Sensible £7k car- Focus Ecoboost or..? - Page 1 - Car Buying

HustleRussell

Original Poster

25,947 posts

180 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

I am sure that from time to time many of you get asked to help with car buying.

My approach these days is to do as little steering as possible at the make / model selection stage and just get involved with the inspection and test drive.

Anyway an old friend of mine is looking at 2014- Focus Ecoboost (mk3 facelift)

Are these cars affected by the coolant hose issue / recall? How do I check that?

There is a naturally aspirated 1.6 option available but the Ecoboost is preferred (torque / efficiency)

As far as I know the Focus is a sensible choice, are there any particular 'gotchas'.

I am also going to give him a list of alternative cars which are worth considering in the same class and am open to suggestions on those too...

Hyundai i20 (long warranty)
Mazda 3
Civic
V.A.G
Peugeot 308 (risky?)

Fastdruid

9,243 posts

172 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Which engine? IIRC the Focus is available with the 1.0T as well as the 1.5T, although I'm not 100% sure going back to 2014.

Both are "ecoboost" but that is a brand applied to multiple families of engines and of course each family has it's foibles.

HustleRussell

Original Poster

25,947 posts

180 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

I'm guessing he's going to be looking at the 1.0 (100 / 125PS) or one of the 1.5 (150PS)?

Fastdruid

9,243 posts

172 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Which one? They are different families so it's apples and oranges WRT issues.

The 1.0T is the Fox
The 1.5T is the Sigma

Reffro

168 posts

175 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Sensible £7k car...

Kia Ceed Mk2 - 1.6 crdi.

Plenty of performance, great economy and remainder of 7 year warranty for piece of mind.

Tony-Danger

63 posts

91 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

HustleRussell said:

I am sure that from time to time many of you get asked to help with car buying.

My approach these days is to do as little steering as possible at the make / model selection stage and just get involved with the inspection and test drive.

Anyway an old friend of mine is looking at 2014- Focus Ecoboost (mk3 facelift)

There is a naturally aspirated 1.6 option available but the Ecoboost is preferred (torque / efficiency)

As far as I know the Focus is a sensible choice, are there any particular 'gotchas'.

I am also going to give him a list of alternative cars which are worth considering in the same class and am open to suggestions on those too...

Hyundai i20 (long warranty)
Mazda 3
Civic
V.A.G
Peugeot 308 (risky?)

Are these cars affected by the coolant hose issue / recall? How do I check that?
They shouldn't be. It was the earlier models, and if the car was subject to a Ford service it would have been swapped. Simple check, if it is a solid plastic hose coming from the top left and going to the middle bottom, it's the old faulty hose. If it's a chunkier rubber hose, you are fine.

Also run your hand around the sides and underside of the coolant tank on the top left, they can crack & you'll be able to feel / see if there are any.

I recently had a really bad condition 2012 i40 that I rejected and swapped out for a 2013 125 1.0L Focus. Love the new car.

HustleRussell

Original Poster

25,947 posts

180 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Reffro said:

Kia Ceed Mk2 - 1.6 crdi.

Plenty of performance, great economy and remainder of 7 year warranty for piece of mind.

Good shout, how could I remember the Hyundai and forget the cee apostrophe d?

He's not going to buy a diesel though

HustleRussell

Original Poster

25,947 posts

180 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Fastdruid said:

Which one? They are different families so it's apples and oranges WRT issues.

The 1.0T is the Fox
The 1.5T is the Sigma

Could you give me a quick primer on both please, would be useful if we should be choosing one over the other? I don't think he's that fussed so long as it cruises better than his 1.1 litre Peugeot 206!

Tony-Danger said:

Are these cars affected by the coolant hose issue / recall? How do I check that?
They shouldn't be. It was the earlier models, and if the car was subject to a Ford service it would have been swapped. Simple check, if it is a solid plastic hose coming from the top left and going to the middle bottom, it's the old faulty hose. If it's a chunkier rubber hose, you are fine.

Also run your hand around the sides and underside of the coolant tank on the top left, they can crack & you'll be able to feel / see if there are any.

I recently had a really bad condition 2012 i40 that I rejected and swapped out for a 2013 125 1.0L Focus. Love the new car.

