My Shed Mk1 Focus Ghia
Discussion
Eyersey1234 said:
Glad to hear it's still serving you well. I really enjoyed driving my Mk2 on the twisty B roads near Ironbridge last weekend.
The stretch up to Atcham possibly? It’s like a rollercoaster isn’t it - one of my fave local runs. I’ve been noticing how many Mk1s there still are near to me - it’s actually quite a few ( plus 2 of the unloved saloons ) within a few hundred yards. I always think my cars are quite old but the Mk1 Focii are hanging on pretty well
RobXjcoupe said:
You drive just like me lol, big modern something tries it on, a bit of speed through the corners and modern pulls back. I’ve got a 20 year old 1.25 fiesta. Not a drag car but I’ve fitted bigger front brakes, discs on the rear, subtle ride height change and reasonable sticky tyres. I’ve embarrassed many bigger engined cars on the twisty roads.
Where do you meet all these people that you keep having competitions with?greenarrow said:
...
I'll keep writing these reports, as I know how many people out there have fond memories of spirited drives in Mk1s.........
Reading your report did indeed get me thinking back to the early days of MK1 fun, was certain corners I would only enjoy in the Focus.I'll keep writing these reports, as I know how many people out there have fond memories of spirited drives in Mk1s.........
It got put in for a early MOT this week even although the covid extension was valid until Jan. It Nevers fails so not a worry but needed an annual service anyway.
Advisory on
1)Offside Front Lower Suspension arm ball joint has slight play
2) Rear Brakes imbalanced requirements only just met.
Think the later was probably due to lack of use recently.
s m said:
Eyersey1234 said:
Glad to hear it's still serving you well. I really enjoyed driving my Mk2 on the twisty B roads near Ironbridge last weekend.
The stretch up to Atcham possibly? It’s like a rollercoaster isn’t it - one of my fave local runs. I’ve been noticing how many Mk1s there still are near to me - it’s actually quite a few ( plus 2 of the unloved saloons ) within a few hundred yards. I always think my cars are quite old but the Mk1 Focii are hanging on pretty well
The Mad Monk said:
RobXjcoupe said:
You drive just like me lol, big modern something tries it on, a bit of speed through the corners and modern pulls back. I’ve got a 20 year old 1.25 fiesta. Not a drag car but I’ve fitted bigger front brakes, discs on the rear, subtle ride height change and reasonable sticky tyres. I’ve embarrassed many bigger engined cars on the twisty roads.
Where do you meet all these people that you keep having competitions with?Eyersey1234 said:
s m said:
Eyersey1234 said:
Glad to hear it's still serving you well. I really enjoyed driving my Mk2 on the twisty B roads near Ironbridge last weekend.
The stretch up to Atcham possibly? It’s like a rollercoaster isn’t it - one of my fave local runs. I’ve been noticing how many Mk1s there still are near to me - it’s actually quite a few ( plus 2 of the unloved saloons ) within a few hundred yards. I always think my cars are quite old but the Mk1 Focii are hanging on pretty well
Always enjoy a run to work on those bits
RobXjcoupe said:
You drive just like me lol, big modern something tries it on, a bit of speed through the corners and modern pulls back. I’ve got a 20 year old 1.25 fiesta. Not a drag car but I’ve fitted bigger front brakes, discs on the rear, subtle ride height change and reasonable sticky tyres. I’ve embarrassed many bigger engined cars on the twisty roads.
I’m just pulling the suspension apart on my mk1 focus estate to give it that twisty road edge. Should give good results when complete but not shouty to look at. Just need a set of Ford 17” wheels to finish it off. I like the mp3 style. Easy to clean and suit the mk1 focus very well I think
A popular modification, the 17 inch wheels. I've decided not to throw money at my shed, but one thing I would change if I did would be to replace the springs and fit some lower ones. The ride height is ridiculous by modern day standards and with the higher profile tyres, causes the body to list a lot when you're chucking the car around!I’m just pulling the suspension apart on my mk1 focus estate to give it that twisty road edge. Should give good results when complete but not shouty to look at. Just need a set of Ford 17” wheels to finish it off. I like the mp3 style. Easy to clean and suit the mk1 focus very well I think
That said, the Focus is possibly the car I've owned most impervious to mid corner bumps. On certain roundabouts I use, where other cars would push wide when encountering bumps or camber changes, I find the Focus doesn't flinch. So on that basis, I would want to mess with the suspension set up that much.
greenarrow said:
The ride height is ridiculous by modern day standards and with the higher profile tyres, causes the body to list a lot when you're chucking the car around!
