Door Latch problems of the 2000 Ford Focus - part 2

On 09/26/04 opened the driver's side back door of my 2000 Ford Focus sedan to place something in the back seat. I closed the door and proceeded to start the car and drive away. It was then I noticed the door ajar light on and pulled to the side of the road. Found the driver's side back door would not latch. The latch would lock sometimes if pushed with my finger but not when closing the door normally. At that point I drove home with my son holding the door closed until we could use a bungee cord to hold it shut. The car is presently at elyria Ford in elyria, ohio being repaired. I have called Ford motor CO and filed a complaint also after investigating on the internet and finding that a probe has been launched into failing door latches on 2000 Ford Focus the VIN no is 1fafp33p3yw249276, mfg date 02/00. The car has 32000 miles on it.

For several weeks my driver side passenger door would engage sporadically. At times it would not engage at all. Finally, the door opened while I was making a right hand turn and while my three children were occupying the back seats! fortunately no one was hurt because we use seat belts. The interior latch mechanism was replaced at our expense (276. 18); however, the mechanic said to keep our receipts because he had seen many such cases and it should be recalled. To date it has not, and if this is not a safety issue I don't know what is. Also, this is not a matter of maintenance so such a young (4 year old) car should not have problems such as this or others I have encountered.

Doors not latched properly and swinging open while driving. Right door sticking as well. Consumer unable to drive the vehicle because of the risk of door swinging open.

Upon entering and exiting the vehicle the door locks became inoperable. On the right rear door consumer had to press the lock from the inside, which was inoperable. On the front passenger and driver's side consumer had to use the key, which also became inoperable. Consumer contacted Ford dealer, and manufacturer.

Rear door problem experienced with 2000 Focus door latches. While making a left turn into a driveway the right rear door flew open. A passenger was sitting in that seat and was luckily wearing the seat belt. The consumer has had problems with the doors prior to this incident. The consumer has had to slam the doors several times for them to close properly. The consumer also noticed while driving the door ajar light would illuminate on the dash.

Opened rear (drivers side) door and placed groceries on back seat. Closed doors and left grocery store lot. Upon making a turn, en route, the rear door swung opened and some items tumbled out! pulled off the road and tried to close rear door. Was unable to. Got home and used a screwdriver to work the latch to the open position. Was difficult to get the door to stay closed. I try not to use this door even now.

About six months ago, while I was driving on the highway going about 65mph, my back door opened. This situation progressively got worse, and started occuring more often, and now with both doors. I notified the dealer, where I bought the vehicle, and they informed me that there was no problem that Ford was responsible for, and suggested that I spend almost $1000 to have this repaired. I also contacted another dealership, and Ford motor companies 800 number, and they advised me that there were no problems with the back door locks. I can close the doors, although they will not stay closed, nor lock.

1. No indication that failure would occur at any time. 2. Failing door-actuator. 3. Consequences: door cannot be open at all, key, inside/outside door handle can be operated but will not unlock the door. The remote opener is rendered useless. There is no prior warning it happens all at once. This is the second time that this has happened to this vehicle in less than one year. My daughter who is eight month pregnant had to crawl over to the passenger side to be able to exit the vehicle (in 96 degrees weather). Quite a chore in a small car like this. The dealership refused to fix this under warranty and expects me to pay $574. 00 for the repair. In order to get to the mechanism I was told they most likely will have to break out the door panel, which would also be my responsibility. In my 30+ years of driving I have never had anything like this happening to any of the cars I have been driving. First of all - in my opinion, this is a safety hazard and it is the manufacturer's responsibility. Even if the remote access fails, one should still be able to open the door manually. The key will turn counter-clockwise to the 10 o'clock position and clockwise to the 1 o'clock position. I called the Ford customer service number and was brushed off (out of warranty). Also,the Ford representative acknowledged that Ford does not consider this a safety hazard. I asked for the name of the manufacturer of the door activator and was denied this information. Then I asked to talk to the next person in the supervisory chain and was told that I could not talk to anybody else about this problem. I checked the complaint section on this problem and this is the 53rd complaint on this model car regarding door locking/unlocking problems. When is somebody going to do something about this? I was under the impression that this agency is here to protect the consumer, or is it just a sounding board?.

For no apparent reason, the rear doors on my 2000 Ford Focus se do not stay latched. This problem is intermittent but has been happening with greater frequency. Additionally, the right rear passenger door will not open from the inside, unless the door never latches at all. I have three children I reansport in this vehicle and I no longer consider it safe. This problem has appeared on several other 2000 Focus cars and I consider it to be a defect that should be recalled.

My 2000 Ford Focus has a defective left rear door latch. The vehicle has not been involved in an accident. My dealer, lighthouse Ford in falmouth, MA, examined the latch and advised that it was "rusted" beyond repair and that a replacement latch, costing over $200, would not be covered by my extended warranty. Since the door somehow seems to secure itself (without the function of the latch), I opted not to install a new latch at my expense. Is the door a hazard? please advise.

The rear driverside door of my car would not stay closed. It popped open while I was driving. Luckily the back seat was empty. My son and his friends usually travel back there along with the family pet. It was Sunday so service centers were not open. We had to take apart the entire door to get the mechanism inside the door to work enough so I can lock the door. The other side doesn't appear to look any better.

Both rear door latches failed. As a result, while driving at highway speed, the rear passenger door flew open. Children were in the back seat when the doors flew open. The door would not re-latch.

