Problems with 2001 Ford Focus FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE

The same as eveyone else. the vehicle is stalling at unpredictable times due to fuel delivery system/fuel pump. i am a ase certified mechanic. i talked to ford, then i called the local dealer. they told me, as they have in the past it's a fuel pump issue. they would have to charge me 75 bucks to check it out (because according to ford, it has to be done by them regardless of my qualifications) then if it's not having the performance problem at the time they would not be able to verify it's the fuel pump. since it's intermittent i chose to pull the tank and investigate my self. i agree "kinda" that it's a fuel pump issue. the reason i say this is because i pulled the tank tonight, disassembled the pump/sending unit assembly and found a large amount of sediment in the base and around the sides of the body the pump sits in. additionally the screen/sock on the inlet side of the pump motor was almost completely clogged with the stuff,. the tank itself had a light film of the brown stuff which easily is wiped with a clean rag. looking at the gunk, it would seem to me to be very bad gas, but why just the focus. i put the same stuff in both my other two vehicles and no problems. i can't analyze the stuff to determine what it is for sure but can assure you it's only a matter of time before it caused enough cavitation for the pump to heat up burn out. i did not see evidence of any gaskets or anything else internal attached to the tank going bad, but since i use the same fuel else were w/o problems it almost has to be a situation like a seals/sealant deteriorating and producing the nasty stuff. i plan on saving $250 and clean it all and see if things improve. the pump is only available from ford (interesting). ford needs to do somthing about this before they allow somone to get killed out there on the hiway. i just purchased this vehicle used a month ago for my 15 year old daughter. i should have done better research first.

We sued ford via the magnuson moss warranty act. the focus had been sold prior to the filing of the law suit. we reached an out of court settlement of $3500. the problem with the car was intermittent stalling. the local ford dealer was unable to determine the cause of the problem.

Fuel pump failed again at 78,501. this time car quit and while i was trying to restart it fuel started pouring out of the rear of the car. luckily a nice lady ran over to my car and alerted me. car was towed to same ford dealer that had replaced the pump 8 months prior. fuel pump failed again according to the dealer. this time ford offered 100% of repair costs (minus the tow, of course). i could have died and taken many innocent people with me if that car had exploded. my 2 year old son rides in this car with me every day...i'd like to see him grow up. let's make ford come up with a permanent solution that we all can "live" with. *la

Also nov/20/01 my electric windows stopped working once again.....warrenty covered that.

Gas tank leaks while driving. *ak

Car stalls around right turns.*ak

Dt: contact complained about a fuel injection system problem. when the car came to a full stop the engine turned off. an independent mechanic advised the contact to take the car to the dealer, which she has not done. additionally, the turning lights were not returning to the original position when used. she purchased the car from a family member. therefore, she did not know the dealer's name.*ak

Fuel pump failed on 2001 ford focus z after only 48000 miles. stranded in desert near barstow california. this is a knoiwn and common problem with the focus.*ak

The fuel filter gets clogged which blocks the flow of fuel to the engine, causing stalling. this is the third time that the fuel filter had to be replaced. a recall was issued regarding this problem. *ak recall campaign # 03v482000. there was brake pulsation, the front end creaks really bad and the vehicle would have no power and or stall while going 40-45 mph. *sc *jb

Consumer experienced sudden lost of power and surging at different levels of speed. *ph the consumer received a recall regarding the fuel pump, the vehicle was inspected and it was discovered there was a problem with the pump. the consumer was informed the part was not available and had to be ordered. the consumer was told the pump and filter would be replaced, however the filter was not included in the recall and would cost $40.00. the consumer requested reimbursement. *jb

Problem is ongoing.when the gas tank is less than 1/4 tank full, the engine hesitates, as if it's not getting enough fuel, when i try to resume speed after dropping from highway speed of 40+ to anything below that and then try to accelerate again. problem typically occurs when merging onto a thruway from an access ramp. my mechanic speculates that fuel pump in gas tank doesn't get enough fuel because what fuel is left sloshes away from pump. problem is long-standing, fuel filter has been replaced but didn't help. i chose to keep the tank full rather than spend $100s of dollars investigating problem.*ak special note: model is a station wagon with a manual transmission.

Car suddenly stalls when taking a sweeping right hand turn. power steering is inoperable, leaving auto in middle of road or highway ramp.

