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2014 transmission problems fixed for 2015 Fiesta ST??

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Seminole
#1
I have ordered a 2015 Fiesta ST, but after reading about some of the issues with transmissions I am a little worried. Maybe I am over thinking it. From what I can tell, it seems many of the problems were with the first wave of 2014 Fiesta ST's. So does anyone know if the 2015 FiSTs are doing better as far as tranny, clutch, DMF problems? How many of you with new 2015 FiSTs have had serious issues? Also, anyone have an idea as to the actual number of owners that had major issues so far?
 


BRGT350

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#2
are you confusing the automatic transmission with the ST 6-speed? I haven't heard of any issues with the manual transmissions in the Fiesta, either the IB5 or 6-speed in the ST. The automatic, not available on the ST, is plagued with complaints. It is best used as a boat anchor, paper weight, or lawn decoration.
 


OP
O
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Seminole
Thread Starter #3
Yeah, I know about the crappy Fiesta autos, but I read about all kinds of issues like clunking, even some grinding and problems between 1st and 2nd. I guess some noise in the gearbox is normal for FiSTs?
 


BRGT350

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#4
I think I have driven around 5 different Fiesta ST's and don't recall any noise from the gearbox, nor am I familiar with similar complaints. There are reports of hard shifting due to cables rubbing together, but that is external to the gearbox and can be adjusted. None of the cars I have driven have had that issue.
 


rodmoe

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#5
There have been a normal amount of reports on noise and tranmissions being replaced by Ford.
Over all I would not be worried about it as they were far and few between (unless you had issues)
the shifting and noise is a matter of personal detection as I am rather hard of hearing I notice little but getting the shifting down as on any car will take a little bit of time to learn the tricks of that model. most talk I heard was about getting the shifter in First gear while rolling as a good speed yet it is easy to work around by going to 2nd then 1st while nearly stopped as first is so short a gear you would not want to engage it to early anyway..
I Do think I could count on one hand the threads I have read about real tranmission failures..
Again I would not worry these are pretty tough little 6 speeds ..
 


OP
O
Messages
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Location
Seminole
Thread Starter #6
Awesome! I am so excited to get my FiST [hihi], but I hear the delivery times are horribly long...much longer than the dealers "it will take 6-8 weeks" [bawling]
 


rodmoe

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#7
Awesome! I am so excited to get my FiST [hihi], but I hear the delivery times are horribly long...much longer than the dealers "it will take 6-8 weeks" [bawling]
That may have gotten better over time but last I heard the quickest delevery from Order time was 9 weeks most are 10 to 12 weeks so prepare for the worst and enjoy when I am proved wrong and you get yours in 6 to 8.. Hey it could happen.. either way this car is well worth the wait imho.. hang in there once or if you do order it will get here and we are here to help you through the waiting so we can watch you be bitten by the MOD bug LOL ..
 


SPhilli911

Active member
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Hartford, CT, USA
#8
This reminds me of a time when I went searching for a car before the ST... In my research I found that this car (Subaru STI) had a potentially catastrophic issue with the oil pickup tube cracking, failing, and starving the engine of oil. I nearly turned the car down based on that issue. Turned out the issue was affecting a small percentage of cars, but the forums I read made it seem like a massive car killing issue. You gotta keep in mind that people go to forums specifically to talk about car problems more than anything.

I think my point is, don't turn the car away because a small percentage of cars may have a transmission issue, which could have very well been caused by user error anyways.
 


OP
O
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Seminole
Thread Starter #9
Speaking of mods, is a RMM mount like Cobb's easy to do yourself? I have little exp working on cars myself. The only things I have ever done are changing oil and brake pads and rotors.
 


BRGT350

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#10
It is amazing how much questionable information is out there on the car forums. I guess that extends to about everything online. I follow a number of forums on RC aircraft and after 1 plane has an incident, the next thousand posts make it sound like every plane built has the same issue. Turns out, just the one plane had the incident and nobody else had a problem.

As for shipping times, I ordered mine on May 7th and the car arrived on August 18th. The plant didn't start 2015 production until June, so a solid month was spent waiting for model year change-over. My ST started down the production line on July 8th, produced on July 14th, and started the trek north via railcar on July 15th. Expect a solid month for shipping.

My 2011 Fiesta was ordered in early February, the day the ordering banks opened for the Fiesta, and the car arrived July 7th. Production started in May 2010 for that car.
 


OP
O
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Seminole
Thread Starter #11
I completely understand where you're coming from, even with the RC comment, as I used to be into RC helis. But I guess I have been burned before a little. I try not to buy into the hype of people with problems. You can find a lot of info on Taurus firearms being crappy guns on many forums. But many of the people that say Taurus guns are bad have never even owned a Taurus or even shot one. Its always a friend of a friend had one that blah blah blah... HOWEVER... I owned one that did not work so well. So while I understand that problems with many products can be blown out of proportion, I still try to be cautious.
 


rodmoe

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#12
Speaking of mods, is a RMM mount like Cobb's easy to do yourself? I have little exp working on cars myself. The only things I have ever done are changing oil and brake pads and rotors.
Very easy to do it yourself with the right equipment and by that I mean safe equipment like car ramps or jack stands or a friend with a lift to get under the car.. MODs are fun but always work SAFE..
 


