Ford Focus or Honda Civic

[Rodders6025]

currently have a Jaguar XF which is proving to be very unreliable so im looking to get rid. I want something mid size, petrol and cheap to buy on a PCP and ultimately reliable. I would be looking at around a 20 plate and like the look of a Honda civic 1.0 or a ford focus 1.0 st line. However i keep hearing stories about eco boosts being unreliable. Does this just effect the older ones or are newer ecoboosts just as problematic.
So in summary which one would you go for?or any other alternatives to consider?

[ZX10R NIN]

Go for the 1.5T Focus as it's the pick, the 1.0T has wet belt issues.

[Yahonza]

For reliability get the Honda. The Ford unit had coolant issues.

[sherman]

Mk3.5 Focus ST doesnt have the wet belts. If you csn stretch to it budget wise thdn that would be my choice. The 2.0 litre will do 35mpg on a long run.

[JulianHJ]

The 'Ecoboom' issue is widely recognised, so well worth avoiding - IIRC the belt service life on the 1.0 was meant to be 150,000 miles, however prior to a particular manufacturing date (can't recall when) the belts had a habit of disintegrating, with bits clogging the oil system which cause starvation and failure.

[JulianHJ]

sherman said:

Mk3.5 Focus ST doesnt have the wet belts. If you csn stretch to it budget wise thdn that would be my choice. The 2.0 litre will do 35mpg on a long run.

Another vote for this model - mine's been pretty much faultless.

[Haltamer]

1L Civic has similar ecoboom problems - It uses a wet belt that needs changing at 60K ish at huge expense and is now subject to a recall.

Stick to the 1.5 Civic.

[Alfa Pete]

I considered those and bought a Mazda 3 instead.

[Whataguy]

I’d looked at civics but heard quotes of £1500 to change the cam belt in the 1 litre every 60k , and am now hearing about the belt’s disintegrating and causing issues too.

I’d also heard the 1.5 can also suffer oil dilution issues if you do short trips, apparently they addressed the issue with a software update but it doesn’t seem that can fix a design issue.

Corollas are pretty good, using a development of the Prius hybrid engine.

[Gas1883]

Isn’t there a fair bit of difference in price between the two cars , my neighbour brought a 1.5 civic , 69 plate . it was £20,000 from a Honda dealer , seemed a lot more than the prices of similar aged focuses at the time , maybe 8 months ago so prices may of changed .
His wife won’t drive it as says driving position is very low & she finds it very wide , does look a lot bigger than my mk3 focus , he’s also said he’s having issues with electronic handbrake , not getting on with it at all , though that maybe more him than car .

[Gas1883]

I would add my previous 1.0 focus ran until 94,000 before I had engine issue , though that could of been turbo , vacuum pump etc rather than a wet belt issue
Current 1.0 is on 52,000 & runs fine .
Daughters 1.0 fiesta vignale is 4 years old & she’s had no issues , not sure on mileage
So I’ve heard from people / Ford of issues but in my experience of Ford 1.0 there no more unreliable than any car I’ve had

[ZX10R NIN]

Here's where I'd be looking.

1.5T Focus ST Line:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310092...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202401215...

Mazda3 Sport Lux:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202312285...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202401035...

1.0T Kia Ceed GT Line:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310303...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310303...

Again like the Focus if you go for the Civic go for the 1.5T to avoid wet belt issues:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202312235...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202310052...

[GhiaInjection]

MK4 Focus 1.0T has the later 1.0T with a chain rather than welt belt.

(As does Puma and post ~2020 Fiesta. All 1.0T mHev are chain and 95ps non mHev)

The head is reversed, so to double check, welt belt engines have Turbo at front. Chain engines have Turbo at the back

[OutInTheShed]

Q: Ford Focus or Honda Civic?
A NO!

[JAMSXR]

Having just sold my FL5 Type R I would not recommend Honda for reliability.

https://www.thedrive.com/news/new-honda-civics-cr-...


The fit in finish in the type R was great, but then you live with it and the squeaks and rattles come out. One thing that particularly annoyed me was winding down the window would not clear water/rain - a right pain in the morning!

