from the California Air Resources Board.
Alleged transmission defects increase emissions and cause warning lights to illuminate, causing a Ford vehicle to fail smog tests. The plaintiff claims the transmission should be covered by the California emissions warranty.
The class action lawsuit alleges the emissions warning light is not supposed to illuminate unless the vehicle’s onboard diagnostic system has detected a defect which increases emissions.
Ford allegedly provides a transmission warranty of less value than customers believed they were receiving.
"Ford is engaged in a nefarious scheme to limit its warranty exposure under California’s emissions warranty requirements in violation of California emissions law by unilaterally defining and wrongfully limiting the parts that should properly be identified as parts covered by the California Emissions Warranty and covered for 15-years or 150,000-miles under the CCR." — Ford class action lawsuit
The Ford class action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California: Victoria Berghuis vs. Ford Motor Company, et al.
The plaintiff is represented by the Law Office of Robert L. Starr, Pomerantz LLP, and Frontier Law Center.
