1.8 Focus - Too much power for city driving?

Aha! So it IS you on THAOC.... I wasn't totally sure, as I'd thought you'd have bought a diesel. Strange how you, Julian and myself all bought the same car, but each with a different engine option.

 

This is the very odd thing, the dealers just don't want to know. I nearly bought a Focus 1.4 for £2k at a Ford dealer but they could not be arsed finding the service history, the sales people were lazy and did nothing to try and get a sale. Since then I have decided that a 1.4 is probably a bit problematic on a car like that as its probably been reved harder.

There is a Focus 1.6 with FSH but 80k its £2k and is 8 and a half years old, it is a bit steep but the one I drove at 97k felt like a brand new car to drive. I still wonder if I should have bought that but the temperature guage was in the middle but there was still a lot of condensation coming out of the exhaust so something did not feel right.

I am not saying no a diesel but I would rather have a petrol as they are simpler, I don't do a lot of milleage but as people on here will know bangers do not suit me because they are very hard to keep road legal.

 

Yes, I would avoid the 1.4s as they will have had a (comparitively) hard life. Mind, engines/oils are so good these days....so........

The 1.6 is going to be better thouigh I think.

So long as the temp guage needle is in the middle thats fine......it might well edge up to the red a bit......so long as it comes back down again once the fan has cut in and/or yoi get going.....thats no problem.

I don't think the condensation was a difficulty. It usually just means the car has been standing a day or so. No issue there.

I'm surprised what yoiu said about dealers. Perhaps just an off day or off dealer?

 

They told me they were mad busy. The car wasn't that good anyway as it had scratches on it, the milleage was low but it looked like had a hard life. I am going to Liegh tomorrow to see a W reg Focus 1.6, they want £2k but as I have no PX they might reduce it a bit. The twist is my friend has now decided his car is on its last legs and also wants a Focus.

I am kicking myself a bit now as I might have let a good Focus slip through but the fact he said no warranty and the fact I wasn't entirely sure I just thought better of it. My mechanic has also offered to check over a Focus.

He is a backstreet type person and he actually told me he loves working on Focuses and they are very reliable.

 

edit, a local lady owner 1.4 might be a bit different.

I wouldn't want a 1.4 that had a been hacked down the m ways.

Is the 1.6/80k/2k focus still there?

If it was me i'd be looking at that (thats what my mate at work has done).

97K soiunds a bit high.....but.......if its been treated well....it could be ok.

Yoiu just get a feeling about some stuff.

Does it LOOK clean?

 

Doesn't sound right to me....unless yoiu're VERY sure of what you are looking for.

A few scatches......well......

Were the seats worn?

Did the oil look reasoably fresh?

Did the accellerator pedal look like it had it hd been roind the clock 4 times?

Was the engine bay filthy dirty or clean?

 

It is me. I'm having a mid life crisis car. Bright blue, and sports seats to try and get my oversized arse into!
Lovely car though!

 

The 97k car looks in very good condition and it felt new to drive BUT there looked like there was a big dent in the rear boot sill but it was dark so hard to inspect properly. I just felt it was too smokey because the engine was hot and the temperature was warm outside (10c) I know whats normal condensation and what is not my gut feeling was it was not normal but it was a gut feeling.

Seeing a 1.6 Focus tomorrow, 63K, FSH £2000 on a 2000 X so its 8.5 years old. It looks really good the only that puts me off is it has a 'foreign' Zetec badge on it so somebody has stuck that on.

Its a long way away by bus as its in Wigan but it sounds like its worth a look at, being sold with a 3 months warranty too.

The thing is the more Focuses I see the more I will know exactly what is normal and what is not.

I do need a galvanised car and Focuses don't really tend to rust, the bodies should last a good 20 years,.

With the low milleage car the Ford dealer was trying to sell I got the impression it was a badly abused car because it was scruffy and I have seen plenty of Focuses with 100k on that look brand new inside, they wear a lot better than the feel of plastics would suggest.

