Problems with 2000 Ford Focus ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

The engine on my ford focus has stalled while driving 4 seperate times since purchasing it 2 years ago, it happens when i let off the accelerator and push in the clutch while turning. i haven't had an accident yet only by pure luck on my part. the other problem is my ignition went bad when the keying mechanism in the ignition locked up not allowing my key to enter, after talking to the tow truck driver he said that he gets call all the time about focus ignitions going bad. it cost me almost $500 for the tow and repair work. dt

Entire ignition needed to be replaced. ford part xs4z*11582*aa cyl assy strg col ign lock. warranty expired at 36k miles - car is only 26 months old! mr

The vehicle car will not go into park. the key was not coming out when in park. the dealer said because of a spill on the shifter it cause it to fail. while i was at the dealer another customer had the same problem. mr

Unable to put key in ignition. 2 dealers said its happens all the time. towed to dealer and it has teaken 2.5 days to get done. there is a technical service bulletin out on this. nlm

Consumer has hard time starting up vehicle. *mr

When driving vehicle and turning off ignition will lock itself, preventing key from being turned to restart. vehicle has been repaired 4 times, and problem still occurring.*ak

Vehicle stalled twice, then engine caught fire in battery area. please note that i live in canada, and site does not permit canadian address. actual zip is m4k 1m6 in toronto ontario, canada. vehicle is total writeoff. ford dealership denied knowledge of fire or stalling problems with focus.*ak

When putting key into the igntion key will not turn, it will not come out of locked position. contacted dealer.*ak

When removing key form ignition, it stuck. even a locksmith could not remove key.contacted dealership. this was a common problem.*ak

I own a 2000 ford focus le with less than 23,000 miles. i have had to have the ignition cylinder replaced twice, once in 2002 and once in 2005. this was not a problem with the key, but with the cylinder itself. both times, the cylinder locked up and the key could not be turned. *nm

Rear brake lights went out. consumer replaced fuse, and while driving started smelling smoke. consumer had to use excessive effort in order to stop vehicle. once stopped, consumer turned key to off position and engine kept running. consumer then removed "replaced" brake fuse, and engine stopped. with fuse removed brake lights worked. but, consumer will occasionally smell smoke from fuse box.*ak

I sent a form in yesterday but did not have the vin number. this car is in the shop right now. mr

Upon starting the vehicle key sticks in the ignition followed by the steering wheel locking up. if the consumer managed to remove the key, the steering wheel was still locked. vehicle was towed to the dealership, who replaced the ignition assembly. the failure recurred, and the key broke in the ignition. the ignition assembly has to be replaced again. *ak *nm

My father checked the battery area, after reading an article in the dallas morning news. no safety defect listed. *ak

While attempting to start vehicle ignition locked up key would not turn. please provide any further information.*ak

My car ran fine until one morning (first day of college, no less!) the key would not insert into the ignition. repeated attempts were made to insert it--jiggling, cleaning the key, blowing out the cylinder--with no luck. car had to be towed to the dealership where the ignition barrel had to be replaced. i was just a hair out of warranty so the expense came out of my pocket. the tow truck driver said this was a very common problem with focus'. what a pain!*jb

No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak

When i get close to 1/4 of a tank of gasoline, my car begins to die or sputter. it has died several times and wont restart. the other day i was coming off an exit ramp from the highway and it died coming around the sharp turn. i was almost hit by several cars while trying to get the car started long enough to move it off the ramp. after about 20 or so times of turning the ignition and gunning the pedal, i got it moved into a safe area off the highway. it took about 45 minutes and a lot of conk outs to get it moved. i was stranded and very angry. i was even more angry when i got home and did a little research to find that this same complaint has been made to ford/nhtsa and never reported to the public. i have had 6 recalls this year on this [xxx] car and i am very concerned for my safety now. i got the car because of its great ratings for safety- now i am afraid everytime i put my son in the car of it blowing up on me. i want to get rid of it but i cant because i owe more on the loan then i can get for trade in (my guess is the value of the car has totally fallen because of all these recalls). i am so angry with ford and i am afraid for my safety while driving this car. please do something about this! thank you. oh and the gas gauge never reads correctly. i have to count my miles to make sure i am okay on gas between fill ups. the gauge will just drop to below e and the light comes on for no reason. then after a bit of driving it will go back to normal. very odd.*ak information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Unable to start vehicle,couldn't turn key in ignition. contacted dealer. ignition switch was broken.*ak

Ignition locked up, and consumer could not turn the key. contacted dealer, and dealer was not willing to do anything. *ak

The consumer inserted the key and could not turn the key. when the consumer tried to remove the key from the ignition, the key wouldn't turn or come out. the reason was due to the tumblers in the lock had dropped. the consumer was told the entire steering column assembly needed to be replaced. *scc *jb

After parking vehicleovernight next morning it would not start. after getting vehicle started consumertook it to dealer, and was told that wiring had melted, causing battery not to charge. consumer heard something on tv that nhtsa was investigating such problem.*ak

While parked put key in and it would not turn. tried another key, and would it not turn. dealer notified, repaired.*ak

Consumer was having problem with turning key in the ignition. key will sometimes get stuck. dealer notified. *ak

On sunday, 21 july 2002, the ignition switch on my focus went out. at first, the key would not go into the lock, then it would not turn. this raised three major concerns: one in the mid 90's, ford us recalled over 8 million cars and trucks that had faulty ignition switches. some of those defective switches resulted in vehicle fires. two although i wasn't moving when the defect happened, what if i had been driving and the defective switch had locked the steering wheel or left me stranded someplace less safe than my own driveway? three my focus has been recalled several times in the 27 months i've owned it, and this incident adds to my concerns over the vehicle's safety/reliability. dt

electric system wiring causing lights/ windows, and door locks to go out. dealer notified.*ak

