Ignition Switch problems of the 2004 Ford Focus - part 1

Tl the contact owns a 2004 Ford Focus. While driving various speeds, a loud noise was detected from the front of the vehicle and the check engine indicator illuminated. The contact also mentioned that the key overheated in the ignition switch and the vehicle hesitated to drive when the accelerator pedal was depressed. The contact further mentioned that the vehicle's fuel consumption was higher than normal. The contact also mentioned that both passenger doors were inoperable. The contact mentioned that the driver's side door needed extra strength to open and the rear passenger door was stuck and would not open. The vehicle was taken to multiple unknown dealers where the contact was informed that the ignition switch needed to be replaced and the engine valve was stuck. The cause of the other failures was not determined. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failures. The failure mileage was approximately 250,000.

The ignition switch failed to turn in my 2004 Ford Focus leaving me stranded. This was the first time this had happened and to temporarily remedy the situation I had to take a hammer and tap the key into the ignition and turn at the same time to start the car. The key must remain in the ignition at all times now to prevent a recurrence.

The contact owns a 2004 Ford Focus. The contact stated while trying to start the vehicle, the key would not turn in the ignition. After repeated attempts, the contact banged on the key and the vehicle started. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the ignition switch was replaced. The failure did not recur. The failure mileage was 77,139 and the current mileage was 77,673. Updated 11/9/10.

The issue I would like to report is in regard to Ford Focus automobiles from 2000 to current date 2010. There is a know defect with the ignition switch which is made with inferior metal parts in the ignition lock. What happens is that metal shavings are produced inside the lock and after time these metal shavings cause the lock to jam. Thousands of people have been affected by this problem and have been stranded because they cannot turn the ignition key. Ford denies this problem. Just go to any locksmith or tow truck driver or google Ford Focus ignition on the internet. Everybody knows about the problem. Everytime this happens it costs the owner between $500 and $800 to have this fixed at a Ford dealership. My 2004 for Focus currently has this problem. This should be a recall by Ford and I think this is the biggest scam since bernie madoff. Please do something about this. Thanks frustrated Ford owner.

First occurrence,without warning,(had never happened before) car shut off, ignition switch would not turn, resulting in vehicle no start condition. (original manufacturers key and ignition switch) contacted aaa auto club, tow truck dispatched, tow truck driver states garage has seen many 2003, 2004,2005 Focus with this problem. Also should be noted numerous similar complaints on file with all model years of this vehicle. Ford dealer that sold me the car and extended warranty claims repair not covered by warranty. Feel this is a serious safety issue as car can stall and fail to restart !!!!!!. Also feel that I was sold an overpriced "warranty" which I am told will not cover repair !!! will retain old part for investigation and possible class action. Note : vehicle mileage at failure 43,205.

Ignition switch in lock position freezes and refuses to unlock when ignition key is inserted, causing an inability to start engine or unlock steering wheel to move vehicle. This problem strands motorists wherever they are when the ignition key was switched off and removed from the ignition.

1. Ford Focus (2004) has for the past month had trouble with the key turning in the ignition. Apparently it is a well known issue and Ford refuses to acknowledge that it is a safety issue. However, I absolutely believe that being stranded somewhere at night is very much a safety issue - whether or not Ford admits this possibility. 2. The key does not turn because of a defect in the ignition switch (or so I've read online). This problem has occurred thousands of times according to online complaints and petitions, without Ford recognizing it and taking action. This problem renders the car completely unusable until fixed and the repair can be very costly and time consuming. It is most certainly a safety issue - what is safe about being unable to start one's car if one is on the side of the highway, at night in an unknown city, etc? 3. Nothing has been done yet because I am waiting to see if Ford customer service can explain why the company refuses to admit the issue and reimburse it's customers for their faulty design.

My 2004 Ford Focus ignition switch failed making it impossible to turn the key and start the car. Leaving him stranded in providence ri late Monday night. I understand that this is a class problem with the Focus and the state of California is pursuing a class action against Ford for this. Why is their no recall ??? the car has 70k miles on it, but the repair was not covered under the 100k warranty as it is over 4 years old.

2004 Ford Focus - locked ignition switch-low miles. Unable to drive or unlock steering wheel. Hundreds of complaints on this situation. Class action filed in CA.

I have a 2004 Ford Focus whose ignition switch went out and had to be replaced. This cost me a couple hundred dollars.

