Powershift in Fiesta vs. Focus?

[Aglie]

How similar are they? Has anyone here tried them both out?

I hear mostly good things about the ones in Fiestas, but I've seen several 2012 Focus reviews (including Consumer Reports) that loudly complain about how awful the automated manual transmission is. What gives? Are they tuned very differently, is there a problem handling the extra weight and power, or are expectations higher for the Focus?

I myself drive the 5-speed manual Fiesta so I don't have any experience with either PowerShift, but the amount of negativity on the automated manual is a bit alarming. I must be in a tiny minority, as I really value having an agile, fun-to-drive car with great gas mileage that is actually quiet. From hearing Consumer Reports tell it, those are all insignificant and the most important factors for a subcompact or compact are the ability to fit 3 people who are much bigger than me into the back seat and having a slushbox transmission.

[71Grabber302]

Originally Posted by Aglie

How similar are they? Has anyone here tried them both out?

I hear mostly good things about the ones in Fiestas, but I've seen several 2012 Focus reviews (including Consumer Reports) that loudly complain about how awful the automated manual transmission is. What gives? Are they tuned very differently, is there a problem handling the extra weight and power, or are expectations higher for the Focus?

I myself drive the 5-speed manual Fiesta so I don't have any experience with either PowerShift, but the amount of negativity on the automated manual is a bit alarming. I must be in a tiny minority, as I really value having an agile, fun-to-drive car with great gas mileage that is actually quiet. From hearing Consumer Reports tell it, those are all insignificant and the most important factors for a subcompact or compact are the ability to fit 3 people who are much bigger than me into the back seat and having a slushbox transmission.

Where have you been looking? lol the auto trans in my 2011 Fiesta went out the day after I got the car, well it didn't actually go out it was a serious software issue (it wouldn't shift into 2,4,6 or reverse) the problem seems to be fixed and now I have almost 800 miles on the car with no more issues but alot of others with powershifts in the Fiesta that haven't been so lucky and have had to get the transmissions replaced with extended wait times because Ford didn't have any replacement transmissions in stock. So far I haven't read about these kinds of serious flaws with the Focus, but then again I haven't really looked.

[Flagstang]

focus people are having problems also


2012 Transmission went wacko today - Page 2 - Focus Fanatics

[billnchristy]

Sounds completely different.

[GapBoyPCS]

Originally Posted by billnchristy

Sounds completely different.

I'm on a few other forums, and there doesn't seem to be that many gripes against the 2012 Focus PowerShift.

[billnchristy]

The ones linked are all weird computer issues.

I wonder if they have painted grounds as well, may be that simple a fix on those.

[Aglie]

So the problems in the Focus reviews were general clunkiness at low speeds. I heard some reports of unreliable PowerShift transmissions in early Fiestas, but that sounded like separate problems that seem to have been mostly resolved. So is low-speed clunkiness the same issue with Fiesta and Focus?

And is PowerShift continuing to be generally unreliable? Or was it mostly an early o problem?

I just have the 5-speed, because I like it (though I would have preferred a 6-speed manual). So I don't have any first-hand knowledge of all this.

[tjl]

In the absence of a torque converter, the Powershift is probably rough if you try to drive it slower than first gear idle speed -- much the way you would have difficulty driving a manual slower than first gear idle speed without a lot of clutch slip and wear. It may not be what a typical automatic driver expects in the parking lot or in very slow moving traffic jams.

[dalegood]

Originally Posted by tjl

In the absence of a torque converter, the Powershift is probably rough if you try to drive it slower than first gear idle speed -- much the way you would have difficulty driving a manual slower than first gear idle speed without a lot of clutch slip and wear. It may not be what a typical automatic driver expects in the parking lot or in very slow moving traffic jams.

Shift to L in these conditions and all is well!