eaglek96

Hi Everyone. I'm just wondering what people who own the Ford Focus think of them. My fiance is seriously considering buying one used (2000 or 2001) and I was wondering if anyone has likes/dislikes about them. The price seems about right (8k for 30k miles) so we may go that way. They seem pretty solid.

Her other choice is the Grand Am....

cliffxpro

Get the GrandAm. The Focus, although easy on the gasoline, is terribly underpowered. I got stuck with one as a rental a few weeks back in LA, and vowed to never drive another one.

JStrider

she should drive each...
the focus has a pretty good rep as reliable and efficient gas wise...

as for it being underpowered...its not a sports car... its got 100ish horsepower... and its a small car...

EDIT : Didnt even mention the main reason i posted... my grandma bought one and ive driven it some... shes been very happy with it and when ive driven it its always seemed to have good responsive steering and a good ride...

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Stare At The Sun

Ford=no, in my humble opinion, personally, i'd get a Civic, far better resale value, even better on gas, and just a nicer all around car...but thats just my .02

drawerfixer

I vote no on both. Sorry. I'd look into used Hondas or Jettas.

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Scrub0

The trunk's not big enough.

eaglek96

FYI, I am not interested at all in foreign cars. Please don't flame me for saying this, its my opinion. I know a lot of "American" cars have foreign parts but I dont really want to get into that.

I appreciate the comments, keep em coming. We're going to test drive the focus this weekend. I currently drive an '01 taurus, and I'm happy with it, but she thinks its too big. She's been looking at the Focus for a bit, and we want to make sure people haven't had major problems with them. She currently drives an 88 Ciera and has been happy with that for all 150K miles.

My brothers girlfriend drives a focus and seems to like it, but she has never driven any other car, so that sways things a little. I did notice the trunk thing....

I thought the focus had more power than that... my mistake.

Good info so far... thanks again!!

Deuce66

must...resist urge to..bash..american cars..

iam_immigrant

i say if you're gonna stick with American then get the Vibe. I know, some ppl think that its one of the ugliest cars produced.

But its got internals from Toyota (engine) but price of a domestic

just my $0.02

cliffxpro

I drove a Vibe this past weekend. Snappy little car. Not my style, but I'd say it's a quality car.

cookiezzz

Focus, to me, is a small, boring and too common (here at least) car. If she wants to get from A to B with good milage I'd say it's a decent choice (although Ford isn't known for their reliability )

Odd that you should choose to completely discount european and asian cars though, since those markets are generally more centered on smaller, more fuel-efficient cars. Your choice though.

Good luck with the car.

clonmult

I can't stand the interior of the Focus, but I drove a UK 1.6 liter model when they first came out over here years back, and the one thing that got me was the handling.

A 1.6 liter entry level car had no right to corner so flat and so fast. Very well controlled back end, good ride.

And of course, over here they do the ST170 (170 brake) and also a 220+ brake turbo version. Which is kinda interesting.

miked10270

I drive various cars at work including the Focus.

They're common for excellent reasons:

1. It's a Ford - cheap to buy & cheap to run.

2. The performance & handling are good within their class. I.E. comparing like engine sizes / vehicle sizes from competing manufacturers.

3. It's common & a "world car". - Every garage in the world is familiar with them and can get parts no problem

4. It's reliable. Remember that reliability isn't just how often it needs fixed, it's also how long and how much to fix it. Again the very common-ness of the car helps, like I said earlier just about every garage in the western world has a customer with a Focus... There's little mystery to them.

On the downside, the performance, handling and fuel economy is largely a result of weight being pared off the vehicle and my own preference for private / family motoring is something bigger & heavier & more solid. Hence more crash-worthy. Say a Landrover or Jeep.

Mike.

thepakratjr

I can't stand Focus... looks almost as bad as the Civic SI.

doctorphibes

Ford - at least they circled the mistake.

