Ford Focus 1.8 Ghia
Discussion
Had the car for about 3 months now, but finally got around to taking some pictures. I know its not the most exciting of cars, but its a big step up from where I was.
Previous cars were a 306 1.4 (which ate its gearbox) and my first car, nice little 205 which taught me alot about driving. However as I turned 21 i wanted something bigger, and more sensible, as i have to move house every year (student), and the reliability and quality of a focus appealed. After much searching, found this one, 2002 with 69000 miles, 1.8 ghia so the spec i wanted, and as you can see very tidy.
About 3 days after i bought it, it started cutting out, and the speedo would turn off, turned out was the speedo sensor, which was changed under warrenty (very nice of the garage, very pleased with their service) and i treated it to a set of new pads and discs, as i was getting bad shudder through the pedal as the passenger side disc was warped.
Since then ive painted the drums black to cover the rust, and thats about it, very pleased with it, its fairly nippy off the line, but it does drink fuel (i wonder if those two facts are related ha) Best MPG ive got is around 35mpg of all motorway miles, and 30 over a whole tank, about 350 mile range, not too bad, but nothing to write home about either.
anyway, nuff talking, some pictures of it after a nice clean:
(edited to fix images)
Previous cars were a 306 1.4 (which ate its gearbox) and my first car, nice little 205 which taught me alot about driving. However as I turned 21 i wanted something bigger, and more sensible, as i have to move house every year (student), and the reliability and quality of a focus appealed. After much searching, found this one, 2002 with 69000 miles, 1.8 ghia so the spec i wanted, and as you can see very tidy.
About 3 days after i bought it, it started cutting out, and the speedo would turn off, turned out was the speedo sensor, which was changed under warrenty (very nice of the garage, very pleased with their service) and i treated it to a set of new pads and discs, as i was getting bad shudder through the pedal as the passenger side disc was warped.
Since then ive painted the drums black to cover the rust, and thats about it, very pleased with it, its fairly nippy off the line, but it does drink fuel (i wonder if those two facts are related ha) Best MPG ive got is around 35mpg of all motorway miles, and 30 over a whole tank, about 350 mile range, not too bad, but nothing to write home about either.
anyway, nuff talking, some pictures of it after a nice clean:
(edited to fix images)
Edited by rwstokes on Wednesday 4th July 21:12
Thanks yeah i have had some fun pressing on down some B roads in it, it holds the road really well, seems to be a really nice balance of a lazy cruiser, happy to sit at 80 (not that i ever would, of course not officer) but happy pressing on down some back roads too,
stops on a dime with new brakes as well ha
stops on a dime with new brakes as well ha
Nice car, and looks to be in good condition 
I had a mk1 pre facelift 1.8 Ghia saloon, and remember it would hold nice four wheel drifts when pushing on (as well as indulging in roll-oversteer) My road tripping buddy said he often saw the Focus coming sidewards through bends
Odd that you have rear drums though, my car had discs all round - maybe a facelift change?
I had a mk1 pre facelift 1.8 Ghia saloon, and remember it would hold nice four wheel drifts when pushing on (as well as indulging in roll-oversteer) My road tripping buddy said he often saw the Focus coming sidewards through bends
Odd that you have rear drums though, my car had discs all round - maybe a facelift change?Looks nice, I recently bought a Focus too on the grounds that it felt so much more fun to drive than the Golf I looked at.
As you have a Ghia spec, there should be wiring on there to add a trip computer. The unit goes for about £20 on eBay. Also, there should be footwell lighting in the wiring harness, which simply needs two lightbulbs if they are not present.
As you have a Ghia spec, there should be wiring on there to add a trip computer. The unit goes for about £20 on eBay. Also, there should be footwell lighting in the wiring harness, which simply needs two lightbulbs if they are not present.
C.A.R. said:
Looks nice, I recently bought a Focus too on the grounds that it felt so much more fun to drive than the Golf I looked at.
As you have a Ghia spec, there should be wiring on there to add a trip computer. The unit goes for about £20 on eBay. Also, there should be footwell lighting in the wiring harness, which simply needs two lightbulbs if they are not present.
ah see i i did look into fitting the trip computer, but i thought you needed to add in all the other bits, like the indicator stalk with the info button. might have a proper look for that though, As you have a Ghia spec, there should be wiring on there to add a trip computer. The unit goes for about £20 on eBay. Also, there should be footwell lighting in the wiring harness, which simply needs two lightbulbs if they are not present.
and yeah ive got the footwell lighting, really nice little feature.
Minimum you will need for a computer is an info stalk and the computer itself, along with an appropriate instrument surround. Easiest way to check if your car is pre-wired is to check for a yellow wire going to the indicator stalk. If you have it, then your cabin is pre-wired, your engine bay (washer level sensor, exterior temp sensor) may not be prewired even if the cabin is.
