2016 Focus ST-Line 1.0L Ecoboost 125 - now with 36k miles on the clock

Has anyone else had a problem with their Focus ST-Line dropping out of 6th gear? This leaves you with no power so you end up freewheeling to a stop (it doesn't allow you to drop into 5th or 4th as you slow down). Once stopped, the car then allows you to get into 1st and off you go as if nothing had happened.

The car has been to a Ford dealer three times now. The first time they told me they had adjusted some clutch cables. The second time they took out the gearbox, full inspection but no diagnosis (they just hoped that doing this might have sorted it!), and now third time (three or four months later) they say that it is an overheated / worn clutch that is down to driver error.

After 40 years of driving Fords, without any such a problem, and not being a driver that pushes the performance anywhere near its upper abilities, I think this is unlikely.

Does anyone have any experience of a similar problem? Does anyone have any thoughts on whether this is an accurate diagnosis, or have another view?

By clutch driver error they mean riding the clutch causing it to constantly slip when in stop/start traffic or when waiting on a hill instead of using the handbrake. Can't imagine that though as you have hill start assist so no need to ever ride the clutch really.

Not really a common problem with the mk3 Focus. It's not unheard of as Focus' are so popular, anything that can go wrong will have gone wrong for at least 1 person. Have they had a look at the selector at all? possible something is bent/amiss on that.

By reading more about how clutches work, and what clutch slipping means, I will add some further information to my post.

When this problem happens there is no movement of the gear lever itself (ie of it visibly shifting from 6th to neutral). Therefore the problem may be better described as that pressing the accelerator causes the rev counter to move freely up and down with no resistance as if the car was out of gear.

This has only happened when in 6th gear and there have been no problems getting into a gear or moving between gears.

Ah that's completely different to what you described above lol.

Seems bizarre that it only happens when you're in 6th though. Would you say you ride the clutch a lot in traffic etc? I wouldnt doubt them in saying that the clutch is shagged though.

No. My commute to work doesn't involve driving in queues, and involves minimal number of junctions or roundabouts.

I was taught not to touch the clutch unless specifically changing gear so I am confident that I am not the cause (my father worked at a Ford garage all his working life). The car was 9 months and 12000 miles when I bought it, so I cannot tell about beforehand.

 

The clutches on these are rubbish so it almost certainly will be that at fault, you can't compare them to your experience with older Ford clutches.

Your problem isn't the common one though, I'd suggest you're not fully engaging 6th when it happens because of clutch drag, eventually it pops out because it's only 'half' in and can't be put into another gear until the clutch cools slightly.