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Ford PZEV transmission class action overview
- Who: A Ford car owner has filed a class action lawsuit against the automaker
- Why: The consumer says Ford has failed to properly pay for the diagnosis, repair, and replacement of the transmission of certain vehicles
- Where: California federal court
Ford fails to properly identify and pay for the diagnosis, repair, and replacement of the transmission of some of its vehicles, a new class action lawsuit alleges.
Plaintiff Victoria Berghuis filed the class action against Ford Motor Company June 14 in a California federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws.
She alleges that Ford has failed to properly identify and pay for the diagnosis, repair, and replacement of the transmission of certain vehicles for 15 years or 150,000 miles for partial zero emissions vehicles (PZEVs) and super ultra low emissions vehicles, for which Ford has received a .2 Zero Emissions Credit from the California Air Resources Board.
Her claims relate specifically to all vehicles distributed by Ford that are zero or super low emissions vehicles and for which Ford does not provide 15-year or 150,000-mile coverage relating to the transmission.
Under the California Emissions Warranty, defects which increase regulated emissions in low emissions vehicles, such as the Class Vehicles, shall be covered under warranty for 15 years or 150,000 miles, the lawsuit states.
Transmission defects in the vehicles increase regulated emissions, cause the Malfunction Indicator Lamp to illuminate, and cause the vehicle to fail a California smog check, Berghuis says.
Therefore, the transmission in the vehicles should be covered by the California Emissions Warranty, the lawsuit alleges.
Drivers had to pay out of pocket for repairs
As a result of Ford not providing proper warranty coverage for the transmission in the affected vehicles, drivers have and are continuing to pay out of pocket for repairs that should be covered under the California Emissions Warranty, the lawsuit states.
“Further, as a result of Ford not providing proper warranty coverage for the transmission in Class Vehicles, Plaintiff and the members of the Class and Subclasses have and are continuing to suffer damage as a result of purchasing or leasing Class Vehicles with a deficient warranty which was worth less than the warranty they were legally entitled to at the time of purchase or lease.”
The plaintiff is seeking certification of the class action, damages, fees, costs and a jury trial.
Meanwhile, Ford has recalled certain 2021 Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator SUVs after a spate of under-hood fires in the vehicles that have already injured one person.
What do you think of the allegations in this case? Let us know in the comments!
The plaintiff is represented by Jordan L. Lurie, Ari Y. Basser, Robert L. Starr and Manny Starr of Pomerantz LLP.
The Ford PZEV Class Action Lawsuit is Victoria Berghuis v. Ford Motor Company, Case No. 3:22-cv-00871-JLS-KSC in the U.S. District Court Southern District of California.
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26 thoughts onFord class action alleges automaker fails to fix transmission issues in PZEV vehicles
2016 ford escape. 130k miles. Transmission making horrible noise, shuttering, not going then lunging into gear. Fluid is good. Just happened at once. Been parked for 2 months now. What to do, I can’t afford 8k dollars for a transmission
I owned a 2013 Ford escape and was financed. Only had it for 10 months before the coolant light would come on and shut the entire engine off. Happened in the middle of highway with my 3 young children in the car. Had to coast to the side and almost was in a major accident because steering wheel wouldn’t turn. Then I couldn’t reverse anymore as it would go forward in reverse. I was told the coolant had a cracked cylinder and was dripping and needed entire new transmission. Had to do a voluntary repossession as I needed a working vehicle for work and driving kids to appointments. Still not sure why there is no recall and why the pending investigation is still open from 2018. My credit was effected and I lost a lot of money trying to upkeep the car.
We own a 2017 Escape. In September 2020, we had to replace the engine. It was 3000 miles out of warranty. However, we did negotiate with Ford and they did pay a portion of the repair cost. Ford had issued a recall to try to fix the problem with the engine, but it failed and the engine had to be replaced. Then in November 2022, the transmission failed. Again, Ford had issued a recall on the transmission, and that fix didn’t work either, and we had to replace the transmission. We are currently waiting for parts to fix an oil leak.
I have and own a 2016 Ford Escape. The transmission has went out twice. One in 2019, which I had rebuilt at a local transmission shop. I spent ($4,000 at 76,000 miles) It completely went out again at 90,000 miles in 2021. At that time I took it to the Ford Dealer in Longview, WA. It cost over $7,000 to replace it and took over 4 months to get it repaired. The Dealership said that they had at least one other Ford Escape in having their transmission replaced. I was just going to have some recall work done related to the transmission bushings, etc, but I can’t get an appointment to have the work completed until February, 2023. Today, the Escape started shaking, the check engine light went on and my Granddaughter said it had started being difficult to shift (at 111,000 miles. This is getting ridiculous. Ford……..WAKE UP!!!!!! You’ve been in the car business for YEARS!!!! We need our cars to be reliable. We need them for work and to get to and from appointments and such. The average person needs a car they don’t need to fix every with major repairs every 20,000 miles What a lemon I was sold….And I paid it off early!!!! Ford, take care of your customers!!!!!