Ford Australia has been slapped with a AUD 10 million (~ PHP 393 million) fine by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACC) for the company’s “unconscionable conduct” for failing to address complaints over its PowerShift automatic transmission.
The amount is a record-setting fine handed out to a car company in Australia and represents over 10,500 complaints regarding the Ford Fiesta, Focus, and EcoSport models equipped with the dual clutch automatic transmission sold between 2011-2015.
Complaints in Australia began to surface in 2015 and 2016 and Ford now admits it initially misdiagnosed the problem.
“We took too long to identify the issues and we acknowledge that PowerShift customers did not have complaints handled appropriately between May 2015 and February 2016,” said Graeme Whickman, President & CEO Ford Motor Company, Australia.
“We were overwhelmed with the volume of complaints and, while it was not intended, over a ten-month period our processes were inadequate and information provided was either inaccurate or incomplete. We let our customers down and for that we are sorry.”
“We now realize this program was flawed as it didn’t ensure an adequate assessment of customers’ rights under [Australian] consumer law. We are committed to making right with these customers.”
For his part, ACCC Chairman Rod Sims said: “Despite knowing that shuddering was a symptom of the quality issues with the vehicles, Ford frequently told customers that shuddering was the result of the customer’s driving style. Ford knew that the symptoms of the quality issues with the vehicles were experienced intermittently but required customers to demonstrate them on demand in the presence of a dealer in order for repairs to be undertaken.”
“In most cases, Ford refused to provide a refund or no-cost replacement vehicle to consumers, even after vehicles had undergone multiple repairs that had not resolved consumers’ complaints,” continued Sims.
Ford says it will provide compensation to affected customers in line with the independent reviewer’s decision. The process may entail Ford having to fix, buy back, or replace all of the 10,500 vehicles affected as deemed by an independent auditor.
Source: News.Au
Stick to Japanese cars.
ReplyDeleteIts name speaks for itself - FORD - Fix Or Repair Daily! Japanese cars all the way!!!
ReplyDeleteOverheating turbo engines and airbag recalls all the way!
DeleteYeah, the dual clutch transmission is a piece of s*** but so are the Korean and German DCTs. Other than DCTs, there doesn't seem to be much of a problem aside from iffy after sales service and lack of available parts. Yung puro Japanese, they are close minded. Ayaw ng korean, american o european. Subok kayo ng iba, don't play safe.
Can't afford kasi yung iba, so they stick to Japanese brands para may peace of mind. 9/10 of them hulugan pa naman. I see many new car owners in car clubs worrying about a measly P10K PMS. Wtf? Sad talaga pag poor. Those with a lot of disposable income are more inclined to try different brands as non-Japanese brands. Pero iwas pa rin ako sa American brands. Planned obsolescence is part of their corporate strategy.
DeleteThen you're no different than those close minded japanese buyers. Most modern cars today are built to be replaced in 10-15 years, whether it be american, japanese, korean or european. Don't knock it til you try it.
DeleteThe key to DCT is to floor it once in a while, try to have a consistent rpm range to make it predictable to the TCU and use L for steep inclines like in multi level parking. The issue that most people have might be due to regular switching of drivers so the TCU can't learn the driving habits of the user.
ReplyDeleteThat’s exactly the reasoning of Ford initially. Turns out it’s not the driver’s fault but the transmission.
DeleteAgree. Ford should have tested it more before selling them. This is where Japanese brands generally excel.
DeleteBakit walang coverage na banned sa china crv ng Honda dahil leaking fuel inside car? Palibhasa jap fanboys mga nandito?
ReplyDeletePat civic ganyan din daw ata sakit malamang recall or ban kung hindi ma fix
DeleteKung American, Korean at European na Kotse mo dapat gumamit ng Japanese Genuine Parts. (Example: Toyota, Mitsubishi, Honda, Nissan, etc.) Mas Madali maghanap ng piyesa. Kaya Mas OK ako sa Japanese Parts.
ReplyDeleteMitsubishi? Its the most unreliable Jap brand. Its reputation is down there in the dumps on the level of Fiat.
DeleteKnowing that Asia-Oceania models all hail from Thailand, won't this admission set off some kind of resolution here too?
ReplyDeleteWhat about us here in the Philippines? Just remember how they market the Fiesta when it was launched here. Damaged goods pala
ReplyDeleteGanyan talaga sa Pilipinas walang consumer protection. Maski sa China banned na ang CRV at Civic sa leaking fuel.
DeleteDapat ito tignan nila. Hindi yung SUA-SUA na obvious remedy is to replace the driver.
Deletehttps://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=2098278246862964&id=108878629136279
ReplyDeleteI experienced the EXACT SAME PROBLEMS with my 2012 Fiesta and was told the same things as Aussie consumers. I was so damn frustrated with the shuddering that I sold my Fiesta at a loss.
ReplyDelete