Roadrunner
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Ford Focus 1.8 ZetecThe Ford Focus is a much praised and top selling car in the UK and yet I have never driven one. Today I was able to put that right, courtesy of Arden Ford, who lent me a shiny 59-reg example, with only 730 miles on the clock while the Mondeo was being serviced.
As I walked towards the car I noticed the 1.8 Zetec badge on the boot lid and thought, “this should be good.” First impressions on getting inside were disappointing, however, with shiny silver plastic dash inserts, hard plastic everywhere and cheap and tacky seat trim. Ho hum, let’s go for a drive. The suspension made a reasonably good job of soaking up urban roads, albeit a little more firmly than the Mondeo. I put this down to the 17” rims on the Focus, compared to the 16” items on the Mondeo. A little unfair maybe, having become used to the Mondeo, but I couldn’t help thinking that the Focus had quite a tin box feeling about it. It felt very much one small step up from a Fiesta class car, rather than one step down from a Mondeo. Very, very different to the Golf I recently sampled.
Once out of town I opened the taps some more... but nothing happened. OK, something did happen; there was a lot of noise, but very little in the way of forward propulsion. If this is all 1.8 can muster, what can the 1.6 and 1.4 be like? All day long the engine’s wheezy, noisy and reluctant progress astounded and disappointed me in equal measure. Cruising at 60 to 70 MPH was noisy and soon became tiring, this being partly due to the engine and partly the loud Continental tyres.
Fortunately the steering and handling went some way towards making up for the lacklustre engine in being well up to the standards we have come to expect from Ford. It handled in a similar fashion to the Mondeo, just more firmly and not quite flowing in such a fluid manner as the larger car. A better engine would make this a great B-road machine. The 5-speed gearbox was light and precise, but I found the brakes to be dull and worryingly ineffective.
All in all, this was beginning to look like what is becoming a familiar Ford recipe. Excellent chassis composure, spoilt by a cheap and nasty interior and mediocre engine.
All in all, I came away thinking that, apart from the composed chassis, what is all the fuss about with the Ford Focus? I found it to be a very ordinary car, a not one that I would rush to choose over a Golf. I need to try one with a decent engine and then, perhaps, I will discover the Focus magic.
Cheap dash, with tacky silver plastic everywhere:
Unsupportive seats, with tacky and rather odd plastic inserts:
With the right engine, I think (hope) lots of fun could be had here:
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gonnabuildabuggy
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The mk1 was the one that set the standard not the mk2 - good handling and unusual dash design (though not brilliant plastics, but you felt you could forgive it that), the Mk2 is just another car but better handling....
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Matt
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All the money seems to go on the chassis. The courtesy one we had was just as scratchy and naff inside, albeit the more bland original MK.2.
It is a good chassis, but the compromise elsewhere would put me off.
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Pkh72
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I've never actually driven a normal Focus but i get the impression the engines, petrol ones anyway, are somewhat lacking compared to the competition.
I reckon the design is starting to show its age now compared to some of its newer rivals, when is a new one due, 2011?
As a side note whenever my car has gone in for some work i always get a Ka or basic Fiesta and you don't have any expections of them and i'm always quite happy with the little thrash wagons.
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DaveGibson
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| Pkh72 wrote: | | ......... when is a new one due, 2011?......... |
Yes. According to last week's Autocar, it's out early in 2011.
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PG
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This was almost exactly what I thought after having a petrol Zetec as a hire car last year. Using it on Gloucestershire's best back driving roads showed the chassis to be excellent, but it was awfully noisy on the motorway, felt very underpowered and the inside was naff.
If Ford got the chassis to 80-90% and spent the rest on better engines and copying the interior of a 1990 Audi A3, it would sell on its combined talents. Of course, Autocar would then not be able to cream themselves over the chassis.
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Humphrey The Pug
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That's what I don't get with the UK motoring press love affair with the Focus.
There is a lot more to a mid sized family hatch than the way it handles yet the motoring journo's, especially Autocar, say the Focus is the better car because it handles better.
Forget the shit trim, suspect build quality, course ride, intrusive tyre noise, mediocre engines etc, it's the best because it handles, 90% of Focus owners probably couldn't give a shit that it out handles a Golf or an Astra, they buy it because What Car and similar say it's the best car out there, because it handles!!
