how come is it that ford focus would always and still wins all kinds of awards?
this car is such a piece of #$@$!&@.

as far as i know , it has had more then 10 safety recalls.
this car almost starts to disentegrate as soon as you start to drive it.
why is it then none of the magazines/car media etc. dont tell us to stay away from this car? it gets excellent reviews and it seems like since it came out everybody is raving about this car...
car guide says its a better value then our protege!
whats the deal with this?

 

my ex got her focus ZX3 in april of 2002. it's been trouble free. she had every single option they had, minus the auto, and she paid 15K out the door. so speaking only on what you get for the money, the focus is still the better deal. however, with the reliability issues that have plagued the car since its inception to the states, i wouldn't buy one. her current boyfriend has a 2000 ZX3 and it got recalled a few times. her boyfriend's best friend just blew up his ECU. quite a funny story, poor chap.

 

It's because the magazines just test their out the door capabilities. They don't consider their long term issues.

 

maybe its cause Ford has the clout, and backing...but thats all a big maybe because they cut my check every week.

 

Ford Focus also won this award - the most recalled vehicle of 11 times! Try to beat that! I do not think even Hyundais were recalled that many time in one generation of a vehicle.

 

tonkabui: some might stay trouble free until about 10-20k miles...that's what i heard and then it's all downhill.
how many miles does she have on it?

 

I've had two Focus rentals, while my Protege was in the shop, that were well over that mark. One had 35k (I was pissed when I got this one since I thought rental companies rolled cars a little quicker than that) and the other one had 29k (again I was pissed). Neither had anything wrong with them, short of needing new brakes. I've gotten several rentals in the past where major issues were showing up (transmissions, engine problems) well under that number. I consider it good marks to get a rental with that many miles that is still in good driving condition, but I'm also very happy to get back into my car (no power windows/locks, anemic 2.0L, slushbox).

Considering you can pick up a ZX3 or LX for under 10k here in Houston they aren't a bad car for the money. I've never even seen a Protege DX get near that number in ads. The ZX3 is fun to drive and a good performer. Not to mention they get a lot more aftermarket support than we do. The interior design is top-notch, which is what most reviewers comment on the most. Its not as big of a POS as you guys think it is.

 

Truth be told, when shopping for my last car, it came down to a Ford Focus, and the Mazda Protege ES I ended up with.

As far as driving goes, the Focus was a wonderful car to drive, and it stacked up very well compared to the Protege. It was quieter inside, and with the telescoping/ tilt wheel combined with the European style dial for the seat back angle was very easy to get comfortable in.

The acceleration was very similar to the Protege. The car cornered well, but did feel a little more top heavy than the Protege, but the ride was more compliant. Prices were almost spot on with the same options. Obviously the Protege feels a little bit sportier, but the two cars are very close in real world capabilities.

The Protege is obviously very reliable, with everything else being close to equal for me, the Protege was the obvious choice.

With that said, why do so many people on this board feel the need to bash the Focus? If Ford would have used the same parts suppliers they do in Europe, the car would be quite reliable. The basic design is outstanding, Ford just blew it by trying to squeeze out every last penny of profit by using cheap, crappy suppliers and parts in the US spec model.

Are we feeling a little insecure about our cars? Seriously, we have a great little economy car, but there are many other quality cars out there. Open your minds a little. There can be more than one right decision.

I think Ford will finally get it right and up their quality on the US spec Focus, especially with the next generation.

Go ahead...flame away.

 

i just got off the phone with her. she's got 19.5K on it right now. she got lucky with the rotors cause my ex coworker's brother had one that had messed up rotors all the time. she has installed a new TB, CAI, exhaust, eibachs, and some sweet 17"s. and she got lucky with the recall on some 02 foci that were catching fire because of faulty battery wiring. so she's dodged every bullet that has come her way. lucky girl. she's got no complaints on her car in particular, but even she knows that the focus is a shoddily made car. she has experienced random rattles all over, but then again, so have i.

i'm sure of all the foci that were built and sold, some of them have had to have been descent. it's just the focus line itself has had more problems than average, but all in all, the focus is a good value on the surface.

i'm sure all those car magazines dishing out those awards got a new car, and in a new car, there are very few problems. i'm sure a new yugo would have been problem-free for the first few hundred miles the magazines have them for. $15K out the door for full power, 6disc cd changer, premium sound (that kicks the crap out of the protege, i might add--even my 2002.5 with the 6 speakers can't compare), sunroof, traction control, abs, extended warranty to 100K miles, etc. etc. etc. is a good deal in my books. it's just too big a risk to take knowing the past history of the car. but then again, the aftermarket for the focus has taken off, whereas the one for the protege is shrinking into extinction, especially with the introduction of a new "mazda 3." so there you go.

 

the focus is so damn cheap inside!! ARRRG, its too gay to be driving around, thats why i got the p5 instead,

 

Yeah to me the focus always looked like a promising little car to me. (Love it or hate it looks I guess). I'm just disappointed to hear about all the quality problems

 

sorry, i think the focus' are all ugly till u trick them out. stock pro's beat the stock focus in looks. i think they are kinda big and "bulky". it is much quieter inside, but the comfort level is about the same. i think if a car is somewhat similar, looks get the deciding vote.

not bashing or nothing, but if i'm gonna drop 30+ paychecks on a car, it'd better be eye-candy...

 

Agreed, we did buy some damn sexy cars.

 

I just saw a ford commercial:
Focus SVT: One of Car & driver's 10 best for 4 years running
180hp, 100k mile warranty, $199 a month.
If I didn't know any better, I'd think that was a good deal.

 

i'm not saying the focus is a bad design. i think the enginners did a good job. but the car has cheap parts that causes the car to break down and things to fall off etc. i think the ford executives got greedy and decided to save $$$$,
cut costs,and to use cheapest parts possible.
that what pisses me off -a company that is greedy and screws its customers.

reliability is one of the aspects that makes a car a great car.
what's the point of buying a car that will be in the shop all the time? or if it will leave you stranded on the side of the road?
do you see the focus driving to 100kmileage?
i dont think so...unless you spend $10k on repairs.
i wouldnt spend my hard earned cash on a car like that!
i want to drive my car hard and enjoy it.
this is my 2nd pro (had 65k troublefree mileson my pro2000) and i'm looking forward to many years of enjoyment. sure i did look at other cars within that price range but none come even close in comparison.