I've owned my Fiesta since new, bought in December 2015. This weekend was time to do the pads and rotors again, and I felt confident I could do it myself this time. I'd watched several youtube videos, bought some new parts and tools, and had everything in hand to install some new brakes and flush the fluid. The brake piston tool I got was terrible, and made resetting the pistons insanely difficult, so I called a mobile mechanic to finish the job.
He got the job done quickly and easily. When I went to bed the brakes though, the driver's side rear caliper was stuck, and not just "didn't grease the slide pin" stuck. He came back to investigate, and we determined the ABS control module had failed. Basically the brake lines kept pressure from the ABS module to the caliper, but not from the brake master cylinder to the ABS module. Parts and labor to replace the module are looking like anywhere between $1,800 and $2,400 depending on the shop, based on quotes I've gotten so far.
The problem is I just spent $2,500+ on the car in September when my clutch slave cylinder failed again. First time was in August 2023. This is a common failure point on this car so I took it in stride back then, and used the opportunity to put in a LSD as a silver lining. I was beyond frustrated when it happened again though. It was the first time the car left me stranded (1+ hours from home) and it just felt like such shitty luck for it to have happened twice.
Point is, now I'm on the hook for another major repair for a car that doesn't even have 90k miles. I take care of my car too: regular full synthetic oil changes, Ravenol transmission fluid changes, quality tires, 93 octane only fill-ups, etc.
And not to mention that I'm staring down the barrel of needing to replace the timing belt very soon too. I'm not afraid of maintaining the car, I'm just frustrated with how many of the known common failure points are affecting my car, and how damn expensive they are. And I'm frustrated that Ford decided to save literal pennies per unit by using plastic in places where sturdier materials were needed and that the owners have to suffer for it.
This is my daily driver and my favorite car that I've ever owned, but I can't keep spending this kind of money on it. I'm gonna have to get a rental (again) while parts are ordered and whatever shop fixes the car, and I think I'm sick of it. This isn't some exotic car, it's a cheap hot hatch. Ford turned me into a Ford guy when they made the Fiesta ST (and the Focus ST/RS), they disappointed me when they cancelled them, but they might have finally lost me.
He got the job done quickly and easily. When I went to bed the brakes though, the driver's side rear caliper was stuck, and not just "didn't grease the slide pin" stuck. He came back to investigate, and we determined the ABS control module had failed. Basically the brake lines kept pressure from the ABS module to the caliper, but not from the brake master cylinder to the ABS module. Parts and labor to replace the module are looking like anywhere between $1,800 and $2,400 depending on the shop, based on quotes I've gotten so far.
The problem is I just spent $2,500+ on the car in September when my clutch slave cylinder failed again. First time was in August 2023. This is a common failure point on this car so I took it in stride back then, and used the opportunity to put in a LSD as a silver lining. I was beyond frustrated when it happened again though. It was the first time the car left me stranded (1+ hours from home) and it just felt like such shitty luck for it to have happened twice.
Point is, now I'm on the hook for another major repair for a car that doesn't even have 90k miles. I take care of my car too: regular full synthetic oil changes, Ravenol transmission fluid changes, quality tires, 93 octane only fill-ups, etc.
And not to mention that I'm staring down the barrel of needing to replace the timing belt very soon too. I'm not afraid of maintaining the car, I'm just frustrated with how many of the known common failure points are affecting my car, and how damn expensive they are. And I'm frustrated that Ford decided to save literal pennies per unit by using plastic in places where sturdier materials were needed and that the owners have to suffer for it.
This is my daily driver and my favorite car that I've ever owned, but I can't keep spending this kind of money on it. I'm gonna have to get a rental (again) while parts are ordered and whatever shop fixes the car, and I think I'm sick of it. This isn't some exotic car, it's a cheap hot hatch. Ford turned me into a Ford guy when they made the Fiesta ST (and the Focus ST/RS), they disappointed me when they cancelled them, but they might have finally lost me.