Car lost fuel pressure and would not drive. after waiting until car cooled down car will start and drive. car only has this problem when the tempature is above 90 degrees.*ak

My 2001 ford focus zx3 had a problem with the fuel pump pickup being clogged with debris from the inside of the gas tank. the car was stalling and losing power on right hand turns. dealer refused to fix, so i did it myself; found the fuel pump screens very clogged. car runs fine now. *ph

Six months ago i had my 2001 ford focus in the shop. the complaint was the check engine light was on and i was having trouble starting my car. it was like the car had run out of gas and it wouldn't start till you filled it up. i couldn't let my gas go below 1/4 of a tank. the car dealership hadn't found any problems at the time but over the next six months it kept getting worse. eventually you had to have at least 1/2 a tank of gas in order to not have a problem starting it and it began sputtering and bogging out. eventually it got to the point that even with a full tank of gas the car would not run right meaning it bogged out and jerked and sputter everytime you pushed the gas to go up hills or when you first pulled out somewhere. it finally let me sitting in pittsburgh going through oakland i started to pull out from a stop light and when you gave it gas it just made all these funny sounds and it tried to move but wouldn't then shut off right there in traffic. i had it to the shop and they found out that the fuel pump went bad and in my home town they don't even have the part in stock anymore because they have changed so many of them in the last few months.*ak

I have a 2001 ford focus zx3, and just had to have the fuel pump replaced. upon investigation on the internet, i found that this is a common ailment for ford focuses, and is currently under investigation at nhtsa as a faulty part. i wish to add my complaint to the data accumulating on this subject, in hopes that ford does a recall for this mechanical flaw. my dealership simply told me that the problem was that the 'fuel pump went bad' and needed replacing. *nlm

While driving, the fuel pump failed, which caused the vehicle to stall. *ak the consumer was backing out of the driveway when the incident occurred. *scc *jb

Fuel pump problems related to 2001 ford focus zx3. began to stumble when at 1/4 tank and turning right and has progressed that at any time im at 3/4 tank or less i can not turn right at any reasonable speed without fuel cut. this is related to a known defect of fuel tank liner that they refuse to warranty or recall. has left me many times merging onto highway with nearly stalled engine. ford is aware and issues bulletin to dealerships but refuses to acknowledge problem to public. *jb

Problems similar to ea02-022. stalls (enigine shuts off) while driving on freeway or at any speed. fails to start in driveway or parking lot, then car gets towed to repair shop and car works fine with no problem found. replaced fuel filter with no effect on problem. verified spark works and relays are closing when car would not start. happens very frequently. about once per week. car now has 58,000 miles on it and problem started to occur around 32,000 miles. please fix this is dangerous!! stalls occur without warning. stalling this often makes this problem higher risk than an occasional stall.*ak

I have a 2001 ford focus zts.. in the last few week i notice that when i make a right turn with 1/4 tank the car wants the stall and seem running out of gas...after i put more gas in the tank i didn't get any problem..as some of the ppl who drive focus they have the same problem. *jb

2001 and up ford focus fuel pump & gas tank recall request. the fuel tank is made from a material that frequently flakes off and clogs the fuel pump very often. i have had 3 fuel pumps replaced already, and my car has less than 21,000 miles. due to the inferior design of the tank and fuel pump, the pump clogs too easily, then burns out leaving the car stranded. the design of the pump has a fine mesh screen before the larger screen so the large mesh screen is simply useless! the small screen clogs up from large flakes that would have been caught by the large screen if the pump had not been designed by retards.*ak

I own a 2001 ford focus zx3 with a manual transmission. the car will stall out in moderate to hard right or left hand turns (ie on or off ramps) i lost control of the vehicle once due to instant loss of power/weight transfer another time i was lightly rear ended buy a motorist behind me. this problem is due to what i have found to be a fuel pump/tank issue. my car has 39,000 miles on it and ford doesn't want to do anything to repair this very unsafe condition. *nlm

My automobile stalled and then the engine completely shut off while driving between oregon and hailey, idaho. the cause was determined to be a defective fuel pump. the auto was towed to the local ford dealer who informed me that a nationwide shortage of ford focus fuel pumps existed because the defect was so widespread. *tt

Related to nhtsa action #ea02022 2001 ford focus with 38,000 miles; fuel starvation, sometimes to the point of stalling. occurs when making long right turns (interstate on & off-ramps) - prevents me from merging safely into traffic. problem is most severe with less than 1/2 a tank of gas. *nlm

The small plastic clip on the fuel pump broke, which resulted in a fuel leak. vehicle wouldn't start. *nlm

The fuel pump in my 2001 ford focus se (2.0 spi engine) failed while driving. this resulted in loss of power and limited vehicle control. my vehicle had 39000 miles on at the time of the failure. ford refused to provide any support for this dangerous mechanical failure.*ak

2001 ford focus - stalls in corners and going uphill- just looses power and dies. sounds like fuel pump problem that many other focus owners have had. *nlm