Thanks for that

Zetec-S

6,559 posts

113 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

The 1.6 ecoboost is the same 180bhp engine as in the Fiesta ST, but to be honest they're pretty rare, especially in facelift models. For £7k they'll probably be shopping at the lower end of the market, so expect to compromise a little, ie. higher mileage.

More common will be the 1.5 ecoboost with 150bhp which replaced the 1.6, but again being newer that’ll command a premium so might be out of budget. And then there will be the entry level 1.0 ecoboost with either 100/125bhp.

Make sure they don’t get confused with the old 1.6 duratec engines (naturally aspirated) as obviously these are pretty dated by modern standards. I notice a few traders just like to throw in the word "ecoboost" when it comes to Fords, so worth just double checking.

For example, this one says ecoboost in the description, but it looks very much like the n/a 1.6…
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

And the title on this one contradicts the listed spec…
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

I think the coolant issue was only for early 1.0 ecoboosts, not the 1.6, but either way I’d have thought most would have been sorted by now.

HustleRussell

Original Poster

25,947 posts

180 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Thanks, budget is in fact £7k to 10k so I think we're hoping to find a car with average miles or less. I think my friend would choose a more basic, less powerful lower mileage car rather than a high spec higher mileage one.

He is only changing his Peugeot 206 because it is getting very flaky recently

I think the car he buys now he will similarly run into the ground (maintain and use for many years rather than abuse to death)

wal 45

869 posts

200 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

We ran a facelift 64 plate 125 Ecoboost for nearly 3 years, great car and ideal "normal" family car which was pretty reliable. We liked it an awful lot, only regret was not upgrading sat nav but that was it.

It was however off the road for a week with a different coolant leak to the general recall of the pre-facelift so be aware that pipe isn't the only issue with this engine. The seal that leaks isn't subject to recall and is only fixed if you or the service department notice it.....

Would definitely buy another, in fact the only reason we didn't this time was due to the imminent facelift. Recommended with the caveat to look closely at coolant levels and ensuring the work above has been done.

Torquey

1,939 posts

248 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Focus - I just cannot get away with the Seating position and I've now owned 2 unreliable Focus' in the past. Should be cheaper than the next 2 cars.
Civic - 1.4. or 1.8 petrol NA might not be suitable if you are looking at turbo engines. Loads of boot space. Generally reliable.
Mazda 3 - 1.6 NA petrol would probably be the one you look at. Generally plenty of extras as standard.

Cant give opinions of any of the others.

silver_lining

54 posts

196 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Friend of mine with the same budget just picked up a ‘14 Seat Leon with ~50k miles. 1.2 TSI, SE spec, he’s chuffed to bits.

Mo28

907 posts

120 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Toyota Auris hybrid are meant to be pretty good cars

ZX10R NIN

29,741 posts

145 months

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Wednesday 15th August 2018

Mr Tidy

28,378 posts

147 months

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Thursday 16th August 2018

I'd be looking for a BMW 130i in that budget, although I realise it isn't for everyone!

But N/A straight 6, RWD and 265 bhp seems like a good combination to me. laugh

MissChief

7,725 posts

188 months

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Thursday 16th August 2018

ZX10R NIN said:

With that budget I'd be looking for the 1.6T 180bhp engine they're very hard to find but are worth seeking out as the 1.5T will still be just out of budget:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

First one isn't a 182PS, wrong wheels, bodykit and spoiler and even the spec in the advert shows it's a boggo 1.6 with 123PS.
Second one is a 'proper' 182.
£10k is a lot for even a Titanium X with the 182 engine. Mileage here is driving the price up.
Not sure about the colour on this one! Is a 182 though.
Looks just like mine!
White looks good on these I think, but with black wheels? Just no.
This one in white is better.

If I could have got the looks of the Zetec S with the toys and gizmo's of the Titanium I'd have been a happy man. The standard spec Zetec S is pretty spartan with no cruise, Bluetooth was extra I think, not every one has it, no Sat nav and even wind up windows in the back! I do like it though.

