2012 Ford Focus Titanium
Discussion
Only a quick update:
Front left brake is still perfect. I haven't heard or felt a thing since changing the hub, so I'm glad all of that is over and done with. I still find it hard to believe that a binding caliper can get so hot that it warps the hub.
Also an update on the RimBlades, they're still going strong too. One or two areas (where there's heavy curbing) came a little loose but I glued these areas back and they've been fine since. I even had two new tyres put on the fronts and they barely marked them, even though the garage told me they'd understandably come off during a tyre change.
So the car is spot on and hasn't put a foot wrong since... but I'd love to sell it.
Sounds odd, but the reason is that I've taken to Mazda's lately. Ever since buying the MX-5, having a friend with a CX-5, and looking into their range, I've realised how reliable and now how good looking they are.
Maddie's just purchased this:
It's her first car while she learns to drive. A 1.3 chain driven petrol that's £30 a year to tax, £300 a year to insure for her (for a learner that's amazing) and is quiet and lovely to drive. £2,500.
So that's two Mazda's on the drive:
...and one Ford. Me being me, I hate inconsistencies and started looking at the Mazda equivelant of a Focus.
It's this:
It has to be in that colour, too. A 2.2D Mazda3 SportNav in soul red. Being spoilt with the optional extras on the Focus, I'd want the same in the Mazda and this delivers, too. It has everything the Focus has, and some on top. You can get a decent one for around £5,500 to £6,000 if you're fine with slightly higher (under 100k) miles that needs tidying up here and there, but that's what I enjoy.
What a beautiful looking car. That back end is very 'Alfa' like. I won't be selling just yet as I couldn't just sell and swap though as the Focus wouldn't sell for that due to its miles. If we weren't saving for a wedding I'd have put the Focus up for sale to put a few grand towards a Mazda 3.
For now I'll wait and will enjoy the Focus, but that's certainly on the horizon.
Front left brake is still perfect. I haven't heard or felt a thing since changing the hub, so I'm glad all of that is over and done with. I still find it hard to believe that a binding caliper can get so hot that it warps the hub.
Also an update on the RimBlades, they're still going strong too. One or two areas (where there's heavy curbing) came a little loose but I glued these areas back and they've been fine since. I even had two new tyres put on the fronts and they barely marked them, even though the garage told me they'd understandably come off during a tyre change.
So the car is spot on and hasn't put a foot wrong since... but I'd love to sell it.
Sounds odd, but the reason is that I've taken to Mazda's lately. Ever since buying the MX-5, having a friend with a CX-5, and looking into their range, I've realised how reliable and now how good looking they are.
Maddie's just purchased this:
It's her first car while she learns to drive. A 1.3 chain driven petrol that's £30 a year to tax, £300 a year to insure for her (for a learner that's amazing) and is quiet and lovely to drive. £2,500.
So that's two Mazda's on the drive:
...and one Ford. Me being me, I hate inconsistencies and started looking at the Mazda equivelant of a Focus.
It's this:
It has to be in that colour, too. A 2.2D Mazda3 SportNav in soul red. Being spoilt with the optional extras on the Focus, I'd want the same in the Mazda and this delivers, too. It has everything the Focus has, and some on top. You can get a decent one for around £5,500 to £6,000 if you're fine with slightly higher (under 100k) miles that needs tidying up here and there, but that's what I enjoy.
What a beautiful looking car. That back end is very 'Alfa' like. I won't be selling just yet as I couldn't just sell and swap though as the Focus wouldn't sell for that due to its miles. If we weren't saving for a wedding I'd have put the Focus up for sale to put a few grand towards a Mazda 3.
For now I'll wait and will enjoy the Focus, but that's certainly on the horizon.
Raymond Reddington said:
Just wanted to drop in to say thanks for the thread, it's been a good read.
I'm picking up a 14 plate 1.6 TDCI Zetec Focus on Sunday. I'd of liked a titanium or titanium X but this one has come up locally for a good price. After the test drive I was sold. Very Very comfortable and reassuring to drive and just feels right.
I was a bit concerned about some horror stories with this engine but I understand it to have been pretty well sorted by the time these were made and only an issue quite a few years previously. My dad has the same engine in a mondeo and its been fine.
Good work on the dash cam, I think after an incident a few weeks ago I'd quite like to get one sorted as well.
I also like the look of those Mazda 3s, shame about the engine, maybe you could look in to the 2.0 skyactiv petrol which uses diesel technology to get good MPG from a petrol engine, they're supposed to be pretty good.
Thanks for the kind words.I'm picking up a 14 plate 1.6 TDCI Zetec Focus on Sunday. I'd of liked a titanium or titanium X but this one has come up locally for a good price. After the test drive I was sold. Very Very comfortable and reassuring to drive and just feels right.
I was a bit concerned about some horror stories with this engine but I understand it to have been pretty well sorted by the time these were made and only an issue quite a few years previously. My dad has the same engine in a mondeo and its been fine.
Good work on the dash cam, I think after an incident a few weeks ago I'd quite like to get one sorted as well.
I also like the look of those Mazda 3s, shame about the engine, maybe you could look in to the 2.0 skyactiv petrol which uses diesel technology to get good MPG from a petrol engine, they're supposed to be pretty good.
