Buying a Focus

[prydey]

Hi guys. I'm on the hunt for a small car for my inlaws at the moment. i'll be quite honest and tell you, i'm not a small car person so my knowledge on them is rather limited.

they are an old retired couple, father in law can no longer drive and they will do only a few thousand km's a yr as they are moving into a retirement home.

they are looking at spending up to 12k.

i've pretty much ruled out corolla's as you get nothing for your money. even though they are jumping out of an old falcon, it was a fairmont, so had most of the fruit - power windows, cruise, climate etc etc.

as far as Focus' go, i've been looking from 05 onwards (newer shape) and even up around 100000km but not more than about 140-150000km.

i assume these are the same as most small cars and run a timing belt rather than a chain? does this get done at 100000km? would prefer to get one thats had this work done if the km are in that region. i'm also hoping that with a few more km on board, a lot of the early issues (if there were any) will be sorted. of course a low km model would be better but they also demand more money. i'm not overly fussed by km and i'm pretty competant with a set of spanners.

what sort of things do i need to look for. were there any major issues with these cars.

thanks guys.

[DZFord]

Originally Posted by prydey

i assume these are the same as most small cars and run a timing belt rather than a chain? does this get done at 100000km?

Hi prydey, an LS/LT/LV Focus runs a timing chain, that gets done at 240,000km.

They might want to steer clear of the auto transmission, which often has problems with the 2nd -> 1st downshift and not many people have been successful in getting this fixed.

Also, the OEM brake rotors and pads are notoriously soft and expensive to replace with OEM products.

Other problems include broken CV joints and engine mounts, although not as common.

Otherwise, they are great cars, with excellent steering and handling.

[Padrino90]

Hi,

im also looking for a new focus, an 06 zetec specifically, which is in the same year range, what else should we look out for or be aware of in terms of problems and potential failures.

Also how are they for replacement parts, are they expensive cars to fix?

thanks

[Fordman]

Mate i think you might struggle to get that newer focus within 100,000ks.

[prydey]

ended up getting an 05 (newer shape) focus, 112000km for less than $10k. full service history at peter warren ford.

they also informed me that that model focus is pretty heavy on brakes, but given that my inlaws are nearing 80, and will do all of about 5000km a year tops, most things should hold up pretty well.

i was pleased to hear the later model ones have moved away from a timing belt. one less thing to worry about.

flying to sydney next w/end to pick it up and drive it home. hope all goes well.

[Fordman]

Thats a decent price, mind if i ask was it Auto or manual/Sedan or hatch? And the Model?

In the market myself and thats a decent price from my carsales endevors on a new shape.

[prydey]

auto hatch. cl LS

[Fordman]

Originally Posted by prydey

auto hatch. cl LS

Cheers mate, and good pickup.