My ignition switch on my Ford Focus 2004 would not turn over. I was only in a fast food restaurant for 5 minutes and when I came back out, the ignition lock and steering wheel would not turn. Had to have car towed to local repair shop. Went on internet and have researched thousands of Ford Focus locked cylinder complaints. When will this become a recall? I do not know how much money I will be out of but this is ridiculous for Ford to not pay for this problem.

There were no difficulties leading up to the failure of my ignition. I put the key in the ignition of my 2004 Ford Focus and it would not turn. I had a mechanic look at it and he said it was the cylinder ignition switch. He checked online after seeing my car and found that this has been happening in Focus' since 2000. I then did some research on my own and found the same thing. I called the Ford company and they suggested I take my car to the dealership. I called another mechanic and he told me alot of Focus' have this problem and that the dealership would have to fix it because they would have to make a new key and no one else could do that. I have not totally fixed the problem yet. The mechanic who saw my car put wd-40 in the ignition and banged a screw driver in it and then it turns on. I still have to do this.

Key stuck in ignition switch. Cannot turn. Cannot be removed.

Ignition switch frozen, the cost to repair/replace quoted by Ford dealership was $361. 00, the cost by a locksmith is $300-$350. 2004 Ford Focus z3.

Key will not turn in ignition leaving me stranded at night. Seems to be a common problem with this car(Ford Focus) according to internet queries.

I have owned my 2004 Ford Focus se for about 4 years now and out of no where the ignition in the car froze. When I put my key in the ignition the key doesn't go in the key hole smoothly once all the way in it wont turn. I was stranded at work for 3 and a half hours trying to get my car started finally a tow truck driver came and used a mallet hit my key while it was in the ignition to get the car started. I brought my car to a local Ford dealership because I heard that Ford did a recall on this part. Turns out that the dealership says I am fully responsible for the part. . . I did some researching online and found that hundreds of thousands of people have the same problem Ford is not fixing this malfunction. I am deploying to iraq for the second time and I can not leave my family a working vehicle because of a defect Ford has with the ignition system. I feel as if this is a problem that Ford should face and should do an official recall on. This is poor service esp coming from a large vehicle company like Ford.

I was getting into my 2004 Ford Focus and put the key in and tried to turn it. The key would not turn. The ignition switch is broken. I researched it online and found numerous consumers with the same problem. Ford is not issuing a recall for this problem and they should. I called Ford and they said there is nothing they can do. I was left stranded at work and late for my second job because of the car trouble. I am having my car fixed today. I called a dealership and barely got two words out about the ignition and they knew exactly what I was talking about. They said that it has been happening to a lot of Focuses. This has left many people stranded and in dangerous places. Ford needs to issue a recall and fix this issue so that they do not have any more unhappy customers.

My daughter went to start her 2004 Ford Focus and the key would not turn when inserted in the ignition. Steering wheel and ignition cylinder were locked up and could not be moved. This was the first occurrence of this problem. Vehicle was towed to a nearby Ford dealership where the problem was diagnosed as "ignition cylinder binding. " dealership drilled out cylinder and replaced at a cost of $425. Failure mileage was 67,947.

The key will not turn in the ignition of my 2004 Ford Focus.

2004 Ford Focus ignition key lockout failure. Had to replace tumbler.

There were no events leading to this problem. It just happened out of no were. My key would not turn in the ignition.

The contact's son owns a 2004 Ford Focus. The contact stated that the ignition would not turn when the key was inserted. The dealer stated that the ignition switch failed and was a common occurrence. As of November 8, 2007, the dealer had not repaired the vehicle. The VIN was unknown. The current and failure mileages were 46,000.

The contact owns a 2004 Ford Focus. The contact was unable to turn the ignition when the key was inserted. The dealer was unable to duplicate the failure. The failure recurred two days later. The dealer stated that the key cartridge caused the failure and they made the replacement. The contact stated that two of the three original keys have not worked properly since the replacement. The failure mileage was 14,155 and current mileage was 14,200. Updated 01-14-08. Updated 12/12/07.

Without any warning the ignition switch of the 2004 Ford Focus began to stop functioning properly. I am currently able to turn the key if I spend a few minutes manipulating the steering wheel while simultaneously turning the key.