That said, the Focus is possibly the car I've owned most impervious to mid corner bumps. On certain roundabouts I use, where other cars would push wide when encountering bumps or camber changes, I find the Focus doesn't flinch. So on that basis, I would want to mess with the suspension set up that much.
You've said it yourself. Why change something That said, the Focus is possibly the car I've owned most impervious to mid corner bumps. On certain roundabouts I use, where other cars would push wide when encountering bumps or camber changes, I find the Focus doesn't flinch. So on that basis, I would want to mess with the suspension set up that much.
that works so well?
Modern ride height is more about aesthetics. It doesn't hinder the Focus.
MC Bodge said:
You've said it yourself. Why change something
that works so well?
Modern ride height is more about aesthetics. It doesn't hinder the Focus.
Agreed, but I did prefer the slightly better body control on my previous Focus Mk1 which was a Zetec, so If I was keeping my car for a long time I would be tempted to fit Zetec springs, or an aftermarket spring that lowered the car a small amount. Its not worth doing though on a car that's worth about £500, IMO!that works so well?
Modern ride height is more about aesthetics. It doesn't hinder the Focus.
I must admit that owning my car has altered my views on suspension and tyre set ups. I really don't understand why moderns have to have such big wheels and low profile tyres. Its a massive compromise in terms of ride comfort for a theoretical marginal gain in cornering speed that you can't use on the road anyway.
Yeah must admit the bigger wheels do buckle rather easily. The inside edge where there is no centre strength. As the wheel diameter gets bigger the wheel gets weaker. Something I’ve also figured out is try to keep a tyre profile height of round about 90mm to soak up bumps and potholes. For example 185 60, 195 50, 215 45 all roughly have the same profile height. As for lowered springs, I changed my focus fronts without any trouble, the rears......I’m having to cut through the lower wishbone bolts as they have rusted solid inside the bush metal tubes. I had heat and a club hammer to try wallop those bolts out but no good as I started to bend the subframe around the screw head. Haynes manual just says support spring cup wishbone, remove lower bolt and gradually wind jack down until spring pops out. Yeah right lol. That bolt sheared it’s head! A spring change on my estate will now end up being all new wishbone components. Hopefully I can get a disc cutter through the seized up bolts and bushes later
RobXjcoupe said:
Yeah must admit the bigger wheels do buckle rather easily. The inside edge where there is no centre strength. As the wheel diameter gets bigger the wheel gets weaker. Something I’ve also figured out is try to keep a tyre profile height of round about 90mm to soak up bumps and potholes. For example 185 60, 195 50, 215 45 all roughly have the same profile height. As for lowered springs, I changed my focus fronts without any trouble, the rears......I’m having to cut through the lower wishbone bolts as they have rusted solid inside the bush metal tubes. I had heat and a club hammer to try wallop those bolts out but no good as I started to bend the subframe around the screw head. Haynes manual just says support spring cup wishbone, remove lower bolt and gradually wind jack down until spring pops out. Yeah right lol. That bolt sheared it’s head! A spring change on my estate will now end up being all new wishbone components. Hopefully I can get a disc cutter through the seized up bolts and bushes later
Hmm, your experiences are the reason why I sometimes think its cheaper to buy a car where someone has already done the mods. There are quite a few Focus Mk1s on the Facebook group which have been lowered with eibachs etc and they go for the same price as the standard cars....I imagine modern low profile tyres are another factor in why so many springs seem to break on cars these days. I had two snap on my Insignia which was running on 245/50/18 tyres which had so little give on them.