I have driven many Focus' and I do like the way that they drive but I would choose something else over one as I like a nce interior, a nice quiet ride, something that is comfortable and refined, the Focus to me is none of those.
They are expensive now too.
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Dr. Hfuhruhurr
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| PG wrote: | | If Ford got the chassis to 80-90% and spent the rest on better engines and copying the interior of a 1990 Audi A3, it would sell on its combined talents. |
Volvo C30, in other words?
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Bob Sacramento
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| Humphrey The Pug wrote: | That's what I don't get with the UK motoring press love affair with the Focus.
There is a lot more to a mid sized family hatch than the way it handles yet the motoring journo's, especially Autocar, say the Focus is the better car because it handles better.
Forget the shit trim, suspect build quality, course ride, intrusive tyre noise, mediocre engines etc, it's the best because it handles, 90% of Focus owners probably couldn't give a shit that it out handles a Golf or an Astra, they buy it because What Car and similar say it's the best car out there, because it handles!!
I have driven many Focus' and I do like the way that they drive but I would choose something else over one as I like a nce interior, a nice quiet ride, something that is comfortable and refined, the Focus to me is none of those.
They are expensive now too. |
This man speaks a lot of sense.
My mother bought a Mk1 Focus Zetec and I thought it was a wonderful car at the time.
Build quality, ride, handling and performance were all top notch - easily ahead of the competition. I'm not sure you can say the same about the current model.
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PG
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| Dr. Hfuhruhurr wrote: | | PG wrote: | | If Ford got the chassis to 80-90% and spent the rest on better engines and copying the interior of a 1990 Audi A3, it would sell on its combined talents. |
Volvo C30, in other words? |
Well, in theory a Volvo C30 5 door (which does not exist of course) would be right on the button except for two major things. The chassis is about -20% not +80% and marketing is +50% = too high a price.
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Martin
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That looks awful inside, it doesn't matter how good it is to drive. I'd have a Golf without question.
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Pkh72
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I was pondering last night that if i was in the market for a brand new Focus sized estate car i wouldn't go near a Focus estate, have you seen the rrp prices of them these days!
My money would go on either a Kia Ceed or Hyundai i30 estate i think.
Or dive into the 2nd hand market of course.
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Mark
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The Focus is* a great car - but it has been left to run for 11 years in (probably) the most competitive sector in the passenger vehicle industry and can no longer compete.
*so, was, I suppose.
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Roadrunner
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| Martin wrote: | | That looks awful inside, it doesn't matter how good it is to drive. I'd have a Golf without question. |
...and I think many would agree with you. The Golf I recently sampled came with a big feel good factor. It was a quality item and a pleasure to use. OK, the ride and handling are not as good as the Ford's, but how often am I attempting a ten tenths B-road blast? For that occasional blast the Focus (with a better engine) wins. The rest of the time the Golf is a clear winner.
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Eff One
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I've also never driven a Focus, although my brother has a Mk1 and raves about it. The seats on the example above look particularly nasty.
I've not yet sat in a Mk6 Golf, but I had a Mk5 hire car last year - a fairly high spec GT with leather and toys - and was pretty unimpressed with the interior. It was comfortable, and certainly looked better than the Focus above, but the leather felt like vinyl and there was a general air of tackiness about it.
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PG
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| Eff One wrote: | The seats on the example above look particularly nasty.
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Who could possibly design those seats, step back and think "yeah, that looks good". What could a designer possible be thinking having little strips of vinyl sewn / glued onto a fabric seat? And who the heck signed them off?
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Humphrey The Pug
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| PG wrote: | | Eff One wrote: | The seats on the example above look particularly nasty.
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Who could possibly design those seats, step back and think "yeah, that looks good". What could a designer possible be thinking having little strips of vinyl sewn / glued onto a fabric seat? And who the heck signed them off? |
We get that on some of the Renault's, especially the special editions, you look in wonderment that something as hideous has been signed off for production.
The earlier stuff particularly is horrible, and people buy them too.