2 times my ignition froze and the key would not turn to start the motor. and i had to have the ignition replaced both times; july 16,2002 and again on october 13, 2006. *jb

Ignition switch locked up , unable to start vehicle, contacted dealer.*ak

The problem with my ignition happen twice a year apart. i was not compensated for the repair because my car was not under warrant; however the ford relatioin departmetn and the dealership agreed that this is a defect. i was compensated the a year ago the first time it happen. i am requesting that i be refunded the amonut of 368.65. this was the fee for the repair. i also want for ford to buy the car back because there are manny reported defects.

Vehicle would ntermittently not restart within 10 minutes or more after turning off vehicle. dealer contacted. feel free to provide any further information.*ak

If all of these things are failing after 2 years how di i know some major component that may cause harm to me or my 2 young children wont go out next. no safetyy defect listed. *ak

Vehicle was going 40mph and shut down without warning. after vehicle pulled over consumer heard a boom explosion noise, and vehicle caught on fire. the battery/ alternator, and cable wires were burned. the dealer gave no explanation to what the fire was caused by. please provide more information. *ak

I cannot start my 2000 ford focus because the ignition key will not turn in the steering column - i called the dealer where i bought it - the service department gave me an estimate of $350 over the phone and said to save the receipt since this may become a recall - in the meantime i am unable to use the vehicle to drive to work until i can come up with at least $350.*ak

The key would not go into the switch, when it finally did i was unable to turn it- the tow truck driver said he'd seen seversl of these focus' having this problem- vehicle was towed to dealer on sunday- they worked on it monday and until 2 pm tuesday - charged full cost for labor and part- there is quite a history being built in your files of this problem. in the past there would almost never be a problem with keys not turning in ignition switches. i will also contact ford about this but wanted to get this onto your list first. *ak

Key would not go into ignition. when i finally got it in, it would not turn. car had to be towed to dealer. dealer tried to tell me it was because the locks had not been lubricated on a regular basis (car with 30k miles).*ak

Ignition key fails to turn in lock cylinder. steering wheel cannot be moved or unlocked when vehicle is parked. vehicle has been stranded and towed to ford dealer for repair 3 times ( at 22000, 37254 & 43000 miles) now. inoperative lock cylinder was drilled out and replaced in each case. i was charged $287.00 for the second repair (plus towing) because it "was not covered under warranty".*ak

This car has had 4 recalls so far. in addition to the recalls i have had it in for other problems like the gas light failed to to work, the igntion part after turning car off would act like the key was still in. the biggest complaint i have is the brakes at 9000 miles i had it in to check the brakes and then 8000 miles later my roters went bad. i do not feel safe in this car at all.*ak

The ignition in my 2000 ford focus has been replaced three times in the last four years. nothing unusual was happening, one day i got in my car, drove the coffee shop came out and the key would not turn. that was the first time, six months later the same thing and about six months after that. the fourth time this happened i returned to the dealer and was told that it was my key this time not the ignition. *nm

Key would not go all they way in ignition cylinder. cylinder replaced.*ak

On two ocasions the car stalled while stopped at intersection. car then restarted and continued on. both came within a week of each other. reporting because of article i saw in usa today dated 6-7-2002.*ak

Tonight my husband was driving from our home to pick up our son in south jersey. he was in 3rd gear and going approximately 30 mph car just died. a tow truck came. car unable to start. thankfully noone was with him and it was at night because a major accident could have happened. i see that 72 incidents of similar focus cars dying have previously been reported to the nhtsa. i would like my car added as the 73rd incident. oddly it was at 30,000 miles like it has been reported happening to the other focus cars.*ak

Sometimes key will not fit in ignition. took to dealer, and they stated that ignition is off track. please provide any further information.*ak

This will be the third switch this car has had and a few other people i talked to. the same problem seems to me there must be a problem the dealer said it's only guarnteed 12 months or 12 thousand miles don't seem right to me. dt

key ignition would not start car.*ak

Ignition freezes after inserting key; after several attempts it turns over. *ak

While driving at any speed batteries will die, then engine will start again without turning ignition.*ak

Ignition switch failure . switch had to be replaced on vehicle for the second time. the first incident was during the 36,000 mile warranty period. this vehicle is one of four 2000 ford focus hatchbacks that our company owns. they have all had the ignition switch replaced at least once and there is another one that has been replaced twice. this was the first one that wasn't under 36,000 miles when it was replaced. after pointing this out to ford they informed us that they are not having a problem with the ignition system. i checked the nhtsa site for complaints on the ignition system and there are many people having the same problems that we are having .*ak

While driving the vehicle at any speed, strong chemical fumes spread through out the vehicle. the dealer has been made aware of the problem. nlm the tire rod has loosened, the battery had blown, and the engine light had stayed illuminated. scc

When placing key into the ignition switch key will not go all the way in the ignition so that the vehicle can start, cause unknown. please give any further details.*ak

I own a 2000 ford focus zx3. today when i went to start my car to drive home my key would not go all the way into the ignition. i played with it and got it to go in but then the key would not turn and i could not start my car. i did some research on this problem and it seems it is a common one among focus owners. ford needs to recall the ignition switch cylinder for these cars considering the amount of problems they have caused.*ak