Vehicle stalled with no warning and would not start back up for about 5 minutes, it seemed as if the accelerator was not pumping because gas seemed to not get to the right place. i was also driving at a high speed with my foot on accelerator and the gauge went down. it also happened at a lower speed. *jb

Starting at about 39,000 miles (october, 2002), whenever my car had a quarter tank or less of gas, the car would start choking and feel like it was going to stall. if i stopped and let the car sit for a few minutes, it would be ok for a few minutes and then it would happen again. this continued after i had the fuel filter replaced, and a mechanic couldn't figure out the problem. it has happened at many speeds, but most often while on the freeway. today, at 49,000 miles, i have more than half a tank of gas, going about 35 mph, and the same thing happened. *nlm

2001 ford focus, had to replace fuel pump (the car just died) with a little over 40,000 miles on car; told at the time the repair was not covered and was not a recall issue; went on line and did a search for "problems with ford focus"; found several similar complaints; had fuel pump replaced at my own expense at pacific coast ford in federal way, wa; also, brakes have always squeaked. *la

While driving, the vehicle hesitated/stalled. this was caused by a fuel system sensor. *ak *jb

In november of 2002, i noticed a squeal under the hood of my 2001 focus. the first time i took it in, they claimed they heard no sound. i then told the mechanic you must actually step out of the car to hear the noise.; he did hear the noise and ford had to replace the belt tensioner and serpentine belt. i began noticing that my windshield wipers would function at will. the left headlamp and turn signal was also malfunctioning. i could not get the wipers to turn off at times. i would turn the headlights off and back on again, and the wipers would turn off. this would also work at times when the wipers would not turn on, but not always. i never noticed an absolute consistency as to what would get the wipers to function properly. they also would not function at the correct speed. they would go fast when i wanted them to go slow and vice-versa. i had taken the car in twice to have this problem fixed. they replaced the multi function switch both times. a week following the second visit, i noticed they would not work again. i scheduled an appointment for the third time. in between the time i scheduled the appointment and the actual day of the appointment, i noticed the gas light had come on when i still had about 36 miles worth of gas left in my car. i noticed the light was on for a bit and then it went off. so, i told them about that problem as well when i took the car in. they replaced the fuel pump and sending unit assembly. also they replaced whatever wires were causing the multi function switch to go out again and again. i left the dealership and made a stop at a convenience store. when i tried to start my car, it would not start. not a sound or anything. the car was totally dead. i called ford to have them tow the car. this time, they claimed they needed to replace the clutch safety start switch, which they did. my breaks also squeak constantly. they adjusted the breaks and clean them up. they claim the squeaking breaks are normal. do not buy a ford.

I bought my focus used, it had 38,000 miles, on a trip the engine began to act up. it was revving all the way up but would not go above 40 mph. after calling a tow truck the check engine light came on, the dealership that i took it to had it for over a week and had difficulty locating the problem. it started and drove just fine for them. i had the fuel pump and filter replaced, as well as the fuel system flushed. while it was there they performed recall work on my battery cable routing, and my one of my engine control arm bolts. everything was fine for a few months, then i had a tire throw tread, the front passenger side. 1 week later it was back to get the other tire replaced because it had a bubble in it, after learning that i got the rest of the tires replaced. a few weeks ago my brakes started squeling, i had the pads checked they were fine, after they kept making noise i insisted that they were changed. after driving about 100 miles i started hearing a spinning thump. that became very loud. back into the shop, they replaced a brake caliper, and also i had to get yet another fuel filter, it was begining to become restricted, again. the brake problem even though it had been doing it for a while since i did not have a ford dealership do it was not covered under my warranty, and i am sure that something else will go wrong. yay!

Our car currently has 40,000 and the fuel pump has gone out. the problem with the car was the fuel gauge was not reporting the correct amount of fuel and at times the car would not go forward when the accelerator was pushed. my wife almost had an accident because the car would not accelerate.*jb

Fuel system,gasoline: delivery problem. *ak

Engine starts to stall with 1/4 to 1/2 tank of fuel when going round right hand bends (such as freeway ramps). can even occur at junctions (right turns). occurs every time without fail unless one drives very slowly - less than 30 mph. have spoken to dealers and read many reports of this failure and i am not the only one with these symptoms. *nlm

I had just finished fueling up the car and pulled away from the pump when the car died in the gas stations entrance. the car would not restart. we had the car towed to a ford dealer who stated the fuel pump was defective. the car had 53,000 miles on it at the time and ford only agreed to pay for 1/2 the cost of the repair. this vehicle has never come close to getting the gas mileage that ford says it should. my v6 honda accord gets better gas mileage than this 4 cylinder focus? *la

My 2001 ford focus zx3 stalls on curves and hesitates at wide open throttle, and has been to the dealership for this issue 4 times and nothing is being done to correct the problem. almost got rear-ended by another vehicle on one occasion because my speed dropped rapidly on a corner. ts

Vehicle starts to lose power. engine misfires, then stalls. after sitting a few minutes, car will restart fine. will then repeat.

