Problems with 2000 Ford Focus ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Dt: 2000 ford focus lx, ignition froze. problem occurred before. this was the second time that consumer had the ignition cylinder replaced. the first time was on may 26, 2004. this problem gradually became worse. at first the ignition was a little hard to turn. within a week the consumer could not even turn the key in the ignition. the second time this occurred it included the same circumstances. there were no known other problems with this vehicle. *ak

Ignition is getting stuck more and more often. the key won't turn, steering wheel is locked.

In march 2002, my 2000 ford focus lx had the steering wheel lock up and the ignition lock up so that i could not turn the key or start my car. it had to be towed to the dealership and they ended up having to drill out the ignition lock cylinder, rebuild it, and replace broken steering column parts. now yesterday, may 23, 2004, the same thing occurred - steering wheel locked, key would not turn, car would not start. i had to tow it again to the same dealership, and get the parts replaced again.*ak

Ignition switch won't allow key in all the way. *ak

Well documented failure of the 2000 ford focus ignition cylinder. mine failed for the second time and ford only offered a 50/50 coverage option. *ak

Vehicle was parked and consumer noticed smoke coming from underneath the hood. vehicle caught on fire inside of the engine compartment. fire department was called and extinguished the fire. vehicle was towed to the driver's home by the insurance company. *ak

The ignition switch locks up and you can't get the key in. this happened in 2001 and now this month. the first time it happened it was covered under warraty. i have talked to many people as well as the dealersip and they say this is a common problem. if this is a common problem it should be a recall. i wanted someone to look into this problem as i have also found many people complaining about the same problem on the internet. when they fixed it the first time it must have been with the same manufacture part because it happened again. i have never had a car have this problem and to have this problem twice is just strange.*ak

Ford focus 2000 ignition key would not start car....big problem. *ak

Car was driving fine, went shopping and when i came out of the store, the key would not go completely into the ignition. my husband jiggled the key around hard and finally got it in, but key would not turn at all. i just found out thiat this is a very common problem. *ak

Second ignition key cylinder has gone out on auto w/less than 28,000 miles. both were expensive out of warranty repairs and occurred within one year. appears you have about 150 complaints re: the same problem. what does it take to get a recall? *ak

Consumer was unable to turn the key in the ignition switch. dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *ak

I had to have my ignition switch drilled out of my 2000 ford focus last year since the key would not even enter. less than one year later i had to get the switch replaced again since i could not turn it.*ak

It was hard for the consumer to get the ignition key released from the ignition switch . dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *ak lock/ignition core failed to respont to key and the consumer was stranded at night. the key would not turn in the ignition eventually the key would not even go in the ignition. the consumer could not start the vehicle nor turn on the power to roll up the power windows. the consumer stated that online resources have shown this to be common to ford focus. *tc

First problem started with vehicle stalling- found out that fuel pump was faulty. pump was replaced because of recall. second problem started with no warning- remote for door locks/hatch back/anti-theft stopped working and automatic door locks also stopped working. even after replacing battery in both remotes still does not work. at the same time keyless entry stopped working i noticed that when i turn on my rear windshield wiper the rear hatch opens. i fear that this could be a safety issue because if driving during rain can't use rear wiper or hatch can open and anything in rear of vehicle could fall out causing an accident. please notify me if this is a re-occurring problem and what can be done to remedy it. *jb

While placing the key inside of the steering wheel vehicle did not start. consumer had the vehicle towed to the dealer for inspection, and mechanic determined that the ignition switch needed to be replaced. *ak

Consumer stated intermittently ignition key locked up in the ignition switch, and would not turn left or right when starting the vehicle or turning the vehicle off. dealer was notified. *ak

My 2000 ford focus wagon that i purchased in nov of 2003 burned in my work parking lot with only 30,000 miles on it with no warning, no suspicious noises or problems. i drove to work, parked in the lot, walked in, and as soon as i logged on to my computer security was calling to inform me that my car was on fire. the car burned the engine compartment and the front passenger area completely within 15 minutes. the fire department told me that it started in the engine compartment. security said from their video that it also showed to have started in the engine. the flames shot up over 10 feet within minutes of the fire being noticed. when the car was purchased i refused to buy it without a warranty so the dealership gave us a 12 month or 12,000 mile warranty (and we purchased the extended) but now they are saying they have no record of anything but the easycare extended warranty that we purchased. we find this strange since we have had 2 "warranty" repairs at no charge since the purchase and there was never any question before. the insurance compnay has asked that we go talk to the dealership this evening one more time to try to straighten this out before they pay it and we loose money as well as having our premiums go up. one of my other big concerns is that our other vehicle is also a ford and it has depreciated by some 10,000 dollars since we purchased it in june of 03 new so we cannot trade it in anywhere or sell it without being so upside down as to hurt ourselves. i personally have absolutely no confidence in ford and will never purchase from them again. if anyone can help me with this or give advice please do so by e-mailing me at [email protected]. thank you.*ak