greenarrow said:
RobXjcoupe said:
Yeah must admit the bigger wheels do buckle rather easily. The inside edge where there is no centre strength. As the wheel diameter gets bigger the wheel gets weaker. Something I’ve also figured out is try to keep a tyre profile height of round about 90mm to soak up bumps and potholes. For example 185 60, 195 50, 215 45 all roughly have the same profile height. As for lowered springs, I changed my focus fronts without any trouble, the rears......I’m having to cut through the lower wishbone bolts as they have rusted solid inside the bush metal tubes. I had heat and a club hammer to try wallop those bolts out but no good as I started to bend the subframe around the screw head. Haynes manual just says support spring cup wishbone, remove lower bolt and gradually wind jack down until spring pops out. Yeah right lol. That bolt sheared it’s head! A spring change on my estate will now end up being all new wishbone components. Hopefully I can get a disc cutter through the seized up bolts and bushes later
Hmm, your experiences are the reason why I sometimes think its cheaper to buy a car where someone has already done the mods. There are quite a few Focus Mk1s on the Facebook group which have been lowered with eibachs etc and they go for the same price as the standard cars....I imagine modern low profile tyres are another factor in why so many springs seem to break on cars these days. I had two snap on my Insignia which was running on 245/50/18 tyres which had so little give on them.
With regards to the insignia, the tyre profile is quite big but I think modern cars are heavy by comparison to similar sized cars 20 years ago and modern computer derived engineering components are made to keep costs down of which springs have become a vehicle consumable. I’m probably wrong but my gut feeling says otherwise. I’ve been restoring a 43 year old car for the past 2 years and although poorly put together originally its engineering is rather sturdy which is how it’s managed to survive I would imagine.
Had some fun yesterday in the rain on the way to the local MacDonalds drive thru for breakfast. It was very quiet, so on a large roundabout near me reminded myself again how adjustable the handling is on these Focus Mk1s. Especially I am finding recently now that the Kumho Ecowings on the front have worn enough to give good wet weather grip (they were really quite lousy for the first couple of thousand miles) and the 7 year old hard Firestones on the rear, give up purchase sooner if provoked!
Chucked the Focus into the roundabout a smidgen too fast, lifted off just a little to stop it understeering and allowing the back end to swing out just a fraction, then fed the power in as i performed my 360 roundabout turn and ended up with a nice little rearward slide on exit! Nothing major and all very predictable. No-one was around and it was all at low speed. So much fun, I returned to repeat it!
Another reminder that cars that are fun at low speeds, can just be more fun, period, on our roads!
Chucked the Focus into the roundabout a smidgen too fast, lifted off just a little to stop it understeering and allowing the back end to swing out just a fraction, then fed the power in as i performed my 360 roundabout turn and ended up with a nice little rearward slide on exit! Nothing major and all very predictable. No-one was around and it was all at low speed. So much fun, I returned to repeat it!
Another reminder that cars that are fun at low speeds, can just be more fun, period, on our roads!
My old mk1 focus estate finally getting the new rear suspension fitted. Started off as a change of springs for the next mot. Ended up with new upper and lower wishbones. New lower spring pan, I also fitted a poly bush replacement on the trailing arm as the original was shot. Rear brake calipers have had a rebuild too. I’ve got all the restoration gear to hand from doing the xjc. Ford stuff is a lot easier to restore. I can see why the old Ford classics have such a following.
RobXjcoupe said:
My old mk1 focus estate finally getting the new rear suspension fitted. Started off as a change of springs for the next mot. Ended up with new upper and lower wishbones. New lower spring pan, I also fitted a poly bush replacement on the trailing arm as the original was shot. Rear brake calipers have had a rebuild too. I’ve got all the restoration gear to hand from doing the xjc. Ford stuff is a lot easier to restore. I can see why the old Ford classics have such a following.
lost in espace said:
I bought a 1.6 2002 auto estate for my lodger, a grandad car 71k and lots of scrapes. Unfortunately something has gone wrong with the auto, nobody wants it so off to the scrapyard in a few days. Great cars, aircon, heated screen, just a bit lacking in power.
It may be worth you advertising it on the Mk1 Focus facebook page, there are always people looking to take on cars as projects. Would be a shame for such a low mileage car to be scrapped.Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff