Transmission broke - 3 times!
CV axle failed.
Windshield washer broken.
Battery died.
Rear brakes stick.
Driver's door doesn't open or close right.
Windows don't open properly.
Exhaust rusted out.
Light switch/turn signal arm messed up.
I bought this $700 piece of junk from a dealer in early 2006. I was told Festivas get 40 mpg and gas prices were going up at the time, so I forked over my hard earned cash and drove off in my very own Ford Festiva.
Within a week I had to spend as much as I paid for the stupid car to replace the muffler, which conveniently rusted out, the transmission, which conveniently seized up 400 miles from home, the battery, which conveniently died on the day I bought the car, and the window mechanism, which conveniently broke.
For the last year it ran OK, and I got the advertised gas mileage, but a lot of little things went wrong - the driver's side door developed issues with the handles, lock mechanism, and window crank, the back brakes started to drag, and the control arms by the steering wheel stopped working properly. It also made strange rattling noises at highway speeds, and the new transmission made a kind of whirring noise at speeds over 35.
Finally the new transmission blew and I replaced it, only to have a CV axle go bad and 4th gear stop working at the same time.
That was the last straw, so I dumped the car on my brother who is now the proud owner of a car worse than the Yugo I drove before.
Wow, you must be very hard on vehicles, or had very bad luck. My Festiva served me for over 150,000 miles, with 100,000 miles put on her before I got it, and I never had to replace anything (except brakes, and routine maintenance). Sorry to hear about your bad luck, I found mine to be the most reliable car I have ever owned.
I agree with the other commenter - sorry for your luck! I've been the proud owner of a second-hand '90 Festiva for nearly 7 years now, and used it for my move from Indiana to Oregon two years ago with no incident! I love the gas mileage- all my friends are jealous - and the parts are really cheap so the few repairs I've had to do (normal things like replacing the timing belt, the clutch, the master cylinder) all tend to run at a maximum of $200 a pop. It's so worth it... best $600 ever spent, and it's going on 200,000 miles!
I bought mine this past April before the gas prices jumped up for $500. I'm sorry that you had a bad experience with yours, I love mine! The only wrong with mine is a small hole in the top part of the gas tank (so I can't fill the tank) and it needs a new exhaust, had to replace the front brake pads. All this I knew before I bought it. With the great gas mileage I get, I can still afford to go places. I hope mine lasts a long time, and I would get another in a heartbeat. It had 142,000 miles on it when I bought it.
Re above comment: A hole in the TOP of the tank? and needs new exhaust? Is this thing a rust bucket? If so watch out -- everything was built light weight on this car including suspension components -- if they have started rusting out something is quite likely to break.
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