It isn't a big deal even if the wiring isn't there, it wasn't on my pre-facelift Ghia, it also wasn't on a facelift 1.8 Ghia at a local scrappers. Bizarrely the wiring I needed came from a TDCi Zetec.
It isn't a big deal even if the wiring isn't there, it wasn't on my pre-facelift Ghia, it also wasn't on a facelift 1.8 Ghia at a local scrappers. Bizarrely the wiring I needed came from a TDCi Zetec.
FlashBastd said:
Minimum you will need for a computer is an info stalk and the computer itself, along with an appropriate instrument surround. Easiest way to check if your car is pre-wired is to check for a yellow wire going to the indicator stalk. If you have it, then your cabin is pre-wired, your engine bay (washer level sensor, exterior temp sensor) may not be prewired even if the cabin is.
It isn't a big deal even if the wiring isn't there, it wasn't on my pre-facelift Ghia, it also wasn't on a facelift 1.8 Ghia at a local scrappers. Bizarrely the wiring I needed came from a TDCi Zetec.
oo thanks for that, thats really helpful, gives me an idea what to look for. i shall have a butchers and see what is present. It isn't a big deal even if the wiring isn't there, it wasn't on my pre-facelift Ghia, it also wasn't on a facelift 1.8 Ghia at a local scrappers. Bizarrely the wiring I needed came from a TDCi Zetec.
I got a 54 1.8TDCi focus that is great foreverthing i need, but looking to sell as i dont need the diesel, as the maxium miles i do in 1 day about 10 at the most, currently going through the classifieds looking for a replacement, and the top of the list is another Focus, i really cannot fault them. is there much difference between the 1.8 and 2.0
35mpg is a bit pony, are you caning it everywhere? I'd expect that from the 2.0 (having had a Mondeo with that engine, which would return similar rates) but a bit more from the 1.8, especially on the motorway - my mate had a 1.6 Zetec one of these and I seem to remember that fifth was brilliantly long, meaning you were doing about 2500rpm at 80!
Great cars to drive, and very reliable from what I can gather. They still look pretty good to my eyes, possibly because many of the design cues have been carried over to the latest model - if you park them side by side they look very different, but they both "look like Focuses" if you know what I mean.
Great cars to drive, and very reliable from what I can gather. They still look pretty good to my eyes, possibly because many of the design cues have been carried over to the latest model - if you park them side by side they look very different, but they both "look like Focuses" if you know what I mean.
Little update on the focus:
MPG is steadily improving, up to 33.4 on a short runs, need to fill up again to check but just done 210 of 100% motorway so that should be an okay MPG.
ive treated it to a new set of boots, Dunlop fast response, to replace the 3 70% worn pirellis and 1 new fullway (well new in april before i bought the car).
done about 10 miles, but the humming noise has gone from the old tyres, and been replaced by more grip than you can shake a stick at, much fun to be had on roundabouts,
only issue is that as its summer time, ive discovered it fills up with rain (english summers are the best!). cant find the leak, i know its not the pollen filter, had the wheel arch liner out and cleared the drain at the bottom on saturday, and its still getting wet inside. The pictures should show kind of where its coming from. if anyone has any ideas i would be massively grateful.
the water is coming in from the inside of the wheel arch by the feel of it, but i cant take out the grey lining to check, so just going on how wet it feels when i stick my arm up there.
so in this case its coming from just above that little red switch on the right, but i cant find any holes or openings that might be letting it in.
and a shot of my nice new rubber, should get some decent use over the next few weeks with a number of london runs, and then a trip to the south of france.
MPG is steadily improving, up to 33.4 on a short runs, need to fill up again to check but just done 210 of 100% motorway so that should be an okay MPG.
ive treated it to a new set of boots, Dunlop fast response, to replace the 3 70% worn pirellis and 1 new fullway (well new in april before i bought the car).
done about 10 miles, but the humming noise has gone from the old tyres, and been replaced by more grip than you can shake a stick at, much fun to be had on roundabouts,
only issue is that as its summer time, ive discovered it fills up with rain (english summers are the best!). cant find the leak, i know its not the pollen filter, had the wheel arch liner out and cleared the drain at the bottom on saturday, and its still getting wet inside. The pictures should show kind of where its coming from. if anyone has any ideas i would be massively grateful.
the water is coming in from the inside of the wheel arch by the feel of it, but i cant take out the grey lining to check, so just going on how wet it feels when i stick my arm up there.
so in this case its coming from just above that little red switch on the right, but i cant find any holes or openings that might be letting it in.
and a shot of my nice new rubber, should get some decent use over the next few weeks with a number of london runs, and then a trip to the south of france.