I was having problems closing my rear door and keeping closed. It had opened more then twice when I finally called Ford. They said they do not cover locks and that it would cast upwards of $275. Needless to say that is unheard of. I wd40 the latch to get it shut and have not used the door since, and when I use the other doors they all make a very loud creaking sound, it's awful. With all the problems and recalls to my 4 year old 2000 Focus I am disscusted that I even bought the car. Now there is a recall on the part. . . . . Go figure. . .

While driving, the consumer noticed that the rear passenger door opened on its own. Consumer was able to maintain control of the vehicle , and pulled over. The consumer closed the door and the door opened on its on again. Vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection, the mechanic determined that the locking mechanism needed to be replaced. The consumer stated both rear doors were inoperative.

Vehicle's back doors open while the consumer is driving. They are automatic locks, and they still fly open. Someone has to sit in the rear to keep the doors from opening.

The door latch on the rear driver's side seized up and the door would not open. Due to this the latch, the door handle and reinforcement had to be replaced. The handle still would not open the door due to Ford providing them the wrong part number to be ordered for the latch. Once the car dealership was able to find the correct part number to order the latch the door was fixed, but the handle still comes lose on the inside of the door. The only way to fix this is to hit the handle.

The consumer stated the automatic locks and the doors failed to latch . The consumer had to tie the doors up with rope, because on one occasion the door flew open. The rear passenger door would open on left turns.

While driving driver's door opened and closed on its own. Vehicle was taken to the dealership on June 30 , 2004, dealer repaired and replaced hinges and electrical motor at consumer's expense of $700. 00, but problem recurred.

Upon trying to shut the rear left door it will not shut, the latch does not catch. Consumer had to continuously slam the door to get it shut.

Problems with 2000 Ford Focus rear door latches. (the rear door opened while the vehicle was in motion) the fuse was broken making the latch freeze. The vehicle had a faulty part in the left side driver's door actuator. This made the front door and passenger side door useless. The door could not be opened from the inside or outside, not even with the unlock button from the inside, the key or even the remote.

Rear driver's side door did not latch. As a result, the door did not shut properly, and consumer had to tie a rope around it.

Left rear passenger door latch has failed to function. Door will not latch rendering the vehicle unsafe to transport children. This is the latest in a history of recalls and component failures that lead me to consider suing Ford under NY's lemon law. I was in the process of trying to sell this vehicle and am now unable to due to this latest problem.

While driving consumer noticed that the rear passenger side door opened on its own. Consumer was able to maintain control of the vehicle, and pulled over. Consumer closed the door, and the door reopened on its own. Vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection, and mechanic was not able to duplicate the problem.

Rear door on the driver's side does not latch correctly. Once opening the door it does not shut.

The owner could not unlock the front passenger side or rear driver side doors from the inside or outside of the vehicle. The dealer was notified.

Three different instances where the passenger back door flew open when making a turn. The door was properly closed and the doors were locked but the door flew open. No one was hurt thank goodness because they had their seat belt on. They could have been thrown from the car. If you had a pet in the car they would have fallen out. Another time my daughter was driving the car and the door flew open. She is an inexperienced driver being only 16years old. She could of had a accident. I no longer let her drive this car. It is a 2000 Ford Focus. I called the dealership and they said they would have to look into the problem. I said will I be charged they said possibley. . . .

When the vehicle was parked or running, the front driver and passenger door locks did not unlock.

Problem is that I made a right hand turn and the rear driver side door flew open, with my son in the back seat. Upon futhur investigation I found the door latch on my 2000 Ford Focus to be at fault. I had to replace the unit. I contacted Ford with my concerins of this happening to other vehicals with no response. I feel that this is a very very unsafe as to my self and my family, they could have been servierly injured. I have owned several car in my lifetime and never had a door latch fail. Nor did the child restrant locking system on the latch work and it was engaged.

Both rear door locks do not latch and swing open when rounding a corner. Must tie down with bungee cord. Mechanic shows locks corroded and defective. Locks replace for $350. A very dangerous failure which could have caused serious injuries to rear seat occupants.

Rear driver's side door came open on it's own (with a child in the back), safety locks were engaged and there was no indication from the sensor light that the door was not latched properly. Soon afterwards I began having more frequent difficulty getting same door to stay latched. Door is now inoperable as it will not latch once opened. The other three doors do not latch smoothly and I often have problems getting the trunk to latch properly. On one of my numerous recall trips to the service center, I asked if there were any recalls on the doors and was told no. Since the car is no longer under warranty, I cannot afford to get it fixed but neither can I safely transport anyone in the rear seat. This is absolutely ridiculous. The entire car should be recalled and replaced!.

Both locks in the rear doors in my Ford Focus have failed. My doors are now held closed with bungee cords.

Both rear door latches are not working. Door flew open while driving on a highway. Consumer has to use rope to tie both doors. Dealer notified, it will cost $450. 00 to fix problem. My son changed the latches and found that they were heavily corroded.

There was a short in one of the locks on my 2000 Ford Focus. This caused the passenger side door to be unable to be opened either manually or electrically, from the inside or the outside. This seems to be a common problem in the Focus, and has the potential to result in being trapped in the car in a dangerous situation. The manual locks should at least be able to override the electrical ones, so that the doors could be opened in case of a short.

Consumer stated that while driving and without warning door would automatic lock ,and it would be hard to unlock the doors to enter or exit the vehicle. Dealer notified.

My 2000 Ford Focus se has faulty rear door latches. They will not stay closed. They started to become difficult to latch in 2003. Ford was notified but refused to pay for fixing the doors. Now I use bungee cords to keep the doors closed while driving.