Glad you're going down the same route, it's a lovely engine. Slightly underpowered but nothing too drastic if you're just using it for what it's made for; a comfortable daily drive.
I did look into the petrol and I think it's the way to go. I'll certainly be looking into it after this one, but I've a feeling this will last quite a long time. I'm not complaining at all, it's been a fantastic car.
It had its MOT not too long ago, I forgot to mention. The results were:
Repair immediately (major defects):
- Nearside Front Inner Drive shaft joint constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (6.1.7 (g) (ii))
- Offside Front Inner Drive shaft joint constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (6.1.7 (g) (ii))
Monitor and repair if necessary (advisories):
- Nearside Rear Suspension component pin or bush slightly worn trailing arm bush (5.3.4 (a) (i))
- Offside Rear Suspension component pin or bush slightly worn trailing arm bush (5.3.4 (a) (i))
- Offside Rear Tyre has a cut but not deep enough to reach the ply or cords (5.2.3 (d) (i))
- Nearside Front Drag link end ball joint has slight play (2.1.3 (b) (i))
Failed on two split CV joints, advised on the above. As the CV joints were the tri-lobe kind, I just asked the garage to do them there and then. For labour, parts and the MOT it cost just a tad over £200 for the whole thing.
As for the advisories, I'll be looking into replacing those components soon. I hate having advisories on a car, if it's not correct I'll sort it. I need to pop back and ask them to point the rear worn bushes though. The front is just the track rod end, which I could do easily enough, and the tyre is just a tyre. Could pick up another used tyre of the same make/size as a direct temporary replacement.
Aside from that, the car's been lovely and hasn't put a foot wrong. Brakes have been fine and it's currently on 145,000 miles.
So far in my ownership, the main problems were:
- Warped N/S/F hub
- Battery
- Auxiliary belt tensioner
- Leak in rear (common and easy fix)
- Thermostat
For a well kitted out Titanium for £3,500, it hasn't been too bad on cost and problems. With the odd touch-up needed here and there on the paint, and the wheel curb protectors, that's been the extent of 'fixing' things. It's a big shame that the brake problem went on for so long before we realised it was the hub itself. I'd never have guessed it.
The main thing is that it's rust free with a solid engine and everything works as it should. These are great cars. In the future I'll be taking the wheels to be powder coated - I think it deserves it. Just need to find a cheap powder coating company...
I may have spoken too soon... I need a new steering rack.
This is the sound of it at the moment:
https://youtu.be/mkMR_N14p-M
Annoyingly, it's not a simple replacement. You have to match the part number and, sometimes, get it re-programmed to the car too. It's all a little unclear at the moment so I'm trying to find some clarification. Some people manage to fit them with no problems, others need the power steering control module reset due to the used replacement rack containing learned information from its previous car (so the car could drift, etc), and some people have had to get their racks re-programmed by Ford. There doesn't seem to be any consistency.
Currently my in-law's have the car and are borrowing it for a month or two whilst they find a new car (theirs catastrophically failed their MOT), so I can't do anything until I get it back. When I get it back, I'll try to crawl under the car to get a peek of the part number on the rack (from looking at a few videos it should be just about visible with a camera phone), then I'll order a used rack with the same part number.
Best case scenario, the rack gets replaced and all is well, though because of the amount of assists and options on the car I can't see that happening. Worst case, the car throws a load of errors and the power steering won't work. If that's the case, I'll drive it to Ford for them to re-program the rack. I'm asking my local garage to price up the labour as I don't fancy doing it myself, but I will if it comes to it. If they quote more than £300-£400 labour I'll do the job myself.
What a b
h.
This is the sound of it at the moment:
https://youtu.be/mkMR_N14p-M
Annoyingly, it's not a simple replacement. You have to match the part number and, sometimes, get it re-programmed to the car too. It's all a little unclear at the moment so I'm trying to find some clarification. Some people manage to fit them with no problems, others need the power steering control module reset due to the used replacement rack containing learned information from its previous car (so the car could drift, etc), and some people have had to get their racks re-programmed by Ford. There doesn't seem to be any consistency.
Currently my in-law's have the car and are borrowing it for a month or two whilst they find a new car (theirs catastrophically failed their MOT), so I can't do anything until I get it back. When I get it back, I'll try to crawl under the car to get a peek of the part number on the rack (from looking at a few videos it should be just about visible with a camera phone), then I'll order a used rack with the same part number.
Best case scenario, the rack gets replaced and all is well, though because of the amount of assists and options on the car I can't see that happening. Worst case, the car throws a load of errors and the power steering won't work. If that's the case, I'll drive it to Ford for them to re-program the rack. I'm asking my local garage to price up the labour as I don't fancy doing it myself, but I will if it comes to it. If they quote more than £300-£400 labour I'll do the job myself.
What a b
h.That's fantastic to hear. I originally went to diesel thinking due to MPG, but seeing those figures from the petrol engine has swayed me completely. Thanks for giving an insight though, exactly what I wanted to hear.
Update on the steering rack:
Ford won't programme a used rack, so that's out of the question. I can see why, they can't take liability on a part that's unknown to them, so they'll only supply and fit a new one. They're asking almost £1,000 for the part alone, so Ford undertaking the repair is a no go.