On all the cars I have seen the engine bay was nice and dirty, nothing makes me run faster than a ten year old engine that looks brand new, the steam clean can hide all sorts of leaks.

 

Degrees of, AT.

All I was pointing to was a generally looked after and maintained car.


As some ones already said, all cars rust.


Keep us posted!

AS yoiu say there are loads around!

 

You can guarantee that within 1 month however you'll need a new clutch, new brake pipes and the head gasket will have gone whatever you buy.
Why don't you look at private sales. That's where I've always done best. Dealers are making a few hundred quid at least on you. Most of them will have bought the cars you're looking at for a grand from a dealer as an underwriter. You'd be better off trying to cut out the middle man. Maybe go to the auctions.

 

Because buying private (it) may be "hot".

We've always chosen the dealers....and payed a little extra for just this protection. Also a bit of warranty.

Not sure about auctions. No warranty.




I quite agree thouigh, there WILL be something...the reason the last owner moved it in the first place.

 

A few interesting comments on auctions on pf just now.

(am I allowed to say that mods?)

 

What's this "too much power"??? You do realise that the accelerator isn't an on/off switch? You control how much of that power you use........ chap I work with commutes in something with 500bhp+ but he doesn't use all that in the city traffic or company carpark lol

 

Don't scare him, he has already seen some condensation this week and he ran for the hills.



The guy should not be allowed near cars.

 

some people are just born worriers...

 

I'm one of them, but whether my mass produced car sold to the general public has too much power is not of the things that worries me .

 

I talked to a freind last night who had the same car and he reckoned that Focus did not sound right too. He said there is very little condensation from his even when the car has been standing for a while, he also reckons it should take a good 10-15 minutes for the temperature to go into the middle.

As I said before I know the different between normal condensation and what appears to be water being burnt as part of the combustion process (e.g leaks, HG etc).

Also following the conversion he seems to think the 1.6 might be the best balance because of the extra weight of the 1.8 and the fact the insurance is so much more, like everybody he told me to avoid the 1.4 like the plague. He bought his at 100k without any service history for £2k and he has done 140k in it now.

Edit as for private sales most the cars we have bought have been private sales, we paid £850 for my dads Fiesta and it was a disaster at first, thermostat went on day too and the heater didn't work but its all been very cheap and easy to stuff to repair. I replaced the plugs last week and it is now running better than ever, car is worth around £700 on now (18 months later and another 17,000 miles) so despite the faults we got a very good deal. Valve steam seals will need sorting but its not urgent yet. It gets through two litres of 10/40 a year and an oil change so its not too much to worry about.

Therefore I am not bothered about private sales or trade sales but if I am paying a premium for a trade sale I at least expect a warranty. Going to a place tomorrow who sell cars direct from the main dealer, some of them are not retail quality but a lot of stuff has 12 months MOT and providing I check it over any cosmetic problems like scratches can be fixed with a days work.

 

AT, the cars you have purchased have all been disasters. This tells the general public here on Zero Gain that actually you do not have the first clue about cars.

1 focus is not going to sound the same as the next, was it precisely the same model as your mates?

I suggest you purchase from a proper dealership with warranty. Yes you will pay through the nose, but you don't know what you are looking at in the wild lol!

 

Not really, my dads Escort was a good car until it started having valve problems and getting 15mpg but we got 4 years out of it. My old Fiesta I was conned into buying, they put really thick oil to hide the fact it was burning oil, (I learnt a lot about how to tell if the engine is good on this). My dads Fiesta has been pretty good, its got nearly 80k on the clock now (all city milleage) and dosn't miss a beat. It has not once failed to start, it has been the most reliable car we have ever had it only cost £850.

Proper dealership is still my number one choice but we will see. As longs as it has good history, the condensation clears up when it should, there is no knocks or rattles, it is in good condition then I will buy it.

 

I have been driving since 1974. What is this condensation of which you go on and on and on about?