Hello.
My brother is trying to buy a car. He's gonna buy used. I like Focuses, and he does too to a certain extent, but he's worried about the brakes. He says that three focuses he's driven have had bad brakes. Have any of you heard of bad brakes on Focuses? Should he be worried about brakes on Focuses? I think the seats on the Focuses are great- you can actually see out of the window fom the back seat, and you don't sink all the way down!!!!!!

Replies??!?!?!?!????

 

Make sure he doesn't buy a first year one because they are, sorry to say, junk. My parents purchased one for my sister and that thing has been in the shop more than any other Ford they have(they have four), you would swear it was made by GM.

 

Yeah I believe it is 2001 focuses that had alot of recalls, so I would try to stay away from them. My wife and I travel from central Kansas to the Pensacola , Florida region several times a year(1,200 miles one way). Many times we have rented Ford Focuses and we liked them so much that we just bought a program car 2 weeks ago. For a llittle car they are very nice , excellent mpg, great ride, etc. We decided after looking for several months to buy a program car with the remainder of the factory 5 year 100,ooo mile warranty. The car had just over 10,000 miles on it and we saved almost 7,000 dollars from original invoice I might say it is a great time to buy them right now look for a 2003 and you will definitely save big be certain to shop around as we had our choice bettwen several at this dealer for $1,500 lower than the nearest low priced car. I think you will be happy as we are. Good luck-- just stay away from the first year as suggested.----

 

They are good cars, a lady I work with has one, and it runs and drives pretty good

 

2000 Focus? First year- avoid at all costs. 2001? Lots of recalls. 2002 and newer? You're fine. Actually recommended by Consumer Reports. Hell of a car for the money.

 

My Mom is now on her second Focus, the first got totaled. The first batch did have alot of recalls, that's what you can expect for a car that is altogether new. I have seen 2 now that have been involved in major accidents. Mom's hit a Jeep Cherokee at about 45 MPH, because she got distracted. Moved the motor back about 6". Airbags deployed, which busted the windshield, otherwise no damage past the fenders. The other, which belonged to a girl I work with, was hit by the trailer of a semi that thought he could make a traffic light. When the light changed, he slammed on the brakes, started to jacknife, and the trailer caught the rear of the car. The rear bumper was approx. 3 1/2' - 4' off the ground, but all the doors opened fairly easily. She did get banged up pretty good from the impact, the truck was doing approx. 60 MPH, but no cuts or broken bones. As far as safety, I believe these cars fit the bill.

Bluehawk

 

I'll add one more to the pot:

2000 Ford Focus - Run away. Run away now.

We own a 2000 with the 2.0 L Zetec/5-speed combo. To date, I think we have had 7 recalls - mostly minor things, but the latest, (which we only found out about when I went down to the dealer to get some parts), deals with the rear wheel cylinders. ...I personally prefer wheels to be securely mounted to the vehicle...It would have been nice to have been notified.
The stock tires are terrible, we went through them in about 25,000 miles. (Not to say I didn't play a small part in that...Vroom! )

As far as brakes are concerned, my dad replaced the brakes on our last weekend - they were grinding. You could literally feel the car shaking when the brakes were applied - it was as though the caliper piston were hitting the rotot directly. New brakes, the problem seems to have been cured, though. (Still need to address wheel cylinders).

On a positive note, it is a peppy little car. Quite fun to drive, in my opinion. It'll cruise and wind up pretty tight if you need it to. I would recommend a 2002 or newer with the 6-speed, as the 5-speed doesn't allow you to go very fast. In ours, you're pulling about 3300-3400 RPM at 85. 95 is about as fast as you can go within reason for any extended period.

Good luck!

-Patrick

 

Did you know that multiple Ford Focuses and called Ford Foci! I personally would like a ZX3 2 door stick shift. They look like a fun car to drive!

-Matt

 

I drove a zx3 with a stick and the 2.0 liter, it was sweet little car, IMHO the audiophile option in that wasn't worth 500 bucks but it had some neat features on it.

 

yea my moms looking at tires for her focus. 2001 its quite peppy had it to 120mph in no time rides nice sporty kinda, but i cant keep the inside clean!!! the black dash attracs dust like no other and the seats hair magnet. but i fit my friend in the trunk and hes 6'5" 300lbs

 

I (and my brother) like how high the seats ride- front and back. I think a lot of cars are copying that.

 

Why am I even looking at this thread???? I can't even fit in a 4 door Focus!

6'6", 260lbs., Smallest car I can get into (comfortably) is a Lincoln Town Car, anything smaller, and well, my head is bent over due to touching the roof.

 

There was quite a discussion a few months ago about front wheel drive. It convinced me to never buy one, do a search.

 

I don't know what book values are on these things but I have seen several low mileage (40k and under) 2001+ Focuses (Foci?) for sale at or under $9500. Seems like they take a huge depreciation hit at one year along with most other American made sedans. Starting to consider one as a second car - Taurus's just seem to have to many transmission problems and lousy gas mileage.

 

The Focus wasn't an all new car when it was introduced to the U.S. It was/is being built in Germany and Spain.