At this point I thought I was completely buggered, until I came across a company (one of several) that sell re-conditioned units for £450. I called them and they explained that I give them my car registration and they'll program the unit before sending it out, creating a plug-and-play solution. My local garage have also told me it's around £85 for labour to fit, which is great. The whole job is around £535 for a garage to do the work. I could save £85 and do it myself, but it's such a fiddly job on a driveway that for the amount I'm spending, an extra £85 isn't going to be much more for someone to do the work for me.
I'll have to wait a month or two before I get the car back off the in-laws, at which point I'll order the rack. It's drivable and the garage even said I could live with it, but there's no way I could... it would drive me nuts!
Once the rack is done, I'm treating it to a machine polish and will re-furbish the wheels myself. I really miss the car having not had it for around 2 months now, so I'll be happy to do it up a little once it's back.
Update on the steering rack:
Ford won't programme a used rack, so that's out of the question. I can see why, they can't take liability on a part that's unknown to them, so they'll only supply and fit a new one. They're asking almost £1,000 for the part alone, so Ford undertaking the repair is a no go.
At this point I thought I was completely buggered, until I came across a company (one of several) that sell re-conditioned units for £450. I called them and they explained that I give them my car registration and they'll program the unit before sending it out, creating a plug-and-play solution. My local garage have also told me it's around £85 for labour to fit, which is great. The whole job is around £535 for a garage to do the work. I could save £85 and do it myself, but it's such a fiddly job on a driveway that for the amount I'm spending, an extra £85 isn't going to be much more for someone to do the work for me.
I'll have to wait a month or two before I get the car back off the in-laws, at which point I'll order the rack. It's drivable and the garage even said I could live with it, but there's no way I could... it would drive me nuts!
Once the rack is done, I'm treating it to a machine polish and will re-furbish the wheels myself. I really miss the car having not had it for around 2 months now, so I'll be happy to do it up a little once it's back.
ChrisR99 said:
You're lucky you still have power steering at all. The steering rack completely failed on my 2014 Focus. One minute everything was fine, turned the car off for a few minutes and turned it back on and was greeted with the dreaded 'steering assist failure' message 
. I was in Belgium at the time...
Cue Ford Assist refusing to help me (long story), my dealership back home being useless and several euros later the car was shipped back to the UK two weeks later. The reconditioned racks looks like an ideal solution for you but unfortunately wasn't possible for my car with it being stranded in Belgium. I had to stomach the price for a new rack. It turned out to be a very expensive trip!
Safe to say I don't have the car anymore, didn't really trust it again after that. Shame as it was reliable otherwise in the 5 years I had it, but I thought the failure of such an expensive part was very poor on a car with only 35k miles.
Good luck with repairing yours!
Ouch! I was speaking to the garage about it and he mentioned that it isn't like hydraulic steering where it just gets heavier, you loose steering completely due to the force you'd have to use turning the steering wheel which is turning against a static electric motor. I didn't want to risk a used rack after that and thought I'd just go for the re-conditioned one with a guaranteed plug-and-play job (and warranty, too). . I was in Belgium at the time...Cue Ford Assist refusing to help me (long story), my dealership back home being useless and several euros later the car was shipped back to the UK two weeks later. The reconditioned racks looks like an ideal solution for you but unfortunately wasn't possible for my car with it being stranded in Belgium. I had to stomach the price for a new rack. It turned out to be a very expensive trip!
Safe to say I don't have the car anymore, didn't really trust it again after that. Shame as it was reliable otherwise in the 5 years I had it, but I thought the failure of such an expensive part was very poor on a car with only 35k miles.
Good luck with repairing yours!
I finally get the car back this Sunday!
The in-laws have been relying on it for lots of travelling and a house move, so they've certainly put it through its paces. I told them not to worry about washing it, so it's incredibly dirty from travelling for months without cleaning and there's a few nicks on the rear bumper where they moved items in and out of the boot. One of the wheel rim protectors has come off due to nicking the wheel (they were quite shocked how bad the turning circle is, I don't blame them), and the steering rack needs replacing. It'll be a long weekend of me (thoroughly enjoying) restoring it back to what it was.
They also said it's throwing an error every few days of 'ACC Currently Unavailable', which is 'Adaptive Cruise Control'. I've heard that if you have a bad steering rack, it could cause this, so this would make sense. Hopefully when I change the rack it'll solve this, so I'll find out.
I'm seriously looking forward to having it back, it's surprising how much I've missed a relaxed daily.
The in-laws have been relying on it for lots of travelling and a house move, so they've certainly put it through its paces. I told them not to worry about washing it, so it's incredibly dirty from travelling for months without cleaning and there's a few nicks on the rear bumper where they moved items in and out of the boot. One of the wheel rim protectors has come off due to nicking the wheel (they were quite shocked how bad the turning circle is, I don't blame them), and the steering rack needs replacing. It'll be a long weekend of me (thoroughly enjoying) restoring it back to what it was.
They also said it's throwing an error every few days of 'ACC Currently Unavailable', which is 'Adaptive Cruise Control'. I've heard that if you have a bad steering rack, it could cause this, so this would make sense. Hopefully when I change the rack it'll solve this, so I'll find out.
I'm seriously looking forward to having it back, it's surprising how much I've missed a relaxed daily.
Had the car back and gave it a thorough clean. It's been lovely driving this thing again, but needed to sort the steering rack.
Another issue I had completely forgot about was that the wheels needed balancing. I gave the car to my in-laws and told them to ignore the slight vibration as the wheels needed balancing. I forgot about it until I drove it on the motorway on the journey back from picking it up, so I took it straight to a tyre garage. Something I thought would be quick and easy. Nope! It was a buckled rear wheel. I tilted the wing mirror down to look at the rear wheel and thought I hadn't tightened the alloy wheel correctly, but it turned out to be a badly buckled alloy. Unfortunately it was irreparable, so I needed a new one. They're not common alloys being the optional extra variant, but I manage to grab the only one on Ebay in Scotland for £50 delivered! After having that fitted, the ride is now smooth as silk.
The main issue was of course the steering rack, which has now been replaced. The total was £671 for parts and labour, that's including a refurbished and coded rack, new track rod ends, alignment and labour. Amazingly, the one gripe I had about this car is now gone; the turning circle. I recently compared it to a friend's Focus Mk3.5, and my wheel didn't rotate as much as his. I put it down to his just being a newer Focus, but with this new rack, it's the same and the car now turns on a dime. I'm guessing the rack was always a little faulty to limit its steering angle to prevent further damage?
Either way, with the rack and alloy replaced, it's back to being a comfortable cruiser.
The two areas that let the car down are the condition of the wheels, with all of them curbed under my rim protector strips. There's a local body shop that's a sort of 'cash only' place - my neighbour had taken his Range Rover there for a front end respray, and the results were factory finish. I'll pop in to quote all four wheels to see what they can do, but it's not priority.
So future plans are to refurbish the wheels and to keep an eye out for the xenon headlights with built-in DRL's, just to add to the monumental current spec of the car.
It's just ticked over 150,000 miles too, and is sweet as a nut. Let's hope it stays that way.
Another issue I had completely forgot about was that the wheels needed balancing. I gave the car to my in-laws and told them to ignore the slight vibration as the wheels needed balancing. I forgot about it until I drove it on the motorway on the journey back from picking it up, so I took it straight to a tyre garage. Something I thought would be quick and easy. Nope! It was a buckled rear wheel. I tilted the wing mirror down to look at the rear wheel and thought I hadn't tightened the alloy wheel correctly, but it turned out to be a badly buckled alloy. Unfortunately it was irreparable, so I needed a new one. They're not common alloys being the optional extra variant, but I manage to grab the only one on Ebay in Scotland for £50 delivered! After having that fitted, the ride is now smooth as silk.
The main issue was of course the steering rack, which has now been replaced. The total was £671 for parts and labour, that's including a refurbished and coded rack, new track rod ends, alignment and labour. Amazingly, the one gripe I had about this car is now gone; the turning circle. I recently compared it to a friend's Focus Mk3.5, and my wheel didn't rotate as much as his. I put it down to his just being a newer Focus, but with this new rack, it's the same and the car now turns on a dime. I'm guessing the rack was always a little faulty to limit its steering angle to prevent further damage?
Either way, with the rack and alloy replaced, it's back to being a comfortable cruiser.
The two areas that let the car down are the condition of the wheels, with all of them curbed under my rim protector strips. There's a local body shop that's a sort of 'cash only' place - my neighbour had taken his Range Rover there for a front end respray, and the results were factory finish. I'll pop in to quote all four wheels to see what they can do, but it's not priority.
So future plans are to refurbish the wheels and to keep an eye out for the xenon headlights with built-in DRL's, just to add to the monumental current spec of the car.
It's just ticked over 150,000 miles too, and is sweet as a nut. Let's hope it stays that way.
ZX10R NIN said:
Get th wheels refurbed properly as they powder coat rather than paint your alloys like a bodyshop will, they'll also fully strip the wheels then machine & straighten them before powder coating.
I normally powder coat them but the finish doesn't have to be incredible, just a lot better than what they are now. The price would be half that of powder coating, and for the difference in finish, it wouldn't be worth it for a daily car that I'd probably end up curbing again. For my other car, it would be powder coat no questions asked.Mark-t said:
After covering that mileage is there anything in the service history indicating the injectors and timing belt/water pump being replaced?
We have a '61 C-max with the same engine (1.6tdci) and it left my wife stranded on the M4 earlier in the year when injectors failed - two at the same time! It's now due it's timing belt due to age but yours will have been due at 100k.
Sorry if it's been mentioned before.
Timing belt has been changed 35,000 miles ago so all good. I'd ideally like to see how hard it is to do myself.We have a '61 C-max with the same engine (1.6tdci) and it left my wife stranded on the M4 earlier in the year when injectors failed - two at the same time! It's now due it's timing belt due to age but yours will have been due at 100k.
Sorry if it's been mentioned before.
Nothing on injectors but no issues and a smooth running engine.
New tyre time.
These are 235/40/18, which is rather annoying as this is supposed to be an economical and cheap to run car, but thanks to the fact that it has the same tyre size as a Boxster's front wheels, the tyre price is far greater. I'm a big fan of Falken (running them on the MX-5) and priced up how much they would be. £114 per tyre, which is crazy.
After some discussion with the garage, I went with Sumitomo BC100's.
I'd never heard of the brand before, but the tread looked familiar when I saw them, as well as the side wall markings... they looked like Falkens. He explained that Sumitomo own Falken, previously solely a rubber manufacturer. When Falken come out with a new design, the old gets discontinued with Falken and sold as a 'Sumitomo' for cheaper, as you're buying an older Falken design. It's the same tyre, but instead of £114 for the latest Falken 510's, it's £75 a tyre for a Sumitomo BC100, which is in fact a Falken 912 - their older design.
Have a look...
Sumitomo BC100:
Falken 912:
Identical. Basically, when Falken releases their newer designs, their current 310's and 510's would be sold under a Sumitomo name. £300 fitted for Falken 912 in 235/40/18's is a great price.
So off with the Vitora, Centura and Rovelo's (no I don't know either), and on with a fresh set of Sumitomo's.
I had to laugh at the Vitora's ridiculously square design and flat sidewall with no tyre protection:
Compared to the natural curve of a Falken/Sumitomo:
I had the tracking done with the tyres too; rears were out, as was the front left wheel. With new tyres and a tracking, the car is very smooth to drive. This is mainly down to the tracking but there's no road noise, no bearing-like noise coming from the wheel, and no vibrations at speed (the previous budgets were warped).
I took the wheel protectors off, too. They hid the curbing of the alloys, but they were a pain when they came off when changing the alloys. Unfortunately they look awful underneath from the previous owner's curbing:
Originally I had no idea how they could curb them so bad, but looking at how bad the tyres were with how little protection that was on them, I'm less surprised. I'll be refurbishing the wheels in the future (they're past DIY stages as they need re-shaping on the edges thanks to the curbing) and that'll be that.
These are 235/40/18, which is rather annoying as this is supposed to be an economical and cheap to run car, but thanks to the fact that it has the same tyre size as a Boxster's front wheels, the tyre price is far greater. I'm a big fan of Falken (running them on the MX-5) and priced up how much they would be. £114 per tyre, which is crazy.
After some discussion with the garage, I went with Sumitomo BC100's.
I'd never heard of the brand before, but the tread looked familiar when I saw them, as well as the side wall markings... they looked like Falkens. He explained that Sumitomo own Falken, previously solely a rubber manufacturer. When Falken come out with a new design, the old gets discontinued with Falken and sold as a 'Sumitomo' for cheaper, as you're buying an older Falken design. It's the same tyre, but instead of £114 for the latest Falken 510's, it's £75 a tyre for a Sumitomo BC100, which is in fact a Falken 912 - their older design.
Have a look...
Sumitomo BC100:
Falken 912:
Identical. Basically, when Falken releases their newer designs, their current 310's and 510's would be sold under a Sumitomo name. £300 fitted for Falken 912 in 235/40/18's is a great price.
So off with the Vitora, Centura and Rovelo's (no I don't know either), and on with a fresh set of Sumitomo's.
I had to laugh at the Vitora's ridiculously square design and flat sidewall with no tyre protection:
Compared to the natural curve of a Falken/Sumitomo:
I had the tracking done with the tyres too; rears were out, as was the front left wheel. With new tyres and a tracking, the car is very smooth to drive. This is mainly down to the tracking but there's no road noise, no bearing-like noise coming from the wheel, and no vibrations at speed (the previous budgets were warped).
I took the wheel protectors off, too. They hid the curbing of the alloys, but they were a pain when they came off when changing the alloys. Unfortunately they look awful underneath from the previous owner's curbing:
Originally I had no idea how they could curb them so bad, but looking at how bad the tyres were with how little protection that was on them, I'm less surprised. I'll be refurbishing the wheels in the future (they're past DIY stages as they need re-shaping on the edges thanks to the curbing) and that'll be that.
On the motorway under acceleration, I can faintly hear what could only be described as injector/turbo noise. It's almost like noisy tappets, pinking, or piston slap. The noise doesn't increase/decrease with revs and happens at mid to high RPM, but only under load. It won't happen when free revving the car. It's kind of like a fast tapping/hissing/rattle (helpful I know). If I lift off on the motorway, it disappears, and the noise is always the same pitch (imagine a turbo hiss when you accelerate, but that hiss has a slight rattle - that's what it's like). Essentially it only happens when the engine is under load. This narrows it down to fuel or turbo with the turbo spooling under acceleration, or the fuel being injected.
I thought it may have been a tear in a pipe causing some noise, but I've checked all of the pipes. I also checked the turbo for any play in the impeller, and whilst there's a tiny bit of radial play (acceptable), there's no axial play, so the turbo seems fine too.
Then I thought it could be the injector seals. The last diesel I had at high miles had leaking injector seals which resulted in black goo and carbon build up around the injectors. The seals are cheap, but the job is quite a pain to do and it's something I wasn't looking forward to doing. With 151,000 on the clock, it's almost certain that mine would need replacing soon.
However, I stripped the top of the engine cover and removed all of the gubbins to take a look at them... they're perfect. I don't know how with this many miles, but the head is squeaky clean around the injectors. It's just clean metal. They also look relatively new, so I'm wondering if they've been changed before I purchased the car. It's a load off my mind knowing they're fine.
So the injector seals are fine, the turbo doesn't seem to have any play, it's only noticeable on the motorway under load, it doesn't change pitch with the RPM, and sounds like pinking/piston slap. I'm wondering if I just need to perform an oil change with some decent oil...