Vehicle sluggish when gas pedal pushed, finally stalled out and wouldn't start for a period of time. when started only ran for a moment then stalled again. vehicle towed to dealer where fuel pump and filter were replaced.

I am the owner of a 2001 ford focus that suffers from a clogged fuel pump. because of this issue, my vehicle was rear ended when i lost power and stalled making a right hand turn. this clog is the result of some material used in the fuel tanks of '99, '00 and '01 ford focus. ford is aware of the problem and the stalling symptom in an ssb issued to all ford dealers service centers. the repair is to replace the fuel pump and clean the tank at an expense of $500-$1000+ to the owners. this matter has been an issue and discussed by thousands of focus owners around the country on such sites as http://www.focaljet.com and focus forums on http://www.yahoo.com. since ford only issued an ssb and not a recall, we feel this is of great safety concerns as it can and has resulted in accidents. *nlm

Engine stalls at any speed, during any weather conditions. a engine light with an 'exclamation point' comes on, the red light near the hazards button comes on, and the fuel light comes on while this stalling happens. about two weeks prior to the car beginning to stall, the check engine light had come on. i took it to the dealership and they replaced a valve (rtc, i think) in the fuel system and said i needed a new fuel filter and the fuel infectors cleaned, all for about $200. i had the fuel filter replaced at an independent garage and used techron fuel injector cleaner in the gas tank. the da i left the dealership, however, the car began to stall and it cotinues to do so.

There is just to much paperwork to copy out, but would like to mail copies. i am going to pick up car this afternoon just had second fuel pump fitted and new gas tank. to date no recall info received by post. however i have been drenched with gas on more than one occassion while filling car. i have nearly been killed when car cut out at 55mph on highway narrowly missed by two other motorists. vehicle has 38,000 miles & has had the following repairs. 1/countless engine sensors 2/four new tyres 3/new front brake pads 4/new front brake rotas 5/new front wheel bearings 6/two fuel pumps 7/one fuel tank 8/waiting for third set of a frame plastic covers 9/three stereo players 10/tracklink reset three times 11/still have realy noisy brakes 12/engine sounds like 10 year old car 13/rear passenger window works when feels like it 14/right hand door speaker sounds as if broken 15/new tires fitted showing signs of odd wear 16/tail gate leakes water 17/ thought lincoln/mercury dealer might give better results no just longer wait.

The consumer received notification about the fuel pump problem on 2000 and 2001 ford focus. ford dealers and service didn't know about the problem. *la the consumer discover that if she refilled the tank before the vehicle ha 250 miles, the problem would not occur. the first time the problem occurred the vehicle sputtered and eventually stalled. it felt like a fuel problem per consumer, in which she placed "stp fuel injection" in the tank and filled it which stopped the problem. recal#03v482000 *sc

While driving on highway, vehicle just stalled out without any warning.the vehicle stalled as if it had run out of gasoline with an almost full tank. after letting the engine sit for a few minutes, the vehicle would restart. this has occurred several times within a few days and at various speeds from 15 to 65 mph, causing loss of control of vehicle. dealer was notified, inspected the car, and said that there was nothing wrong. dt

The car initially stalled upon starting in may of 2002. the dealer was contacted and a new fuel pump was placed on the vehicle. the vehicle was then driven until october of 2002, at that time, it stalled in slow traffic two times in one day. the dealer was contacted and a second fuel pump was placed on the vehicle. approximately one week later, while traveling at 70 mph, passing a semi-tractor trailer on the interstate,the car stalled. it took 15 minutes to restart and was driven immediately to the ford dealer. the car was in the shop from october 24th until nov 12, 2002. at that time, they were unable to duplicate the failure, they then placed another fuel pump on the car and removed the gas tank. contamination was found in the fuel tank. it was cleaned and a new screen placed on the car. on november 4, 2002, the service manager contacted me and said that he could not find the problem. two days later i read the odi resume on the ford focus investigation ea02-02 basis pe02-040. dt

Bad egr system followed by battery ground failure. ph

The consequences described in the stalling recall 03v482000 occurred on numerous occasions, but this vehicle was not included in the recall due to vin. *al

Fuel system-stall out at freeway speeds-and at any long right hand turns-contacted dealer/out of warranty,to many miles to consider. brakes-rotors and pads worn out at 24,000miles-dealer stated maintenance issue,normal for the ford focus- they directed me to call ford motor co.to complain...

While driving vehicle stalled without any warning. fuel pump had a leak and all the gas leaked out.*ak