Ford Problems

Michelins have a good reputation for a balance of performance, wear and noise, but it's hard to say they will be any quieter on your car than the Goodyears until you actually fit them and see. Road noise is affected by many factors other than the tyres themselves. Things like the amount noise insulation in the car, the body structure, the suspension mountings to the body. The tyres, while they might have an effect might not provide the solution. I recently drove a new Nissan Tiida and the level of road noise in that car would be unbearable over the long term.

Your dealer appears to have been helpful in trying to address your concerns, so I would stick with him at this time. But I would request that he asks a Ford representative to drive the car with you to see first hand what your concerns are, and than they could explain to you why they believe it is a characteristic of the car, if that's what it is. If that doesn't bring a resolution to your issues then you really have no alternative but to seek a resolution in the court.

I'm not aware of any aftermarket systems that you could have fitted to your car. The best and cheapest way to get the safety the systems provide is to update to a later model already fitted with them.
 

A tailshaft shouldn't break at all, let alone at such low kays. I would have it examined by a mechanic to try and determine how and why it failed, and approach Ford about getting a replacement.

We haven't experienced the problem directly, but we have had another report of a shudder very similar to yours on a Falcon. It was intermittent, like yours, and didn't affect the owner's other Falcon, but the owner felt it occurred most often on a particular stretch of highway he regularly used. That suggests the suspension is being excited by the road profile. Like you he had consulted with mechanics, but has yet to find the solution. It could be worth changing the front shock absorbers.

You'd have to wonder if they've actually done the work they claim to have done, or if they have then you'd have to question their competence. I would go to another automatic transmission specialist and get your car assessed by them.
 

It sounds very much like fuel vaporization, which suggests the fuel is getting too hot at some point in the system. If you could get someone to fit a fuel pressure gauge to the car you could monitor the pressure and it if's fuel vaporization as I suspect you should see the pressure drop away when the problem occurs. The source of the problem could be in the fuel tank itself, the lines between the tank and the engine, or in the engine bay. Look for any location where the fuel system comes close to a heat source, such as the exhaust system.

First, your car has a double-clutch automated manual gearbox, not a conventional automatic you probably thought you were getting. One of the differences between a double-clutch transmission and a conventional automatic is that they roll backwards on an incline if you don't keep your foot on the brake, as you would if you were driving a manual. A number of carmakers use similar transmissions, from the same maker or other producers. VW was one of the first to use one of the new-age automatics and it has been plagued with issues, essentially the same ones you complain about. The clutch packs appear to be the cause of the issues, the shuddering etc. that you report; the electronics can be another source of trouble. We have spoken to Ford and we know that a Ford representative has been in contact with you to arrange a test drive of your car, and the company ha s arranged a loan car while yours is being evaluated.

I would have to suspect a problem with the controlling ECU and I would having Ford check it out.
 

Without being able to assess the action of the system it's hard to comment, other than perhaps it is doing what it's designed to do. If you're concerned about it, take it back to you dealer and have them assess it.