I took my 2003 Ford Focus wagon into the shop because of loud noises I was hearing from under the car while driving car. When they got it up on the lift they had me come to repair bay to look at it because they'd never seen anything like this before. What they'd found was that the cradle or subframe piece that holds the engine in was completed rotted out. It was so bad you could stick your finger through it. They said this is something you'd expect to find on a 1980S car perhaps, but certainly not one that was only five years old. I asked them if they could fix it and they said they could, but this was a safety issue and that I should take it instead to the Ford dealer, which I did. The service manager at the Ford dealer was equally surprised by the condition of the frame and said he'd talk to the warranty about it, but they said a 2003 model was not covered for rust damage. The car only has 75,000 miles on it. So the service manager suggested instead that I contact Ford customers relations about it because 1) it was a serious safety issue that may warrant a recall and 2) as a result I should be reimbursed. I talked with the customer relations people but they took the position that since the car was out of warranty for a rust condition and because there was no recall in place for such a condition they couldn't or wouldn't do anything about it. So I decided to bring it to you.

- New York, NY, USA

The contact states she owns a 2003 Ford Focus. The rear tires kept going bald on the outside of the tire only. The vehicle is a front wheel drive. This happened four times. Vehicle has 61,000 miles on it. The dealer had to replace the back frame two kits, one on each side due to an engineering notice put out on the tires. This did not fix the problem. The contact had to have the springs, struts, and shocks replaced recently with approximately 55,000 miles on the car, and the problem recurred. Car bounced, and when she hit a bump the car picked up, and the rear end moved to the right or to the left. She had to have the car realigned at least six or seven times. Sometimes the contact would have to go back the very next day to have it aligned again, and the dealer would not charge them for the service.. the front brake pad and the front rotors on the driver's side had to be replaced at 30,000 miles. She talked to the manufacturer, and they told her she would have to continue to shell out money because there were no recalls on the vehicle regarding the tires, and the car was out of warranty. The warranty doid not cover the tires because it was blamed on uneven wear or/and the alignment.

- Three Rivers, MI, USA

There is a cross member piece of metal behind the dash of the car, the cross member bar behind the dash has obvious rust spots. The brace behind the dash which extends from the steering column to the right end of the dashboard has obvious oxidation spots and rust. There is no indication of the cause. No water spots inside the vehicle. These rust spots can be seen behind the glove compartment as well. Vehicle has very low mileage. Vehicle also has a stuck accelerator caused by failure to the throttle body plate.

- Hillsdale, NJ, USA