Any oils recommended for high mileage diesel Fords?
I thought it may have been a tear in a pipe causing some noise, but I've checked all of the pipes. I also checked the turbo for any play in the impeller, and whilst there's a tiny bit of radial play (acceptable), there's no axial play, so the turbo seems fine too.
Then I thought it could be the injector seals. The last diesel I had at high miles had leaking injector seals which resulted in black goo and carbon build up around the injectors. The seals are cheap, but the job is quite a pain to do and it's something I wasn't looking forward to doing. With 151,000 on the clock, it's almost certain that mine would need replacing soon.
However, I stripped the top of the engine cover and removed all of the gubbins to take a look at them... they're perfect. I don't know how with this many miles, but the head is squeaky clean around the injectors. It's just clean metal. They also look relatively new, so I'm wondering if they've been changed before I purchased the car. It's a load off my mind knowing they're fine.
So the injector seals are fine, the turbo doesn't seem to have any play, it's only noticeable on the motorway under load, it doesn't change pitch with the RPM, and sounds like pinking/piston slap. I'm wondering if I just need to perform an oil change with some decent oil...
Any oils recommended for high mileage diesel Fords?
Edited by geraintthomas on Thursday 14th October 08:43
Edited by geraintthomas on Thursday 14th October 08:46
Checking the service history, I've noticed the fuel filter was changed at 75,601 miles. It's currently on 151,600, so it's best to do it.
I've just purchased Crossland fuel, air and pollen filters, along with a Bosch oil filter and Castrol stop-start 5w30 A5 oil. I've had the realisation that I may have put the wrong oil in the last time I serviced it back in November last year. It was 5w30, but it wasn't the right specification for the engine.
Parts came to £96 for everything, and I've also ordered a hand primer pump for the fuel filter change. At least it'll give me peace of mind that the fuel filter is clean and I'm running the correct oil!
I've just purchased Crossland fuel, air and pollen filters, along with a Bosch oil filter and Castrol stop-start 5w30 A5 oil. I've had the realisation that I may have put the wrong oil in the last time I serviced it back in November last year. It was 5w30, but it wasn't the right specification for the engine.
Parts came to £96 for everything, and I've also ordered a hand primer pump for the fuel filter change. At least it'll give me peace of mind that the fuel filter is clean and I'm running the correct oil!
Apologies for not updating this more frequently, life's been busy with planning our wedding and house move!
The car now sits on 155,950 miles. Few things to report since last time, one of which was a failed alternator pulley. Alternator was working fine, but the noise from the pulley was horrendous. I picked up a used alternator for £25, spend a couple of hours replacing it (though wasn't pleasant due to the lack of space), and that was that. Cheap and cheerful.
I did the fluid and filter change as mentioned previously too.
Before I changed the fuel filter, I notice this plug at the rear that wasn't plugged into anything.
Then noticed that it's actually supposed to plug into the fuel filter
Not sure why this wasn't re-connected before, and to be perfectly honest I'm not sure what it does anyway. I've seen some reports on it being a heater to pre-heat the fuel in the filter, but even so I'm unsure what this would achieve, or if it's been detrimental to the performance/economy of the car whilst being disconnected. Nevertheless I've connected it to the new fuel filter.
Another addition was an upgraded sat nav. The Ford's sat nav's are powered by TomTom, and the current sat nav was V2. The version relates to the year (V1 2011, V2 2012, etc). I purchased the latest V11 last year and got round to fitting it.
Original
New
I didn't get this from a Ford dealer, I'll admit. Instead I purchased it from an aftermarket website, and for a fraction of the cost too. £25 rather than the £75 that Ford charge, for what should be a free upgrade in the first place.
Took it's time, but eventually it worked a charm.
New icons and colours! Not only this, but other software on the car has also been updated, such as the Bluetooth functionality. It now has a play/pause button integrated into the interface, as pausing music via your phone never used to pause for more than a few seconds. I didn't expect to see these little upgrades from what I thought was purely navigational software.
I picked my other half up from Gatwick airport, the sat nav working well. Winter roads aren't exactly the friendliest towards white cars though.
That's pretty much all I have to report. The car is going strong and steady with no hiccups at all. The dual mass flywheel noise I mentioned towards the beginning of this thread has also subsided quite a bit from driving with consideration towards the stop/start - keeping the foot in the clutch for short stops, letting it stop for longer, and so on. I've forgotten about it to be truthful, it's pretty much silent now.
I keep toying with the idea of a Volvo, but I do love the practicality and size of the Focus. Bigger than a hatchback and not as long as an estate. The V40 would be a suitable replacement, and when I saw that you could get them for as little as £4k I started shopping, only to realise that it's the diesels that are cheap. The petrols are £7k+, and I'm not particularly keen on another diesel after this. I did look at the V40 diesels, but after realising they're a 1.6D, and seeing that the engine cover is identical to mine, it looks to be the same block (please correct me if mistaken), which would be a bit of a pointless upgrade seeing as the V40 shares a lot of its parts with the Focus.
For now then, the car will stay and we'll get as much use out of it as possible. For the money that I bought it for (£3.5k) I'd struggle to find another as economical, kitted out and as comfortable as this.