As per usual I haven't got anywhere close to any of the published fuel economy figures but I did get 45MPG on a run from Scotland to Silverstone and I wasn't hanging about as we left two hours late! The last tankful I got 41MPG according to the OBC but according to Fuelio, since I got the car I've averaged 36.937MPG. I bought it on 37k miles in October 2016 and it's now on 51,200 miles so I don't do a huge amount of miles in it. Work is 3 miles up the road and most straight 50MPH A-Road and I only do 2 45 mile round trips a week as a long run. Still I think 40MPG for something with 180HP is decent! Thread I started in Readers cars here: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=16... which reminds me I must update that. Flew through it's last MOT with only tyres required although I suspect at least brake pads, maybe even disks too will be needed this time.

It picks up nicely, sounds almost decent and is comfortable on a cruise but won't ever blow the weeds off newer 'proper' hot hatches, most definitely a warm hatch but does a quick overtake easily enough in the right gear.

Contrary to what's been said above the 1.6 Ecoboost in the Focus IS affected by the coolant issue. You can check any recall status here: http://www.etis.ford.com/fordservice/home.do;jsess... and this shows, for example, the third advert for the red Titanium X hasn't had the recall done. I'm waiting to hear back from my local dealer about getting it done as apparently it takes all day.

nmd87

839 posts

210 months

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Thursday 16th August 2018

I was in a Focus taxi recently and was surprised by the lack of legroom in the back. In fact the whole car felt more snug than expected.

Don't know if your friend will be carrying passengers in the rear, but if so, options such as the Kia Cee'd and Nissan Pulsar seem to offer a lot more space.

I like the look of those Cee'ds posted above and that's probably where I'll be looking when the time comes to replace our current Nissan Note family car. The 1.6 GDI would appear to be perfectly adequate for your friend - 133 PS and 0-62 in 10 seconds is enough for a family car really.

Edited by nmd87 on Thursday 16th August 08:46

JackReacher

2,227 posts

235 months

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[news]

Thursday 16th August 2018

Look at the MK3 Leon (2013 onwards). 1.2 or 1.4 petrol TSI are great, but 1.4act is the best and can be found under £10k. Great cars, but try and find one with tech pack and one that wasn't a rental car, as quite a few were it seems. The engines it seems are much more reliable than the ecoboost.

ZX10R NIN

29,741 posts

145 months

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Friday 17th August 2018

MissChief said:

First one isn't a 182PS, wrong wheels, bodykit and spoiler and even the spec in the advert shows it's a boggo 1.6 with 123PS.
Second one is a 'proper' 182.
£10k is a lot for even a Titanium X with the 182 engine. Mileage here is driving the price up.
Not sure about the colour on this one! Is a 182 though.
Looks just like mine!
White looks good on these I think, but with black wheels? Just no.
This one in white is better.

If I could have got the looks of the Zetec S with the toys and gizmo's of the Titanium I'd have been a happy man. The standard spec Zetec S is pretty spartan with no cruise, Bluetooth was extra I think, not every one has it, no Sat nav and even wind up windows in the back! I do like it though.

As per usual I haven't got anywhere close to any of the published fuel economy figures but I did get 45MPG on a run from Scotland to Silverstone and I wasn't hanging about as we left two hours late! The last tankful I got 41MPG according to the OBC but according to Fuelio, since I got the car I've averaged 36.937MPG. I bought it on 37k miles in October 2016 and it's now on 51,200 miles so I don't do a huge amount of miles in it. Work is 3 miles up the road and most straight 50MPH A-Road and I only do 2 45 mile round trips a week as a long run. Still I think 40MPG for something with 180HP is decent! Thread I started in Readers cars here: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?t=16... which reminds me I must update that. Flew through it's last MOT with only tyres required although I suspect at least brake pads, maybe even disks too will be needed this time.

It picks up nicely, sounds almost decent and is comfortable on a cruise but won't ever blow the weeds off newer 'proper' hot hatches, most definitely a warm hatch but does a quick overtake easily enough in the right gear.

Contrary to what's been said above the 1.6 Ecoboost in the Focus IS affected by the coolant issue. You can check any recall status here: http://www.etis.ford.com/fordservice/home.do;jsess... and this shows, for example, the third advert for the red Titanium X hasn't had the recall done. I'm waiting to hear back from my local dealer about getting it done as apparently it takes all day.

The first one has the same wheels & kit on as the other Zetec S's, you may be right but they all look the same & all are advertised as 180's so I'll take them at face value the OP can do the real investigation work.

Talking of which any opinions OP?