I stuck ContiPremiumContact 5's on mine, with similarly positive results compared to previous Kormorans - yuk!
The car hasn't had a new screen recently has it? Leaks on the drivers side possibly more likely from a poorly fitted screen.
Mine did have problems on the passenger side but that was from a leaking scuttle panel trim, which it sounds like you have ruled out.
Have you had the hose on it with your head under the dash?
The car hasn't had a new screen recently has it? Leaks on the drivers side possibly more likely from a poorly fitted screen.
Mine did have problems on the passenger side but that was from a leaking scuttle panel trim, which it sounds like you have ruled out.
Have you had the hose on it with your head under the dash?
mig25_foxbat2003 said:
35mpg is a bit pony, are you caning it everywhere? I'd expect that from the 2.0 (having had a Mondeo with that engine, which would return similar rates) but a bit more from the 1.8, especially on the motorway - my mate had a 1.6 Zetec one of these and I seem to remember that fifth was brilliantly long, meaning you were doing about 2500rpm at 80!
Great cars to drive, and very reliable from what I can gather. They still look pretty good to my eyes, possibly because many of the design cues have been carried over to the latest model - if you park them side by side they look very different, but they both "look like Focuses" if you know what I mean.
That's about right I'm afraid. I've had a 1.8 in Zetec trim and now have a 2.0. The 2.0 will average about 33 on a steady run and can drop below 30 with urban driving. They aren't very efficient cars!Great cars to drive, and very reliable from what I can gather. They still look pretty good to my eyes, possibly because many of the design cues have been carried over to the latest model - if you park them side by side they look very different, but they both "look like Focuses" if you know what I mean.
Someone asked about rear discs, they were an option on the 1.8 models and standard on the 2.0
Car seems to be in great condition OP, much better than mine of the same vintage.
ETA: Things to keep an eye on OP are:
Front anti-roll bar link arms
Rear wheel bearings
Thermostat housing often leak (right hand side of the engine block)
Rigid radiator pipe, right at the front top of the engine bay, y-piece piece of plastic. I ignored a slight weep from mine and it let go big time! Cheap fix and easy to replace if it does though.
Edited by Rickyy on Thursday 19th July 19:34
FlashBastd said:
I stuck ContiPremiumContact 5's on mine, with similarly positive results compared to previous Kormorans - yuk!
The car hasn't had a new screen recently has it? Leaks on the drivers side possibly more likely from a poorly fitted screen.
Mine did have problems on the passenger side but that was from a leaking scuttle panel trim, which it sounds like you have ruled out.
Have you had the hose on it with your head under the dash?
thanks ive had a look at the screen and it looks original, but ive only had it since april so not sure. yeah ive sat in it with my dad running the hose and cannot make it come in at all, very confusing, but thanks, i shall investigate that properly and see if thats the source. The car hasn't had a new screen recently has it? Leaks on the drivers side possibly more likely from a poorly fitted screen.
Mine did have problems on the passenger side but that was from a leaking scuttle panel trim, which it sounds like you have ruled out.
Have you had the hose on it with your head under the dash?
Rickyy said:
That's about right I'm afraid. I've had a 1.8 in Zetec trim and now have a 2.0. The 2.0 will average about 33 on a steady run and can drop below 30 with urban driving. They aren't very efficient cars!
Someone asked about rear discs, they were an option on the 1.8 models and standard on the 2.0
Car seems to be in great condition OP, much better than mine of the same vintage.
ETA: Things to keep an eye on OP are:
Front anti-roll bar link arms
Rear wheel bearings
Thermostat housing often leak (right hand side of the engine block)
Rigid radiator pipe, right at the front top of the engine bay, y-piece piece of plastic. I ignored a slight weep from mine and it let go big time! Cheap fix and easy to replace if it does though.
oo thanks for that, yeah its good to keep a preventative eye on those things rather than letting them fail, as i cant really afford any big fixes right now ha. so thanks i shall make sure i check all of them. Someone asked about rear discs, they were an option on the 1.8 models and standard on the 2.0
Car seems to be in great condition OP, much better than mine of the same vintage.
ETA: Things to keep an eye on OP are:
Front anti-roll bar link arms
Rear wheel bearings
Thermostat housing often leak (right hand side of the engine block)
Rigid radiator pipe, right at the front top of the engine bay, y-piece piece of plastic. I ignored a slight weep from mine and it let go big time! Cheap fix and easy to replace if it does though.
Edited by Rickyy on Thursday 19th July 19:34
yeah its a lovely straight car, was fairly expensive for the year, but it was the best one i looked at by a country mile, so well worth the extra money.
and as for the discs, im glad its not just me with that level or nerdtastic knowledge ha, i was tempted to convert to discs, but its a helluva lot of work for limited gain, so i shall just stick with my drums.
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