Ignition Locks That Won’t Work After the Warranty Expires
Fazio | Micheletti LLP and their co-counsel, San Francisco-based Kerr & Wagstaffe LLP are prosecuting a class action on behalf of California residents who either own or lease a Ford Focus, or who have paid to repair or replace an ignition lock in a Ford Focus when they did own or lease that vehicle.
The case is pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, in which the plaintiffs have alleged that Ford has fraudulently concealed the existence of a defect in thousands of Ford Focus vehicles, which causes the ignition lock to freeze. And when the ignition lock fails, it is impossible to turn the key or start the vehicle's engine.
Replacing the ignition lock can as much as $500, and it consumers have reported that they have had to replace the lock more than once in the same vehicle. And although Ford has acknowledged the existence and magnitude of the problem, it has taken the position that it need not provide a cost-free repair because the problem is not safety-related.
Focus owners who have experienced ignition-lock failure first-hand disagree, pointing out that being stranded in the wrong place at the wrong time can be very dangerous.
Several news reports that describe the problem in a fair amount of detail have aired since this case was filed. For the complete story and the video that was broadcast, click on the name of the stations that follow: CBS5 in San Francisco; ABC7 in San Francisco and Seattle; and ABC7 in Washington, D.C.
For some insight into the way Ford addresses such problems, click here to read ABC7's Seven on Your Side's “Back Story.” Another report, at ConsumerAffairs.com, includes this observation:
To read the whole story, click here.While Ford diddles with its finances and holds erudite discussions about its manufacturing processes, it is alienating huge segments of its customer base with shoddy products and an astonishingly cavalier response to consumer complaints. In the last 12 months, we have received four times more complaints about Ford products than about GM or DaimlerChrysler. Not only are Ford complaints more frequent than complaints about other brands, the problems that spark the complaints are major -- ruined engines, disastrous fires and repeated ignition lock-ups being the most common.
If you’ve had to repair or replace an ignition lock in a Ford Focus, please contact us by clicking here.
