2010 LX auto gearbox rebuild needed

nosurrenda · 10-02-2011, 02:41 PM

Very recently purchased a new LX auto. All was well until I started hearing noises from the auto tranny whenever it shifted gears. After 3 days of diagnostics I'm told then tranny has faulty bearings. The car's done 1000 km. It now requires a full strip down. Will take 6 weeks before it's rebuilt and ready to go. I have this growing feeling of dread that the South African made Ford Focus is a low quality lemon. I'll keep on posting developments as they arise. Ford service on the other hand has been first class (John Hughes)

jumbuck · 10-02-2011, 08:06 PM

Curious why it is going to take 6 weeks? I doubt your car is a lemon but certainly not off to a good start. Will the dealer provide you with a loan car in the mean time?

nosurrenda · 11-02-2011, 12:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jumbuck

Curious why it is going to take 6 weeks? I doubt your car is a lemon but certainly not off to a good start. Will the dealer provide you with a loan car in the mean time?

The part has to come from Europe, and apparently the wait is a few weeks. The strip down and rebuild takes another couple of weeks, so six weeks all up. I found out that, unlike the Falcon, the gearbox cannot simply be replaced since Ford South Africa do not supply complete units. And yea, Ford have given me a rental car to drive, which ironically is a Toyota. The lads at the dealership disclosed to me that Ford South Africa have "...a number of quality assurance issues..." If only they told me that BEFORE I bought the car.

20focus05 · 11-02-2011, 09:38 AM

Don't believe it parts are all available here in oz. Same trans as mazda been around for years, I have built many. Still under warranty? Then yes genuine parts take forever!

nosurrenda · 18-02-2011, 06:29 PM

The latest is that the fault cannot be identified, so a Ford engineer from Melbourne has been called upon. Apparently he'll arrive here in Perth on Tuesday. My dealer said they're pushing to have a new gearbox unit freighted in from Europe, but that the engineer has to authorise it.

nosurrenda · 23-02-2011, 11:33 PM

Well, the very latest is that the Ford engineer is still not able to identify what the problem is!!! The investigation is continuing. But I was advised that other 2010 Ford Focus LX auto's have developed the exact same problem. The dealer said that Ford is "very concerned". I wonder if a recall is going to occur?

nosurrenda · 03-03-2011, 11:47 PM

It's fixed!!!!

The transmission shaft bearing was ***** - was not manufactured properly.

My dealer reckons there are other 2010 models with this issue.
So if you own a 2010 auto LX, listen out for a kind of knocking/slapping noise when the auto tranny shifts. If you hear it, this is the fix - all covered by warranty.

Now I can hand the Camry back to Hertz, freakin hate that car!!!!

nosurrenda · 14-03-2011, 06:31 PM

I spoke too soon.

The problem has returned. namely mild "crunching" noises when decelerating 2nd to 1st, and when accelerating under light throttle 2nd to 3rd. Not sure if other markets are affected, but this ATX issue is an increasingly widespread problem amongst Australian owners.

I took the car in for it's first service today and for the ATX to be further investigated. After taking the foreman for a drive he acknowledged that the ATX continues to make abnormal noises. He advised me that replacing the ATX will not solve the problem. He said that a PCM update is available specifically to resolve this issue and the fix will be applied today. God willing, I hope he's right!

A second issue that seems to be popping up with these South African made cars is related to the driver's door not being installed correctly, causing it to rub against the passenger door resulting in minor paint and panel damage.

For what it's worth, Ford customer service has been 10/10.

Anyway, thought I should post this info.

DZFord · 14-03-2011, 11:15 PM

Hi nosurrenda, thanks for all the updates. The crunching / grinding on downshift from 2nd-1st is a common problem and some forum members have had that PCM update applied and IIRC, it has been successful in fixing that problem.

nosurrenda · 16-03-2011, 08:49 PM

Got another update today, virtually the entire staff fleet of LX Focus' at the Park Ford dealership do EXACTLY the same thing. The foreman took me for a drive in the customer rep's Focus and the crunching noise occurred in exactly the same manner as my car. At this stage the software update recommended by Ford has not worked. Data is being submitted to Ford via the dealership in the hope that a fix is made available.

So it would seem that the ATX noise issue is more of a characteristic of the 2010 Focus than a fault.

In the meanwhile I've been given a Kia to thrash about, makes the Focus feel like a Maybach.

20focus05 · 29-05-2011, 06:39 PM

And to think these boxes have been around for years with no real internal changes.
Goes to show how management of the auto plays a big part these days.
Also reduces life of the trans because we want smoother shifts which increases clutch wear because of the longer slip periods.