Seriously, the Focus isn't a bad car; we test drove one, and fully intended to buy it at first, but the little things annoyed me. It was a ZX3, which has the engine upgrade over the base sedan model (although that might've changed in the model year since), and it accelerated and moved just fine for normal driving. But, for example, the armrest is in an absolutely horrendous place, especially if you get the 5-speed (and why wouldn't you); if you have it folded down, your elbow would hit it every time you go to shift to second or fourth, and if it's flipped up, well, why have an armrest in the first place? Plus I didn't like the instrument panel, what's with the tach with no redline?

On the other hand, that SVT Focus is one hot piece of work. Probably not what you're looking for, but I wouldn't mind having one of those.

pezking4

I work at Ford and get to drive them everyday. They are definately under-powered, but economical and serve their purpose. For some reason Ford greatly restricted the intake and exhaust manifolds on this car, leaving it chocked for air. If I were getting a Focus it would be simply for the gas mileage, and would be a 5 speed. The auto trannys on these things aren't the strongest, and we have some problems with them from time to time. Definately get a good warranty when you buy, I'll bet it will come in handy

pujmonkey

I like the Focus because it depreciated so damned fast. My buddy just bought a nice black standard ZX3 w/40k for 5000 clams. That's a great price, and they make a shitload of aftermarket parts for that car... well, compared to my other favorite, the corolla (laugh if you must).
I mean, they Rally it right? It has to be good!

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Elitegibson

In response to pujmonkey's post, I got to drive said Focus, and it was definitely peppier than my current ride, the 1995 Geo Prizm. If she's looking for a good commuter that's fun to drive and is easy on the eyes and gas, the focus is a pretty good choice. The focus stacks up very well against the other compacts currently out. Consumer reports really likes them, except for their reliability reports. There are a few recall issues on the earlier ones, but for the most part, it's a really nice car. Happy car hunting!

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eaglek96

Thanks guys... The info is awesome. We're gonna start test driving this weekend and we wanted some things to look out for.

Ramega

The SVT is a blast, or you could cross your fingers and pray that they bring the RS stateside.

MSD

I've heard of the Focus having quality control problems along the lines of random engine fires and wheels falling off with no apparent warning signs. I'd wait until they get it worked out before buying one. I'm not a big fan of the Grand Am, but I would seriously consider it.

Then resist the urge to post in the thread if you're not going to answer the question.

DEI37

Dislike:
1. Ford
2. Focus
3. Ford
4. Four cylinder
5. Ford

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MSD

I'm not surprised. Didn't you say you work for a Chevy dealer?

DEI37

Nah, I work at a Nissan/SAAB/Audi/VW dealer, but am a GM whore.

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Generally speaking, if you were to get what you really deserve, you might be unpleasantly surprised.

Tickford

I like the outside...... but hate the inside..... esp the dash.....

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onetime2

Resale value SUCKS!!!

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Peryn

i cant stand the looks of em, and they feel too gutless for me when i drive em.

Take a look at the protoge5 or the mazda 6. Both very sporty handling and fun to drive cars. The 6 is big enough to haul around some people to, fairly comfy i might add. Plus, its got a very nice large trunk. You can talk the dealer down to 20k for a new one with 6cyl too.

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mystic511

If you're going to get a focus, don't get the early models like 2001. There was a recall for those models. Apparently to cut costs, they only used like 3 bolts to connect the front and back halves of the chassis together. It was perfectly fine until focuses started getting into accidents and splitting perfectly in half.

I can't verify this recall cuz i heard it from friends and other car people, but I'm sure someone can find info of it on the internet.

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WarWagon

Only thing Ford ever did right to date is the 9 inch rear.

Anyways, I'm a complete Pontiac guy, so yea, I'm pretty biased, but I've been a few Foci and wasn't overly impressed with the quality. It just looked downright cheap.

Is there any particular year you're looking at? The Pontiac offerings for 2004 year are pretty sweet. Any particular reason you picked the Grand Am? I've never been a fan of the looks, and the 2004 Grand Prix is a very sharp looking car, and the few GP's I've been in had very nice interiors.