Ford Focus 1.8 Zetec - Car #2
Discussion
SD1992 said:
Very nice car, considering one of these as something sensible 
How are you finding the seats in it? I have read a lot of complaints that they are uncomfortable on long trips.
The seats in my Focus Zetec 1.6 Ebony were beautiful. They were comfortable beyond mere comfort, clad in fabulous leather and with a lovely heater built in too. Of all the options I remember most fondly about my Focus, the heated leather seats are the top items!How are you finding the seats in it? I have read a lot of complaints that they are uncomfortable on long trips.
The mpg was awful though, somewhere in the low 30's which didn't seem bad at the time, but given the absolute gutlessness of the car seems pretty poor now (given that my MR2 does low 20's at well over twice the bhp). Fantastic handling though, and as has been mentioned, easily pitched into a 4 wheel slide in the wet. The whole thing just felt as tough as a bag of nails too. The engine management light and airbag warning light would occasionally blink at me from the dashboard, but with no effect to the interminable progress the car made. That said, the variable valve timing was worthwhile and the push the car received in the power band was meagre but appreciated.
For a car that is hardly a performance item, I remember it fondly.
Baryonyx said:
The seats in my Focus Zetec 1.6 Ebony were beautiful. They were comfortable beyond mere comfort, clad in fabulous leather and with a lovely heater built in too. Of all the options I remember most fondly about my Focus, the heated leather seats are the top items!
The mpg was awful though, somewhere in the low 30's which didn't seem bad at the time, but given the absolute gutlessness of the car seems pretty poor now (given that my MR2 does low 20's at well over twice the bhp). Fantastic handling though, and as has been mentioned, easily pitched into a 4 wheel slide in the wet. The whole thing just felt as tough as a bag of nails too. The engine management light and airbag warning light would occasionally blink at me from the dashboard, but with no effect to the interminable progress the car made. That said, the variable valve timing was worthwhile and the push the car received in the power band was meagre but appreciated.
For a car that is hardly a performance item, I remember it fondly.
My 2 litre mk1 ghia has leather, in dash 6 cd player, cruise control, heated seats and being a2 litre petrol it's quite nippy. I have service it once (95,000 miles). The only bills I have had are new water pump at 87,0000, new breaks, tyres and an osf roll bar and a clutch. All jsut waer and tear items.The mpg was awful though, somewhere in the low 30's which didn't seem bad at the time, but given the absolute gutlessness of the car seems pretty poor now (given that my MR2 does low 20's at well over twice the bhp). Fantastic handling though, and as has been mentioned, easily pitched into a 4 wheel slide in the wet. The whole thing just felt as tough as a bag of nails too. The engine management light and airbag warning light would occasionally blink at me from the dashboard, but with no effect to the interminable progress the car made. That said, the variable valve timing was worthwhile and the push the car received in the power band was meagre but appreciated.
For a car that is hardly a performance item, I remember it fondly.
I ahve absolutely thrashed it as well. 0-60 in 9 seconds is ok -the mpg on it is not great and the reall thing that pisse m off is £245 tax but thats more to do with the green agenda.
Is it wrong that this talk makes me really miss my MK1 in the UK? 
It got written off last week by the guy I sold it too as well!
Considering this: http://montreal.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-tru... - Pretty good for the price!
It got written off last week by the guy I sold it too as well! Considering this: http://montreal.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-cars-tru... - Pretty good for the price!
I've just sold my '99 T plate Focus zetec 1.8, I had it for just over 7 years, was a great car, very comfy, and very reliable, never really had any problems other than basic consumables in the time I owned it. Handling was great too, a very neutral car, didn't have a lot of power but you could make very rapid cross country progress as it would let you carry speed through the bends. Only sold it a week ago and kind of miss it a little, think that's more a sentimentallity thing though.
The funny thing is, with regard to the 2.0L mentioned above, is that it really wasn't much faster than even the slow 1.6! But the petrol consumption was much higher. We used to have one as a fleet car at work, which ended up going the distance, but no more were purchased after (the one we had was a demo). When they got the feedback from the drivers, they weren't really that much more impressed with it than they were with the 1.6, and the 1.4 was considered 'adequate'. I think the problem was when they went back through the petrol receipts for the 2.0, they found the it was often doing about 21-22mpg when it was pushed and that was not acceptable from a Focus!