The car now sits on 155,950 miles. Few things to report since last time, one of which was a failed alternator pulley. Alternator was working fine, but the noise from the pulley was horrendous. I picked up a used alternator for £25, spend a couple of hours replacing it (though wasn't pleasant due to the lack of space), and that was that. Cheap and cheerful.
I did the fluid and filter change as mentioned previously too.
Before I changed the fuel filter, I notice this plug at the rear that wasn't plugged into anything.
Then noticed that it's actually supposed to plug into the fuel filter
Not sure why this wasn't re-connected before, and to be perfectly honest I'm not sure what it does anyway. I've seen some reports on it being a heater to pre-heat the fuel in the filter, but even so I'm unsure what this would achieve, or if it's been detrimental to the performance/economy of the car whilst being disconnected. Nevertheless I've connected it to the new fuel filter.
Another addition was an upgraded sat nav. The Ford's sat nav's are powered by TomTom, and the current sat nav was V2. The version relates to the year (V1 2011, V2 2012, etc). I purchased the latest V11 last year and got round to fitting it.
Original
New
I didn't get this from a Ford dealer, I'll admit. Instead I purchased it from an aftermarket website, and for a fraction of the cost too. £25 rather than the £75 that Ford charge, for what should be a free upgrade in the first place.
Took it's time, but eventually it worked a charm.
New icons and colours! Not only this, but other software on the car has also been updated, such as the Bluetooth functionality. It now has a play/pause button integrated into the interface, as pausing music via your phone never used to pause for more than a few seconds. I didn't expect to see these little upgrades from what I thought was purely navigational software.
I picked my other half up from Gatwick airport, the sat nav working well. Winter roads aren't exactly the friendliest towards white cars though.
That's pretty much all I have to report. The car is going strong and steady with no hiccups at all. The dual mass flywheel noise I mentioned towards the beginning of this thread has also subsided quite a bit from driving with consideration towards the stop/start - keeping the foot in the clutch for short stops, letting it stop for longer, and so on. I've forgotten about it to be truthful, it's pretty much silent now.
I keep toying with the idea of a Volvo, but I do love the practicality and size of the Focus. Bigger than a hatchback and not as long as an estate. The V40 would be a suitable replacement, and when I saw that you could get them for as little as £4k I started shopping, only to realise that it's the diesels that are cheap. The petrols are £7k+, and I'm not particularly keen on another diesel after this. I did look at the V40 diesels, but after realising they're a 1.6D, and seeing that the engine cover is identical to mine, it looks to be the same block (please correct me if mistaken), which would be a bit of a pointless upgrade seeing as the V40 shares a lot of its parts with the Focus.
For now then, the car will stay and we'll get as much use out of it as possible. For the money that I bought it for (£3.5k) I'd struggle to find another as economical, kitted out and as comfortable as this.
macp said:
Sorry but I had to resurrect this thread by just posting that this is exactly the sort of thing I love about PH. Hope OP is well and the Focus running well.
Very much appreciate it!The car is still going great, nothing to report at all which can only be a good thing for a daily runner. I've got more than I'd like to do to the car (DRL lights, bi-xenon's, etc) but the wedding and house are priority at the moment.
Unfortunately, someone in London cloned my plates recently. They've been driving through bus lanes, speed cameras, ULEZ zones, and I've been getting the brunt of it. Thankfully after protesting each one (11+ of them) they've cancelled them, and I'm now considering changing my plates as a result. Bit of a shame.
Next up are the wheels for this car; they're awful. I'd get them powder coated but I've curbed these wheels a few times myself. It's odd, I never used to curb any other cars before... perhaps it's a mixture of the Focus' turning circle, visibility and 18" with low profile tyres. Who knows. I may even consider getting 17's. I'll probably refurbish them myself and will sand and fill the curbing too. It'll be a nice cheap solution if it works, without the worry of curbing as I could just repair it myself with the same methods.
Gtom said:
With regards to the wheel/tyre situation, I have got (well my wife has) a mk3 titanium x estate and it came with 225/45/17 tyres on. We had a mk2 focus estate before and that had 225/40/18 tyres on and the ride was horrible so I swapped them to 17” wheels with 205/55/17 tyres and it was instantly better.
With the mk3 I have gone to 215/55/17 and it rides a lot better, I’m no longer panicking about every tiny pothole. A slight side effect is that the speedo now reads spot on and it makes it look like the mpg has taken a hit but in reality it hasn’t.
That's exactly what I was hoping it would be like, thanks for that. I'm going to refurb the wheels myself to a 'presentable' state, and then I'll look to swap them. The tyres are fantastic and relatively new so I'll get a good amount for them.With the mk3 I have gone to 215/55/17 and it rides a lot better, I’m no longer panicking about every tiny pothole. A slight side effect is that the speedo now reads spot on and it makes it look like the mpg has taken a hit but in reality it hasn’t.
When it comes to refurbishing them, I tried a few things to smoothen out the grinded alloy lips. One of them was just sandpaper, but this didn't smooth it much. I then put a grinding head onto a dremel and ran that over the lip, which helped a huge amount. It looks like it'll be a mixture of the two along with filler to give the edge a relatively smooth finish.
The car passed its MOT yesterday. Horray!
A few advisories:
Indicator is a simple one, bulb coating is wearing. I'll replace these with LED's soon.