We purchased a brand new 2004 Ford Focus, 3 years ago. Of course the warranty just ran out (we're at about 38,000 miles). Over the past 2 weeks, we've had problems getting the key into the ignition, and once in the ignition, the key wont turn. The first time it happened, it took just a couple of attempts and then it turned. It has progressively gotten worse, and has taken up to 5 minutes to get the key into the ignition and to turn. Exactly 2 weeks and 2 days after the problem arose, I went to start my car and this time it took 10 minutes to get to key into the ignition and to turn. That same night I was attempting to leave a friends house, and again the key has trouble going into the ignition, and once in it wont turn, the steering wheel is locked, and I'm stuck. My husband has another key to the car, so we tried alternating the keys. We sat in the driveway for 30 minutes, trying both keys alternately, and the key just wouldn't turn. We had to get a ride home and are without a car now. Our mechanic said the same thing happened to someone else with the same car last week, and it cost them $420 for parts/repairs. We have to wait until next week when we can affords the repairs. I have read numerous consumer complaints about the same problem with the same car (Ford Focus, several years/models) some of them even had to replace the same part more than one time. This is obviously a faulty part, and Ford should be conducting some sort of recall to fix the part.

Yesterday I got into my car (a 2004 Ford Focus), put the key in the ignition, and the key would not turn. Today I took the car to the dealer and the problem was repaired. The key cylinder had malfunctioned. In doing some research I have discovered that this is a very common problem with the Focus, but Ford motor company has refused to recall the affected models even though this is a potential safety issue. The dealership did repair the problem, but I had to pay over $200 for it.

The key for my 2004 Ford Focus station wagon isn't working right. I turn it back and forth in the ignition and it take 5 minutes to start the car. It isn't on recall but should be. There are lots of the same issues on the internet.

Ignition switch wont turn which prevents the car from starting this happens on a daily basis, for way over a yr now. Tow truck driver told me this is common problem with this 2004 zx3 Focus. He said to hit the key a couple of times with your hand and it will turn, and it does. Only way the car will start. Called my local Ford dealer and was told 550. 00 to replace. So still not replaced.

Ignition cylinder failed to turn during start up. Key would bottom out in cylinder as required, but upon attempting to rotate in any direction the key would not move. Could not get key to rotate after repeated attempts to do so over a 12 hour period. After researching the problem on the internet and talking with the dealership service rep where I purchased the vehicle, it seems this problem is very prevalent with this particular model from its inception in 2000. The particular failed ignition cylinder installed in the vehicle listed has had numerous issues in the past, but each time resolved the problem within minutes. Not this time. It had to be repaired through destructive disassembly, ie the cylinder lock needed to be drilled and replaced.

I noticed when I first purchased my 2004 Ford Focus that it had intermittent problems with the key not turning the ignition over. I recently was stranded because my key didn't turn over and I took it the shop who confirmed it was my ignition lock that froze. The cost $265. . .

Ignition switch failure. . Fortunate that the event happened while at home. I travel frequently as an employee of the department of homeland security. This could have been very detrimental if this had occurred while on duty. Ford's extended warranty that we purchased in good faith, refused to cover the component. While the plan clearly states that the ignition switch is covered. Ford's cost for repair is over $365. 00.

I have a 2004 Ford Focus lx and the ignition locked froze. The key wouldn't turn, therefore not allowing my vehicle to start no matter what. The car only has 50000 miles on it and is fairly new. After doing some research on the web, this is a common problem in Ford Focus vehicles. There is even a class action suit going on in California. Ford doesn't recognize this as a recall because it's not a "safety" issue. If my car doesn't start in the wrong place at the wrong time, especially with my kids, this is definitely a safety issue. This is happening to thousands of people and most of them say that they had to get this problem fixed more than once within a 3 year time period.

: the contact stated the ignition switch failed to turn when the key was inserted into the ignition, thus failing to start the vehicle. This was the 4th failure. Metal shavings were seen falling out of the ignition when the key was removed. The service dealer had the vehicle towed to the service repair shop for investigation. The manufacturer was not notified.

About two weeks ago I tried to start my 2004 Ford Focus, but the key would not turn in the ignition. After about 10 tries it finally worked. This afternoon I went to my car to pick up my wife from work and the key would not turn at all. I have tried for over two hours and no results. After some research on the internet I find that this is not an isolated case but rather the norm. Even further research revealed that there is no recall from the Ford company, in fact they are actively denying that there is a problem.

The ignition cylinder locked on my 2004 Ford Focus making it impossible to start; it froze the steering column as well. It occurred late in the evening and left me stranded 50 miles from home. I have since read many reports of the same occurrence to owners of the Ford Focus of various years and trims. This problem seems to occur spontaneously without any forewarning and is of great potential danger to the driver. Focus owners report repairing the problem repeatedly and Ford adamantly denies the defect.