Ford focus zx3 2000 - like hundreds of other focus owners, i have had to have my focus towed because the key will not fit all the way into the ignition - cost to me is $225 +$75 towing on a flat bed. there were no events leading up to this - the car just will not start. ford refuses to cover or lower any costs, despite the fact that this is a known problem happening to numerous focus owners. i had a volkswagen golf for 11 years before i sold it to buy a focus. i won't make that mistake again. also, the fuel pump psuedo recall is another great rip off. i received a notice about possible faulty fuel pump in the 2000 focus. when i inquired about having this problem fixed (my car is sputtering) they told me it would cost me $75 to check it out and if i can't prove it's the fuel pump that is causing the problem, i will have to pay for repairs. my car is less than 4 years old and has 16,500 miles on it. too many recalls to even remember. great product, customer service, ford! *ak

When i put the key in my ignition, it will not turn. i cannot unlock my steering wheel or start my car. *la

Key can be inserted into ignition, ignition cylinder frozen, unable to turn key at all. towed to garage. replaced with new cylinder. tow truck driver told me this was the 4th focus that he has towed this week with the same problem.*ak

2000 ford focus. my key has gotten stuck in the ignition and has had to be reparied three times in the past three years. each time i am stranded and need to be towed. once i paid $700.00 and this current fixing will be $450.00 at the dealer. *ak

1) stalling, stuttering and or slow acceleration 2) gauges and lights inside and outside the vehicle are fluctuating as they wish. he car was taken to the dealer three times so they could diagnosis and work on the problem. 1st time there was a recall performed on the fdm (fuel delivery module). 2nd time they gave it a computer update and then all of the electrical problems began to occur. third time they sent me away saying there is not a problem. 2 weeks later with all the symptoms giving lots of problems (shuttering and stuttering, car stalled many times while traveling on the interstate etc.). finally it quit all together when electrically it blew up or shorted out somewhere. all the gauges were fluctuating empty to full,0 to 100 mph, air bag illuminated etc. cabin lamps went crazy. the car smelled like it was burning in the cabin. found no burnt or melted wires. i called the dealer to get them to pick up the car and they told me the battery went dead. when they test drove it now being the fourth time they said it needed new spark plugs and wires. i just cannot believe what they are telling me so i pulled this vehicle out of their care. *ak

Ignition cylindar froze, rendering the key unable to be turned. towed to have fixed and cylindar was replaced with new ford part. this is the 2nd cylindar since i bought the car...the 1st time the key was stuck and wouldn't come out of the cylindar. two days after getting the car fixed, it happened a again where the cylindar froze. the tumblers are of an inferior and defective design and it is unlikely there is a permanent remedy without a design improvement.*ak

When turning the vehicle off consumer smelled smoke coming from inside of the vehicle. consumer towed the vehicle to the dealership for inspection, and mechanic determined that the wiring harness melted. *ak

Ford focus ignition mine has locked up twice the first time it started to work again the second time i put the key in and it wouldnt turn .i am now watching a locksmith fix it. this seems to be a very big problem with these cars should'nt there be a recall to fix it?? *ak

My key will not turn the ignition in my 2000 ford focus. this is a known problem through the dealer reps, but no recall? there is over 200 reports alone on this site about the incident.*ak

The key is stuck in the ignition, prohibiiting the removal of the key and proper safety of the vehicle. it is no impossible to look the car without the keyless remote, and there is no an extremely high chance of the car being stolen.

It was hard for the consumer to start the vehicle due to ignition problem. in some cases the vehicle would not start at all. dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *ak

Ignition switch would not take my key then after an hour of trying to get the key to fit the key did finally go in then it would not turn to start the car and still had not so i have to have the car transfered to the dealer that i have to pay for. the dealer tells me there has been a lot of this happening and that it should be a recall. after all the ford focus has had so many this one should added a long with all the other problems.*ak

The ignition cylinder of my 2000 ford focus was faulty. this recent repair was the second time i had to repair this faulty component. the key wouldn't even go into the ignition before the repair. the dealership cut me two new keys and rebuilt the ignition cylinder. i would like to know why this faulty component has not been recalled by ford? *la

First ignition key could not be inserted into ignition, after 30 minutes of finagling, it forcefully let me put it in (we were on vacation and not near home) now the key can not be removed from the ignition. i don't want to force it because then i probably can't get it back in, at least this way i can drive. i called the ford dealership and they said the tumblers are locked on and it would have to be replaced at $89.00 an hour for labor, $100+ for parts at 2-3 hours of labor, so that is a grand total of $350 to $420 for a problem that seems to be a common occurence. this needs to be a recall issue. my focus is 4 years old and only has 32000 miles on it, i have never heard of anything so absurd as this. interestingly enough, the locksmith can do it for 98.00 for parts and 20.00 for labor, which he said takes about 45 minutes. go figure, looks like ford has a real racket on repairs, i think they are crooks. i just had it in for fuel pump related inssues and the fuel pump has been recalled. it has been over 3 months waiting on parts to fix this recall - again, a bunch of crooks, when it's coming out of their pocket!*ak

2000 ford focus: 1/04 and 3/04 the ignition locked and would not turn; ignition cylinder replaced in 1/04 and second occurence blamed on "worn" key. had to pay for new key. on 1/04 service manager hit the key while in the ignition and released the cylinder. will see if key is the problem on second incident.