Brake imbalance. Yup, brake gate. Guess what squeaking noise started to come back. Turns out that the same brake isn't breaking nearly as much as it should be. The disc is warped from the previous issues, and that disc and pad is an Eicher disc and pad set. I know these to be absolutely dreadful, so a new set of Brembo discs and pads should solve everything here.
Regarding the bushes, I asked the garage but couldn't get a clear idea on if these were repairable/replaceable. They weren't sure themselves, and the car was already in the car park by the time I went there, so I couldn't look underneath for them to show me. I'll have to bring it back to them for them to show me in person, as I'd want to replace/repair the parts. Whether it's replacing the bushes, or replacing the suspension component entirely. I don't like advisories...
The first three are easily fixable then, the last three need a little investigation, but thankfully there's nothing wrong with the car. It's definitely a keeper with a strong engine and a solid underside, with a nice comment on its condition from the garage.
Would anyone know what bushes they're mentioning in the MOT advisories?
A few advisories:
- Nearside Front Steering linkage ball joint ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated, but preventing the ingress of dirt
- Nearside Front Direction indicator slightly discoloured (4.4.3 (a))
- Front Brakes imbalanced requirements only just met. It would appear that the braking system requires adjustment or repair. (1.2.1 (b) (i))
- Nearside Rear Suspension arm pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement Trailing arm bush (5.3.4 (a) (i))
- Offside Rear Suspension arm pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement Trailing arm bush (5.3.4 (a) (i))
- Nearside Front Suspension arm pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement Rear bush (5.3.4 (a) (i))
Indicator is a simple one, bulb coating is wearing. I'll replace these with LED's soon.
Brake imbalance. Yup, brake gate. Guess what squeaking noise started to come back. Turns out that the same brake isn't breaking nearly as much as it should be. The disc is warped from the previous issues, and that disc and pad is an Eicher disc and pad set. I know these to be absolutely dreadful, so a new set of Brembo discs and pads should solve everything here.
Regarding the bushes, I asked the garage but couldn't get a clear idea on if these were repairable/replaceable. They weren't sure themselves, and the car was already in the car park by the time I went there, so I couldn't look underneath for them to show me. I'll have to bring it back to them for them to show me in person, as I'd want to replace/repair the parts. Whether it's replacing the bushes, or replacing the suspension component entirely. I don't like advisories...
The first three are easily fixable then, the last three need a little investigation, but thankfully there's nothing wrong with the car. It's definitely a keeper with a strong engine and a solid underside, with a nice comment on its condition from the garage.
Would anyone know what bushes they're mentioning in the MOT advisories?
CalNaughtonJnr said:
Hi there! Followed the thread with interest - I have a 2014 titanium estate and wondered if you could tell me where you purchased your updated sat nav card? I have just bought one from eBay but getting an error message so think it might be a bad copy!
Ah, so I can't quite remember. I think it was something like Sat Nav Direct, but I know that there are different models that you have to keep in mind for compatibility.Thought I'd replace the indicators with the MOT advisories, but decided to go LED instead. LED has come along way over the past few years, so the idea of looking for cree LED's is no longer needed.
Out with the old:
In with the new:
Lovely silver headlight with no amber tint
Very bright with no 'fade' with on and off
Admittedly they were quite bright, even more so at night
Yeah, a bit too bright. This calls for some cheap tricks. A sharpie and 10 minutes later, I'd coloured every other row black to reduce the light output. Considering these lights don't stay on long enough to heat up, I thought I'd give it a try.
Worked a charm.
As the sidelights and indicators were LED, I thought I'd replace my reversing bulbs at the same time.
Old
New
These are far better, with a much further reach behind the vehicle when reversing. Much safer, and more modern.
In the meantime, we've got married, come back from our honeymoon and have bought a new house - it's been an incredible 3 weeks! We've also got a double driveway that's normal. That's right, no ridiculous gravel!
As a side note, I've been considering one of these:
They're quite economical (the diesels), they look beautiful, fixed calipers, great cabin and have a lot more room being an estate. I called my local garage and had a chat to them, and mentioned that I was in the market for one to replace the Focus, but they replied with "If you buy one of those, you're not coming here". Apparently they're awfully unreliable with very expensive parts. I'm not sure how true this is, but the Focus is the exact opposite; cheap to run, reliable and cheap parts. The Focus is also giving me no excuse to sell it - it looks great, kitted out and has been brilliant to drive.
But those Italian looks...
Smitters said:
I had similar thoughts, then similar discussions with professionals. And bought a V6 diesel A6. Yes, the 159 is beautiful. But not much fun when you can't look at it because it's being fixed, again. I believe the 2.4 diesel has some particularly cruel habits to extract every last penny from your wallet and if you think £100 a corner for tyres is steep, I dread to think what a 159 with 19's would cost to sort, which is what the Ti cars came with IIRC.
I must admit, I would have the A6 again too. Not sporty, but by God it did what it was supposed to and absolutely ate mileage in quiet comfort.
Good points there. I think I'll just have to look at them from afar from now on. I'd never considered an A6, I've not been hugely into German cars (aside from Porsche) so they've always flown under the radar for me.I must admit, I would have the A6 again too. Not sporty, but by God it did what it was supposed to and absolutely ate mileage in quiet comfort.
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