Car help. Buyers remorse. 2014 Ford Focus SE?

Hi everyone… So I just bought a 2014 Ford Focus yesterday for a good price 70k miles automatic transmission. Being 18 and naive it felt like I was making the perfect the decision and now am I reading all the complaints regarding transmission problems ect. I feel so idiotic and depressed. But this is now my car so I'm just going to have to make it work. My questions… First) those of you who have this car and like it, how did you learn to like it? And will this car last me for atleast 5 years?

With an 18-year-old driver, the life expectancy of any car is far less than 5 years. There's a good chance it will be wrecked long before then, or dead from lack of routine maintenance.
All cars develop problems, it's how you deal with the problems which determines how long the car will last.

If you maintain the car according to the manufacturer's specification it should be fine. A Ford dealer will advise on frequencies. Forget the scare stories. Ford cars are not unreliable. The Focus is actually a very good car. Keep an eye on fluid levels in between maintenance. Coolant, oil level, brake fluid, are the most important. Train yourself to check these frequently to start with then, say, once a month as you become familiar with the car. There are tutorials on the net if you are unsure.

Ah man. If that has the fabled PowerSh! T transmission then you're screwed. You need to unload it before the transmission blows up (for literally no reason). If not, you'll probably be getting the tcm flashed at the dealership all the time. If it doesn't have that transmission, you'd probably be alright just servicing it diligently for its life.

Ford has extended the transmission warranty to 100,000 I believe. Personally I got sick and tired of the poor drive ability and the way the car would shimmy and shake as the clutches slipped and gripped (clutch judder) after pulling away at each stop light. Like a beat up old car with a worn, warped, glazed clutch. Also pissed about the leaking timing cover.

Mine had 92,000 with no real "break down". They flashed the transmission software a few times to adjust the clutch action, but it never resolved the drivability for long… Just hound the dealer if you have issues.

Its a Ford. Remember there are thousands of them and you only see on line the ones that went wrong. I had a Ford that had done 244 000 miles when I got it

The real problem, as you have probably heard, is the 6 speed "auto-manual" DS6 dual clutch transmission. At 9 years old it may have already worked off the rough edges. Ford had a lot of trouble with the DS6. The gearbox is a variation of a conventional standard gearbox and by itself has only one known problem: in early units the input shaft seal is prone to leakage which ruins the clutch disks. The clutch assembly has had some actuator problems, and Ford says the TCUs have had faulty solder connections. All told, Ford has recently increased the warranty coverage to 7 years or 100K miles.

There are no issues with maintenance; it requires less maintenance than ordinary automatic transmissions because it is an automated manual transmission. However, when you come to a stop, keep your foot on the brake to minimize clutch wear. See the video for more.