In the last six months the transmission has started to leak fluid (paid to fix that), i get a letter about a recall for the fuel pump take it in and get that fixed on the way to work straight from the dealership one of the guys i work with comments on my brake lights staying on, my brake lights will now not go off and my cruise control will not go on (paid to fix that), then a few weeks later the front wheel fell off! i was pulling into my parents driveway and the wheel just fell off then spent the entire day getting it on a tow truck and getting it off at the dealership. then the technician kept asking me what i hit. repeatedly i told him what happened and he finally said that that couldn't have happened unless i hit something (paid to fix that), now i get in my car to get me something to eat and my key will not turn. *ak

The consumer was not able to remove the key from the ignition switch, when the vehicle was on park. dealer notified. *nm

Driver is not able to turn the key in the ignition. *ak

Ignition lock up necessitating tow and costly repair.

On wednesday march 31 2004 my husband noticed that our parking lights and dashboard lights were not coming on. then we discovered that they would work only if the rear defroster was on. we took the car to our mechanic who suspected a short and discovered broken and exposed wires in the hatch. he rewired the car. i went on line and found that 2000 ford focuses had been recalled for this type of problem (nhtsa campaign id number: 00v411000). i called ford's customer service hotline and was told that this recall did not apply to my vehicle's vin number but to hold on to my receipt in case the recall was broadened. when i asked him why my car wasn't included even though other ford focuses had the same problem he said that it was probably just a coincidence. *jb

Consumer was not able to remove the key from the ignition switch when the vehicle was in park. dealership indicated ignition switch wa sdefective and had to be replacced. *ak

I have to have my car towed twice to the dealerhip because the ignition would not turn. the dealership cut out the cylinder and replaces it with a new one.*ak

Ignition cylinder has had to be replaced for the 3rd time in less than 3 years. the last 2 two the cylinder and steering wheel have locked up, not possible to turn ignition key or turn wheel.

Consumer was unable to insert the key into the ignition switch. consumer had the vehicle towed to the dealership, and mechanic did not resolve the problem. *ak

Ignition lock cylinder malfunction ford motor company is aware of faulty part. locks up, you can not start vehicle. *ak

I could not start the car while in a parking deck late at night! the car had to be towed to the dealership to have the ignition cylinder replaced. this is a problem ford knows about (there are 177 complaints on this web site) and tsb reports have been filed for this part for the 2000 and 2001 foci. *ak

Key will not turn inside ignition. completely locked. car will not start.*ak

The key will not go into the ignition. according to the dealer, the ignition tumbler is broken and needs to be replaced. our extended warranty ran out 5000 miles ago and ford will not pay the costs to repair the ignition. ford said there is no recall right now, but keep the receipts in the event there is one. why not just voluntarily recall the focus? why wait to be ordered to do so? the estimate is $350 to fix the ignition. they can't replace the recalled fuel pump until they fix the ignition either. we only know about the recall on the fuel pump because my husband's focus had problems with it. the folks at ford responsible for notifying owners about a recall did not have our new address, despite the fact that we send ford two car payments every month. we just replaced some $300 part to keep our window on about six months ago. this car is a lemon and ford should be ashamed of itself. *nm

Ignition switch locked up and i could not start my vehicle. i had to have it towed to the garage to have it replaced. it locked up one other time but by turning the steering wheel a little it came unlocked by itself. that was not the case this time. *ak

The consumer is unable to open the vehicle doors with the remote. the consumer would have to manually use the key to enter the vehicle. the dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem. *mr

The complete ignition module requires replacement on my car. i was told by a ford motor co customer service representative that this particular problem is wide spread and would probably be covered by the company. i was told today that although there are quite a number of incidents with this particular part it is not yet a recall and therefore we must pay approximately $400 to repair it. i do not feel this is fair. i was also told that even though we have an extended warranty it is not the correct level of coverage and would also not be covered. *nm

Dt: the contact stated the ignition switch failed three times within a year and a half. the first time, she went to start the car, the ignition would not turn over. the car was towed and repaired. the second failure was approximately one year later and the same thing happened. the car was towed and repaired for the second time. the third failure happened this week, went to start the car and it would not start again. it is being repaired now. the dealership stated it could possibly be the starter along with the ignition switch. *ak in dec 2001 the consumer was involved in an accident due to a problem with the tires and the rear axle. the transmission cooler lines were replaced. the brake lights and heater did not work. the egr tube was replaced. the wiper arm was broken. the engine light stayed on all time. the driver side mirror had to be replaced. updated 01/11/06. *jb

Returned to car after 1 hour of not driving, the key would only go about 3/4 of the way into the ignition. i tried all three keys that the dealer had given me, and none of them would go into the ignition. called aaa, paid $175 to have a locksmith replace the springs in my ignition where the key goes, said that this could happen again, and in that case, the entire ignition would have to be replaced. aaa covered $50 of the cost. is there a recall for this? this is not the first complaint of the same type on this site! what is ford doing to help this? i refuse to continue to pay $125 every time my key won't go into the ignition. i was lucky enough to be home when this happened, but what if i wasn't?*ak