Baryonyx said:
The funny thing is, with regard to the 2.0L mentioned above, is that it really wasn't much faster than even the slow 1.6! But the petrol consumption was much higher. We used to have one as a fleet car at work, which ended up going the distance, but no more were purchased after (the one we had was a demo). When they got the feedback from the drivers, they weren't really that much more impressed with it than they were with the 1.6, and the 1.4 was considered 'adequate'. I think the problem was when they went back through the petrol receipts for the 2.0, they found the it was often doing about 21-22mpg when it was pushed and that was not acceptable from a Focus!
Fuel consumption is poor but it is a lot faster than teh 1.6. The 1.6 takes a bout a week to get to 60.The 2.0 litre does it in 9 seconds.
jjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj said:
Fuel consumption is poor but it is a lot faster than teh 1.6. The 1.6 takes a bout a week to get to 60.
The 2.0 litre does it in 9 seconds.
The 1.6 Zetec is somewhere in the ten second range. Mind you, both are icnredibly slow but the 2.0 feels it more, perhaps because you expect more from the bigger engine? It's quite a slouch, when you consider it's thirst!The 2.0 litre does it in 9 seconds.
rumple said:
Got the wife a 52reg 1600zetec, the handling is
better than my 330ci and it's more reliable
better than my 330ci and it's more reliable
If you think the ordinary Fords are very good (which they are),
you'll find the special ones unbelievable! Mate bought an ST220
and made my 330Ci feel disappointing, so I
decided if I couldn't beat em I would join em.
a_bread said:
If you think the ordinary Fords are very good (which they are),
you'll find the special ones unbelievable! Mate bought an ST220
and made my 330Ci feel disappointing, so I
decided if I couldn't beat em I would join em.
Nice run around, glad it's still providing good service.
My second car was a mk1 Focus, and I loved it, a poverty spec CL turbo diesel.
They drive so well for a bread and butter car. It's still going strong with over 120k miles, back with the dealer we bought it from, using it as a spare courtesy car.
I test drove a mk2, and thought it rolled more than the mk1, and the steering had lost its nice weight. For me, the Focus has gone downhill since the mk1. I read in mags that the mk3, whatever its other attributes are, has lost a little more of the handling ability, and is in some like for like comparisons worse than the Golf. That's a shame.
My second car was a mk1 Focus, and I loved it, a poverty spec CL turbo diesel.
They drive so well for a bread and butter car. It's still going strong with over 120k miles, back with the dealer we bought it from, using it as a spare courtesy car.
I test drove a mk2, and thought it rolled more than the mk1, and the steering had lost its nice weight. For me, the Focus has gone downhill since the mk1. I read in mags that the mk3, whatever its other attributes are, has lost a little more of the handling ability, and is in some like for like comparisons worse than the Golf. That's a shame.
Baryonyx said:
The seats in my Focus Zetec 1.6 Ebony were beautiful. They were comfortable beyond mere comfort, clad in fabulous leather and with a lovely heater built in too. Of all the options I remember most fondly about my Focus, the heated leather seats are the top items!
The mpg was awful though, somewhere in the low 30's which didn't seem bad at the time, but given the absolute gutlessness of the car seems pretty poor now (given that my MR2 does low 20's at well over twice the bhp). Fantastic handling though, and as has been mentioned, easily pitched into a 4 wheel slide in the wet. The whole thing just felt as tough as a bag of nails too. The engine management light and airbag warning light would occasionally blink at me from the dashboard, but with no effect to the interminable progress the car made. That said, the variable valve timing was worthwhile and the push the car received in the power band was meagre but appreciated.
For a car that is hardly a performance item, I remember it fondly.
You sure it had VVT? I think the only mk1/1.5 focus with VVT was the ST170? I know the mk2 had some other VVT engines.The mpg was awful though, somewhere in the low 30's which didn't seem bad at the time, but given the absolute gutlessness of the car seems pretty poor now (given that my MR2 does low 20's at well over twice the bhp). Fantastic handling though, and as has been mentioned, easily pitched into a 4 wheel slide in the wet. The whole thing just felt as tough as a bag of nails too. The engine management light and airbag warning light would occasionally blink at me from the dashboard, but with no effect to the interminable progress the car made. That said, the variable valve timing was worthwhile and the push the car received in the power band was meagre but appreciated.
For a car that is hardly a performance item, I remember it fondly.
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