Decent Focus for 2 grand or less... do-able?

my focus experience only goes as far as the 1.9 diesel (as my family have a communal one for pulling tailers/filling with crap, think it's a 53 plate) and everyone really hates it. It has body roll like a boat, extremely sloppy gearbox, extremely slow, heavy clutch, crap heaters, crap brakes, awful interior and is generally dull. Luckily it is starting to die :D

edit: oh yea I remembered a problem I know of a lot of focus' having - not sure if it's model specific but along with general gearbox issues there is a ~£3 spring that goes and stops the gearstick from automatically centralising when you take it out of gear, kind of ferrari stylie minus the notched gaiter :D

cheap and easy fix though
 
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lol! My dads brought a TDCI estate not long ago and it's quite nice to drive I think.. I like it anyway. Just not the looks as such.

Fox, thats really good going miles wise :)
 
Stormster said:
lol - well I have a Corsa B Sport so... :D

Looked @ mpg just for the 2.0 and it's 32 combined.. I do 90% town driving so maybe the 37mpg combined of the 1.8 may be more suitable.
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I have a 1.8. You will be very lucky to get near 37mpg around town! I drop to around 30 and probably less. Of course it depends how hard you are driving it. To give an impression the other week I did a motorway run of about 160 miles round trip and managed 40mpg through plodding along at between 65-70.
 
Toker said:
my focus experience only goes as far as the 1.9 diesel (as my family have a communal one for pulling tailers/filling with crap, think it's a 53 plate) and everyone really hates it. It has body roll like a boat, extremely sloppy gearbox, extremely slow, heavy clutch, crap heaters, crap brakes, awful interior and is generally dull. Luckily it is starting to die :D
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How strange, given the Focus is known to be the best handling and most fun to drive car of its class.

And surely since the demise of the 1989 Metro no car has a 'crap heater'?
 
[TW]Fox;12054757 said:
How strange, given the Focus is known to be the best handling and most fun to drive car of its class.

And surely since the demise of the 1989 Metro no car has a 'crap heater'?
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I don't really care what reviews and opinions formed from magazine articles say, I care what I have experienced. It is extremely poor to drive with a heavy 1.9 diesel in the front of it and rolly polly suspension, unless extreme bodyroll and poor cornering is now regarded as good handling. There is also 0 fun to be had in that model.

It takes roughly 6-8 miles before the heat picks up in it, another diesel problem. I think that more than justifies crap heater.

edit: oh yea the passenger footwell also leaks
 
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[TW]Fox;12054757 said:
How strange, given the Focus is known to be the best handling and most fun to drive car of its class.

And surely since the demise of the 1989 Metro no car has a 'crap heater'?
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I had the same thought. There must be something wrong with that one, although it reads like its being used as a workhorse.
 
A decent focus for 2k or less is more then achievable! My 52 plate is going soon for 3k. I don't know where your getting these ideas from about flywheel and clutch (Bad news travels 10x faster then good). As for mpg, I get around 34 on the motorway and 20 around town and that's with some silly breathing mods..
 
Toker said:
I don't really care what reviews and opinions formed from magazine articles say, I care what I have experienced. It is extremely poor to drive with a heavy 1.9 diesel in the front of it
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Well for a start Ford have never offered a 1.9 litre diesel in the Focus so its clear you don't know quite as much about this car as you like to think... so forgive me if I discount your opinion on it :p The heater performance is common of all diesels except more high end ones (The 5 Series has a secondary auxillery heater powered independantly of the engine to get over this problem, its unreasonable to expect a Focus class car to have the same).

I'd never buy one but a Focus is a fine car for what it is.
 
[TW]Fox;12054874 said:
Well for a start Ford have never offered a 1.9 litre diesel so its clear you don't know quite as much about this car as you like to think... so forgive me if I discount your opinion on it :p

I'd never buy one but a Focus is a fine car for what it is.
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I don't like to think I know anything about this car other than what I know from ACTUALLY DRIVING IT. Why would I possibly want to read about such a dull thing? Having to rarely drive it is torture enough.

So it's a 1.8 and not a 1.9, care
 
[TW]Fox;12054874 said:
heater performance is common of all diesels except more high end ones
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yes I do believe I've already stated it's a diesel problem and it being common to other diesels doesn't make it any less of a crap heater...
 
at the time of having to drive the focus once in a while, I was driving a 2000 vw polo 16v as a daily runner, which was cheaper to buy than the focus, why?
 
Just trying to find something to explain your opinions, I thought perhaps you had very very high standards, clearly not though..
 
I wouldn't bother with the 2.0, the 1.8 is a great alround motorway and town engine. I'd be tempted to look at the 1.6 if you're not doing too many long journeys. Performance isn't too far off the 1.8 and the economy is better.

Interior is a little dull, but the seats are comfy and you won't be aching after a longish journey.

Parts and servicing are cheap as chips.
 
Toker said:
I don't like to think I know anything about this car other than what I know from ACTUALLY DRIVING IT. Why would I possibly want to read about such a dull thing? Having to rarely drive it is torture enough.

So it's a 1.8 and not a 1.9, care
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I suggest you drive a petrol version that hasn't been to the moon and back. (By the sounds of it, your diesel has). Even on mine with the marshmallow suspension (it's a Ghia so built for comfort) the handling is pretty good.

Sounds like your comparing all Foci to your workhorse and labelling it ****.

Ohh and my heater works fine after 3 or 4 minutes.
 
thought you were, that's why I only spoke about my old car. But it is true that was what I was driving at the time of forming my opinions on it. Far better handling, far better acceleration, far better drop speed, far nicer interior and way more fun.

I base my opinions on what I have driven, so don't need to pull up various articles and quotes to explain them.
 
peterattheboro said:
Sounds like your comparing all Foci to your workhorse and labelling it ****.
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nope, I clearly stated my focus experience only goes as far as that crappy diesel, so I have a biased opinion. It was bought with 20k miles and was just as crap :D Although it does do about 80 million mpg
 
Toker said:
thought you were, that's why I only spoke about my old car. But it is true that was what I was driving at the time of forming my opinions on it. Far better handling, far better acceleration, far better drop speed, far nicer interior and way more fun.

I base my opinions on what I have driven, so don't need to pull up various articles and quotes to explain them.
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a polo is hardly a comparison to a car like the focus surely?
 
A VW Polo 'far better handling' than a Ford Focus?

I base my opinions on what I have driven, so don't need to pull up various articles and quotes to explain them.
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I know you are trying to gain coolpoints by saying this but that sort of silly phrase hasn't been relevant here for years. Are you saying nobody here that likes the Focus has driven one or something?

You seem like just another deluded OTT VAG fanboy, let me guess your current car is a VAG product as well? You guys really give other VAG owners a bad name :p
 
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