2002 Ford Fiesta finess from UK and Ireland - Comments

Steering Rack needs to be replaced after 24,000 miles just out of warranty like so many others I have heard of since this fault came to light. Surely ford should admit this defect as it seems to be very common and replace free of charge.

Until now this has been a good car, but to put the fault right it will cost a large percentage of the car's value.

We have a 2002 Ford Fiesta 1.4 TDCi with 32,000 miles on the clock. We have just discovered that the steer rack has a major problem. It started with the Power Steering fluid leaking out and now it seems like a huge problem to fix. May have to sell the car as is if the repair is too expensive. Not happy.

I have 2002 1.4 zetec fiesta 22k miles have just got steering fluid leak.

Steering rack also needs to be replaced after fluid levels continually dropped. Apparently the seal has gone on the rack and the whole thing has to be replaced, because they cannot just repair the seal!! Three months out of warranty.

My Ford Fiesta 1.4 LX 2002 year.

Very little use, only 12000 miles, has just had a service at the main agents, only to reveal a leaking steering rack problem. Cost of new rack is £700 + my appeal to Fords for assistance was met with a polite sorry!

Got a 2002 fiesta 1.4 LX steering fluid leaking at 27000k 700 quid to fix. I think that is pretty poor for a modern car.

Fiesta 1.4 TDCi LX 2003.

A nice car to drive, good mpg and low tax, but loads of faults.

Fuel faults, causing hot starting problems, faulty fuel injectors, leaking drive shaft seals, and this week the clutch master cylinder failed. All this and more in only one year.

The cam belt also seems very noisy, but the dealers won't replace it unless it fails.

The car is booked into my local dealer again for erratic engine running since the last repair. All in all very poor, looks like it will have to go at the end of the warranty.

I run a driving school and have six Fiestas some powered by Fords own petrol engine and some by the Peugeot 1.4 Diesel, the petrols have all been very reliable, but the diesels have been poor. I wish Ford would drop the Peugeot engined models and stick with their own engines. I have had no power steering issues and given that I have a few and they all have covered ten to forty thousand miles I am happy, given the number of Fiestas on the road I suppose some breakages are likely and should be expected. My dealer has always been very helpful.

2002 Ford Fiesta Zetec one of the first of the new shape has required steering fluid top up for some time. The first MOT was done slightly before the end of the three year warranty period, to catch any faults. The leaking seal was not mentioned by the ford agent, but we were topping it up even at that stage. Ford must be fully aware of this intrinsic fault to the range and should do something before a lot of people are put off buying another one of their cars.

Hi, I have got Fiesta Ghia 2002,has got 28 000 on clock. I have got the same problem with steering wheel rack - first power steering fluid was leaking, so I took it around a mechanic, and the mechanic said it is steering wheel rack, and cost me £750 absolutely stupid.

I am very disappointed with Ford, and this will be the last I ever buy. ford head office never responded on my e mail. This seems like factory mistake, because if you look through the Internet, there are hundreds of people with the same problem.

I would not recommend this car to anyone.

2003 Fiesta LX 1.4 TDCi, 22,000 Miles.

Since Christmas, noticed fumes leaking into vehicle and an odd 'chuffing' sound when ticking over, tracked down to two faulty Fuel Injectors that needed replacing - cost me £740 to replace.

Fords "Customer Relations Centre" (something they really ought to look up in a Dictionary) refused to have anything to do with it saying "Wear and Tear".

Following on from that, two weeks later, I noticed fluid all over the drive when I pulled off to go to work. Tracked this to a faulty power steering rack, which has now been replaced in full at a cost of another £650 (I had noticed over the preceding month or so I was having to top up the fluid levels more regularly, so that was the first sign something wasn't quite right).

Again, calls to Fords Customer Relations Centre fell on deaf ears. Despite me having pointed them in the direction of a Google search, showing the exact same problems being reported by others, so clearly not a one off occurrence or just 'bad luck'. Even the Ford Mechanic I dealt with told me he's seen several 03 plate Fiesta with the exact same problem, and in his words (albeit off the record) were "Ford know there's a problem with the parts they used in the early models, specifically with the Steering Rack".. something Ford deny (naturally). I'm still not happy with that resolution and have reeled off a rather long letter of complaint. If I get nowhere, at least I tried and gave me a chance to get it all off my chest!

All in all, in the past few months, I've spent £1,300+ mending things that in my mind, should *not* fail on a relatively new car, with only 22k miles on the clock.

It seems with the 'new shape' models, early adopters seem to have been the guinea pigs, road testing for Ford, so they have the chance to tweak and refine it for future revisions, updates and models. Leaves rather a nasty taste in the mouth.

Ever since I past my driving test twenty years ago, I have always owned Fords (all Petrol's), but this Diesel in the last few months, and the way Ford simply do not care one jot about their customers, has severely tainted my opinion and I doubt I will ever consider buying another Ford again.

Yes I'm another with the steering rack problem just outside the warranty period.

This is my second ford and I think it will be the last. It is unfortunate, the car is generally good. Well laid out and with a lot of extras.

But consistent problem with part quality means I shall try another marque next time. My last model had problems with the alternator.

My issue is not the steering rack, but the very intermittent cold starting. I have a 53 plate 1.4 TDCi LX, which on occasions will not start. I have tried replacing the key battery as I was informed that it may be the immobilizer, but no success.

Any one out there had anything similar and found the 'fault'?

We have been told today that our fiesta ghia 2002 needs a new steering rack and pump. I cannot believe it seems to happen to so many fiestas. So sorry I bought a ford fiesta. Our other car is a Toyota. Great car, and never gave any trouble. I live in Ireland.

I own a 2002 Ford Fiesta, just two months out of the 5 years assistance policy, I have a power fluid leak and it turns out that the whole rack needs replacing. I have looked elsewhere for this problem and I am shocked, very shocked by what I have read.

1.4 TDCI zetec 2002 again with the power steering rack seals gone. My local garage response was " another one ". Didn't bother going to ford because they will empty your pockets of everything you've got & not really care to much when you go back with the same problem. My local garage did the job for £260 fitted & VAT. Where ford come up with between £600 & £700 is beyond me.