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Location
RVA
#13
Model Aviation FTW. I'll be a bit happier with the Fist as I'll be able to take more than one plane to the field at a time.

As an added data point a few recent orders, including mine, have been quoted around 14 weeks delivery. Took 7 weeks alone to get my window sticker generated, still no build date assigned.
 


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Location
Sherwood Park
#14
I think a lot of transmission and clutch issues are driver related. If you do a lot of clutch drops and always force shifts faster than the syncro's can handle, then you will likely have transmission and clutch issues. Driven normally or even semi agressively, i don't think the FiST 6 speed is problematic.
 


Chris G

Active member
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Location
San Diego
#15
My FiST transmission has been a little noisy (in my opinion... I hear everything) since day 1. 6 months later and 7000 miles and everything still feels the same. The noise I experience is when I shift between 1-2, 2-3 and disengage the clutch. I only notice when I am focusing on listening for it and am fairly confident this is normal.

Don't let it stop you - this is a great car.
 


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Location
Dearborn
#16
Awesome! I am so excited to get my FiST [hihi], but I hear the delivery times are horribly long...much longer than the dealers "it will take 6-8 weeks" [bawling]
If you have your dealer code and order number, send it to me via private message, and I can track your order. :)

Meagan
 


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Location
Los Angeles
#17
Mine just makes a click clunk when shifting, pretty normal noises... I'm just not sure how many people know how to determine normal noise from bad noise
 


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Location
Norman, OK, USA
#18
Mine just makes a click clunk when shifting, pretty normal noises... I'm just not sure how many people know how to determine normal noise from bad noise
Mine makes quite a bit of rattle between 1~3 shift change. Maybe it'll be a good idea to do a meet and hear everyone's noises.
 


Messages
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Location
Asheville
#19
The short answer to your question "have they fixed the transmission issues for the 2015 model?" is...

NO THEY HAVE NOT!!!

Here are the issues I've experienced in the almost 15k miles I've owned my fully loaded 2015 FiST:

The first things I noticed were slight rattles from the interior as well as interior trim not fitting correctly (huge gaps between the center screen and dash etc.) and usual tech-gremlins (my sync system is a joke) I just accepted all of that as part of buying an econo-box turned rally car.

The second thing I noticed was a clunk when shifting between gears. Took the car to the dealer. They replaced the top right motor mount and whala, the noise was gone. At this point the car had less than 5k miles. I was happy with the service departments solution, but concerned with the quality of the assembly of my particular car.

The third thing I noticed were paint chips. Yes the paint is really thin and chips easily, but the paint on my FiST also started peeling off in large sections after it chipped. I didn't accept that as a part of buying an econo-box turned rally car. Eventually, Ford repainted my front bumper under warranty. The body shop they sent it to... well... When I picked my car up from the dealer there was a !warning! in the my ford touch system that said the car was stalled at 9:45pm (when my car was supposed to be in the shop). The service department at the dealer called the body shop; the body shop denied everything; at which point the service department wiped their hands of it and claimed they'd "done what they could" (not their car, not their problem).

The fourth things I noticed were that the black vinyl/sticker trim around the windows started bubbling up and the interior trim inside the small triangular A-Pillar windows started to warp. Also, the seat warmers on my $2,000 Recaro's fluctuate between very hot and basically off every 10 minutes (Ford claims this is also a "normal characteristic of the vehicle"). Again, I just accepted those were a part of buying an econo-box turned rally car.

The fifth thing I noticed was a rattling noise when shifting between gears. I assumed the top right motor mount was bad again. However, the noise grew, and grew, and grew, to the point that it was very loud and present when the car was sitting still and idling. The noise would go away when I depressed the clutch pedal and return when I let the clutch pedal back up. I dropped it off at the dealership and picked it up a week later. The dealership called my issue "engine rollover noise" and a "normal characteristic of the vehicle." I didn't accept that and took my FiST to another local Ford dealer, who determined the noise to be either a throw-out-bearing issue or a clutch issue. I know it's not the clutch because the clutch has never slipped and has never been burned (unless the body shop that repainted the front bumper took my car for a joy ride and stalled it at quarter till 10pm when they were supposed to be closed and my car was supposed to be in their shop, but again "not Ford's problem or liability").
I stopped by the dealer today because the service adviser hasn't been keeping me in the loop. I learned that they hadn't even started on my car, it's just been sitting in the lot, waiting for a lift to open.

MY FIRST 14,730 MILES HAVE NOT BEEN GOOD! I REGRET BUYING MY FIESTA! Which is a shame because I was really excited about the Focus RS and planned on buying one. After this, I think I'll just save up for a performance car that's not such a "bargain." I definitely learned that in life (especially with Ford) you get what you pay for.
 


Messages
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7
Location
Asheville
#20
Yes, waiting times are very long.... I got tired of waiting for the one I ordered (7 months). I got my deposit back and bought one off of a competitor dealers lot. I regret every decision I've made concerning my relationship with Ford and my FiST!!!
 


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