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Ford Fiesta

Maintenance/Repairs
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#1

I’ve observed that on a cold start first thing in the morning that there is a noise that appears to come with the depression/release of the clutch. This only occurs the first couple of times and then goes away. My drive is down a hill with speed bumps so the clutch gets used a couple of times shifting down from 3rd to 2nd. After the third/fourth/fifth depression of the clutch the noise goes away.

The car as of now only has 140 miles on it. My daily commute is 2.5 miles each way.

I’ve emailed the Ford dealer from where I purchased the car, but had not response.

Sounds like the clutch release bearing to me.

Thoughts/suggestions please.

#2

Yes, I would sure check with your dealer in person or by phone, either ASAP or when you have the oil changed. Because the engine gets a lot of wear in the first few miles, I would consider changing the oil before your first 1000 miles. I saw this hint somewhere and it makes sense. Also consider the Ford.com or Askford.com website – they have some links and paths to get advice. I received some excellent advice from them on our hybrid. You can apparently even schedule a dealer appointment on the website.

If it’s any consolation, my '98 Ranger very occasionally has the same noise when the clutch pedal is depressed-- when it’s cold it’s there and when it warms up it goes away. I have 113K and have never had any problems with the clutch or the tranny. Just in case it may be the release bearing, I would go easy on the gear shifting, especially when the noise is there, and try to match the engine revs with the gears so you don’t notice much change in engine speed when letting the clutch out into the next highest/lowest gear. Good luck and let us know if you find anything different. The Fiesta sure seems like a nice car and you apparently made a good choice.

#3

You never described the noise. Kind of makes it impossible to even get started. Squeaky shoe?

Either way, you take it back to the dealer for an evaluation. You don’t need to wait for an email reply. I’ll tell you what it will say: “Dear Mr/s. xxx, thank you for your inquiry. As you know we strive to satisfy all of our customers. Please make an appointment to bring the car in at your earliest convenience, so that one of our service professionals can inspect it.” O.k. That’s certainly not word for word, but you know…

When you bring it in make sure that you can leave it over night. Otherwise they won’t be able to reproduce it and they’ll tell you nothing is wrong. So explain all of this on the phone when make an appointment and tell them you will need a loaner car in order to leave it overnight.

#4

You didn;t describe the noise, however if the vehicle has only 140 miles on it the dealer should fix it under warranty. They won;t fix it by email, however. You need to make an appointment and bring it in.

#5

Thank you for your responses. It’s a whirring noise… I’ve also noticed that the fuel pump gives 3 clicks after I turn the car off from being warm. No wonder Consumer Reports rates the Fiesta’s reliability below average.

Other than that, I actually like the car. It is comfortable and well put together.

#6

It was the My Sync that CR hated if I recall not the car, but yes as others have said bring it in ASAP !! The clutch is considered a ware item (very limited warranty) and you don’t want them giving you cr*p about it being the way you drive the car. Also make sure they document the problem, and if they say its normal EVERY TIME you bring it in make sure they document it… This way if what ever is wrong fails, you have a paper trail that it has been doing it since day one !

#7

My '88 Ford Escort also has a whirring that’s related to the clutch. I’ve had the car since it had 146K miles on it now at 518,500 and it’s always been there even after the clutch wore out and clutch, pressure plate and release bearing were replaced. It hasn’t had any negative affects on the car and the current clutch has about 210K miles so I’ve just learned to ignore the noise. Since your car is new and under warranty take it in and let them check it out. If you find out what the noise is let me know. I assume it’s something to do with the release bearing.

The clicks you are hearing are probably just relays clicking.

#8

Thanks again guys. Yep, called my local Ford dealer and they told me that if it still happens at 1000 miles then bring it in. I’ll keep you all posted.

BTW, it is a nice little car.