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Martin
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This thread made me wonder how much a 1.8 Zetec lists for and I was surprised to see it's £18,245 plus £550 for the Sport pack (17" alloys, sports suspension and privacy glass), plus £425 for metallic paint. I don't know if that's it or not, but I make that £19220 on the road. I know you'd get a decent discount, but £19k for a mid range Focus with a middling engine?????
How about a 116i Sport (it will be quicker than the Focus) for £17,750? An A3 1.4TFSI Sportback SE for £18,055 or the Sport for £19,230. Maybe a nice new Golf SE TSI for £17,085. Even the 160hp GT TSI is only a few hundred quid more! The new Astra with its more modern engines is cheaper too, £18,205 gets you a 1.6VVT SRI or you could have the 1.4 Turbo SRI for £18,845.
Bonkers
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Roadrunner
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'Mine' must have had the sport pack, looking at what is included. There is no way it felt anything like a £19k car. More like a £9k Fiesta. Add resale value into the equation and the Focus looks like a very bad deal indeed.
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Martin
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| Roadrunner wrote: | | 'Mine' must have had the sport pack, looking at what is included. There is no way it felt anything like a £19k car. More like a £9k Fiesta. Add resale value into the equation and the Focus looks like a very bad deal indeed. |
The solution is to buy one when it's 12 months old, because £9k is about what it's worth!! Autotrader have 58 reg 1.8 Zetec 5 doors starting from £9,450 and The Car Supermarket has 2009 registered cars for £9,600.
That's a lot of depreciation and proves that cars find their true value when second hand!!
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DaveGibson
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Just £3K extra would get you into a diesel Lexus IS and a 2.5l petrol would only add a further £500.
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Martin
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It's also more than an Octavia Vrs and Leon FR......
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SpecB
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A bloke on the Legacy forum has just bought a dealer pre-reg SpecB with delivery milage for less than 20k.
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Martin
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I think I know what I'd rather have! That sounds a good price, but a quick look on Autotrader shows that 09 reg cars can be had from £15,500 so not a massive bargain I suppose. Just over 15k for an ex demo car (Auto) is a bargain though, a lot of car for the money.
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SpecB
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| Martin wrote: | | I think I know what I'd rather have! That sounds a good price, but a quick look on Autotrader shows that 09 reg cars can be had from £15,500 so not a massive bargain I suppose. Just over 15k for an ex demo car (Auto) is a bargain though, a lot of car for the money. |
I don't think I needed to know that. 
Ex-demos were about £25k three years ago.
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Martin
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Sorry. I've just seen what the list price is! I thought they were about £25k, not almost £30k.....
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Boxer6
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| SpecB wrote: | | Martin wrote: | | I think I know what I'd rather have! That sounds a good price, but a quick look on Autotrader shows that 09 reg cars can be had from £15,500 so not a massive bargain I suppose. Just over 15k for an ex demo car (Auto) is a bargain though, a lot of car for the money. |
I don't think I needed to know that.
Ex-demos were about £25k three years ago. |
The ex-demo I thought I was going to look at last year (long story!) had about 2,000 miles on it and was up for £24.5K. Mine was under £20K OTR, and I got parking sensors, tints and dog guard thrown in for (essentially) nothing, as well.
As with the pretty horrendous fuel economy, vicious depreciation is another aspect of from-new Legacy ownership one has to accept.
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gonnabuildabuggy
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| Pkh72 wrote: | | Or dive into the 2nd hand market of course. |
That's the obvious alternative - you could get a nice 3 or 5 for the cost of a new Focus.
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Jasper
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Without doubt the most disappointing aspect of my Golf is the gutless, noisy, greedy engine.
I'm just glad it's not just VW.
It does make me think about when Ford first put the Zetec engine in the Escort, IIRC they were pretty decent engine with decent fuel economy. What's happened? Is it all for better emissions?
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Roadrunner
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Today, the same garage has given me a Focus 1.8 TDCi Zetec Sport. Identical to the previous one, other than colour and engine. First impressions are that it sounds like a Massey Ferguson when cold, but seems to have a lot more grunt than the 1.8 petrol. I don't know if it is the same engine as in my Mondeo, but this one feels a lot more flexible and much less peaky than the on/off turbo boost I get in the Mondeo. The composure of the chassis is astoundingly good.
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cbeaks1
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Its not the same engine. 10PS less as well.
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