[wyson]

Gas1883 said:

I would add my previous 1.0 focus ran until 94,000 before I had engine issue , though that could of been turbo , vacuum pump etc rather than a wet belt issue
Current 1.0 is on 52,000 & runs fine .
Daughters 1.0 fiesta vignale is 4 years old & she’s had no issues , not sure on mileage
So I’ve heard from people / Ford of issues but in my experience of Ford 1.0 there no more unreliable than any car I’ve had

Vacuum pump and turbo going are symptoms of wetbelts breaking up and putting little rubber pieces in the engine oil.

I’d get a Toyota Corolla estate over the cars mentioned if reliability is an issue. All those uber drivers can’t be wrong, its their default choice. The 2.0 with 190bhp has warm hatch pace too. The fuel economy will be better than one of these small capacity turbos. Toyota right size. For C segment, they go for NA 1.8 or 2.0 allied to a hybrid system. They usually top Whatcars real world MPG tests, again all those Uber drivers aren't wrong.

Also you didn’t mention anything about the gearbox, but Ford Powershift dual clutch autos that come with 1.0 Ecoboosts have bad rep, I think subject to a class action law suit in America.

Edited by wyson on Tuesday 30th January 20:35

[culpz]

JAMSXR said:

Having just sold my FL5 Type R I would not recommend Honda for reliability.

https://www.thedrive.com/news/new-honda-civics-cr-...


The fit in finish in the type R was great, but then you live with it and the squeaks and rattles come out. One thing that particularly annoyed me was winding down the window would not clear water/rain - a right pain in the morning!

Tbf, it's a brand new model, so sometimes they need a bit of time to iron out these little problems. Doesn't sound like a reliability issue; more fit, finish and quality, which has never been Honda's strong suit.

My FN2, despite the bone crunching ride and being 15 years old, is pretty solid. It does have a few little squeaks and rattles but it feels leagues ahead of the MK2.5 Focus ST I had before it, which felt loose, baggy and brittle. This is coming from a Ford fan who's not huge fan of Honda's!

[JAMSXR]

culpz said:

JAMSXR said:

Having just sold my FL5 Type R I would not recommend Honda for reliability.

https://www.thedrive.com/news/new-honda-civics-cr-...


The fit in finish in the type R was great, but then you live with it and the squeaks and rattles come out. One thing that particularly annoyed me was winding down the window would not clear water/rain - a right pain in the morning!

Tbf, it's a brand new model, so sometimes they need a bit of time to iron out these little problems. Doesn't sound like a reliability issue; more fit, finish and quality, which has never been Honda's strong suit.

My FN2, despite the bone crunching ride and being 15 years old, is pretty solid. It does have a few little squeaks and rattles but it feels leagues ahead of the MK2.5 Focus ST I had before it, which felt loose, baggy and brittle. This is coming from a Ford fan who's not huge fan of Honda's!

It affects vehicles manufactured from 2022. Honda Europe are totally ignoring the problem. I sold the car and will never buy another Honda again.

[wyson]

culpz said:

Tbf, it's a brand new model, so sometimes they need a bit of time to iron out these little problems. Doesn't sound like a reliability issue; more fit, finish and quality, which has never been Honda's strong suit.

My FN2, despite the bone crunching ride and being 15 years old, is pretty solid. It does have a few little squeaks and rattles but it feels leagues ahead of the MK2.5 Focus ST I had before it, which felt loose, baggy and brittle. This is coming from a Ford fan who's not huge fan of Honda's!

Honda aren’t a reliable brand anymore, seen them middle of the pack on reliability surveys, usually are off the podium spots these days, even if they do well. The FN2 was one of their first bean counter led cars. Was watching a youtube mechanic work on one of their newer cars, he was remarking a component (I forget which) was sealed with silicon to cut costs, when the Honda of old would have used a more expensive and more reliable gasket. Also a few people here commenting their new shape Honda Jazz have awful electronic issues.

Edited by wyson on Wednesday 31st January 17:10

[Whataguy]

I have to agree with Honda not being what they used to.

I’ve owned a 2003 civic and 2005 accord which were great, plus driven most of the models afterwards until a brand new mk4 2021 Jazz put me off the brand forever.