so im thinking of buyin a focus

[88lx5oh]

since i have had this job at honda, ive been spending about $75 a week in gas, and i jsut dont want to do it anymore. i went and looked at some focus today, and found a 03 SVT for like 15... but im not gonna pay 15k for a damn focus.

 

i did find an 03 focus hatch with 30k miles 5 spd, for 8999, which i may be interested in, but i have been considering buyin an 06 brand new.. they are like 10,899 thye have rebates going and what not.

 

so an 06 hatch 5 spd cd/mp3 for 10,899

34mpg highway...

 

anyone have any experience wiht the focus??

im against buying a mopar or gm product. i jsut d onot like what they have to offer.

 

ive considered hondas, nissans, and even KIA lol.

 

but hondas are a bit over my budget, and nissan, for what i want the car for, a sentra 1.8 5spd may be in the range, and kia.. fuck i jsut cant get myself to buy one.

 

so really the focus is what im considering.

 

im not really crazy about the body style, but i like it as much as any other car ive considered purchasing.

[MrMeanGreen]

Ummm, Firebird Jr. gets 33mpg highway with 138k miles on the clock.

[88lx5oh]

explorer gets 15.. amnd the vert gets 17

[smokin5s]

I know you don't like GM (I understand, Ford people don't like GM and GM people don't like Fords) but the G6 and Cobalt both get great gas mileage... and they are very nicely priced well equiped.

[TurboTank]

civic hx

[evan9381]

i hit 35mpg highway and about 29 city in my elantra, and the way the value of them depreciates, im sure you could find an 01-03 with under 60k miles for about 6k. i havent had a problem with mine that i have not directly caused in 70k miles

[88lx5oh]

ive looked at some hyundai as well..

im still liking the focus better

 

anyone had experience with them at all

[mmrmnhrm]

Have you taken a look at Hyundai? From what I gather, they pilfered some of the best engineers at both Toyota and Honda, then set them to work on some pretty decent kit at a price well below T&H. My folks just picked up a fully decked Sonata LX for somewhere in the low 20's. Given that you're probably not looking for heated leather seats, XM-ready radio, and all those other glam things, I could see getting an Accent or Elantra for under 15.

[evan9381]

you could find a brand new elantra for under 12k. you can also probably find a brand new accent (which is smaller, but great mileage) for about 9k new.

[Hwilli1647545487]

Mazda 3 is a Focus with a different body, but i think used they are more expensive.

[88lx5oh]

i really really like the SVT though i cant justify spending the money on a svt focus

[PeteS40]

NVRmind... lol

[Guest mudbutt]

A few of my friends have owned foci and all I can say is I would personally NEVER own one. The engine is decent but the build quality is terrible. Not even talking fit and finish. That stuff can be ignored to a point. Im talking about major mechanical adn electrical problems. 1 car under 40k had multiple power window failures, electrical problems, some recall and some just fixed unter warranty, and a door that wouldnt close. Another car had electrical problems with the dash lights. and another had transmission and electrical problems. I am not a anti ford person by any stretch of the imagination, but I feel the Focus is not a very well built vehicle.

[Stallion Motorsports1647545491]

A girl at work has a focus. In two years and under 40,000 miles, she has put over 3500 in repairs. Everything from timing belt, to brakes, to valve cover gasket, to brakes again, to transmission, to door locks, to brakes again, to a bunch of egr/emission stuff, to a bad oil burn/leak, to a cd player that eats cds.

I wouldn't buy one.

On that note, you can buy a 98-01 Accord/Civic for 7000-11000. IMO find a local 99-00 Civic Si.

 

tom

[88lx5oh]

well being that i would pick up an 06.. wouldnt you think they should have fixed the bugs ou tby now.

also the factory warranty will be nice to have on a new vehicle as well.

[Bam]

I had 3 focus's. All ZX3's which I proceeded to run the piss out of and enjoy hardcore. I never had a single problem with any of them, and one even had a 55shot on it for about 6months. All were 01 and 02's, 5spd's, and fun to no end. I actually got around 40mpg on hwy trips. And for under $11k for a brand new car that's not bad at all. Do it!

[Bam]

Oh, and SVT's are nice, but IMO not worth the extra cash for what you get. Not to mention they require premium gas and only get around 26/27hwy mpg. Lemme know if you've got any other questions, I still have friends with them and keep up to date on them.

[88lx5oh]

thanks for the info BAM

what model did you have of the ZX3

i know there are like s, se, and ses

or something like that

are there different motors for each one??

the only modding that would ever be done would be maybe a set of springs.. after riding in the SVT the zx3 was a little sloppy in the corners. nto that im goann be racing it or anything, but id like something that corners halfway decent. are parts such as springs able to be swapped form the svt to the zx3??

[88lx5oh]

yes i am selling the explorer. im actually trying to down size on som ethings, and the payment on the explorer, and shitty gas milage are high atop the list.

 

i have alot of hom erenovations that need done.

[evan9381]

if youre looking for warranty, hyundai/kia is the way to go. i think fords warranty is like 4yr/48k miles powertrain right? maybe 5/60 at the most? hyundai has 10yr/100k powertain and 5/60k bumper to bumper. as for mods, if you need mods for an elantra, they're out there. if you want a little better cornering, theres about 3 different struts you can use, about 6-8 sets of springs, 4 sets of coilovers, 2-3 sway bars....you can definately hook it up. im happy with mine with all the performance mods ive done and still get great gas mileage and still have my warranty (dealer likes my car)

 

and if youre looking to lower payments, im BUYING my car for 235/mo for 66 months. insurance is cheap, and i fill up every couple weeks (which i know will change for you)

[JaSSon]

I know of a Fiero that may be for sale in the near future...

[Mark1647545493]

My brother has an 5 door 03 SVT Focus and he's put a trouble free 80K miles on it and gets 27 city and over 30 on the long hauls. He's never had an issue with it in the snow and if you get one with traction control it's even better. Before that he had an 02 ZX5 with a 5spd and get even better MPG's out of it. The only thing that kept me getting from getting an 04 SVT fully loaded with 24K miles for $14K was the fact it HAS to have premium fuel. The powertrain warranty is 100K miles on a focus too.

 

Dude whats up with your vert only getting 17? My 00 GT gets better than that in the city and it's an automatic.

[88lx5oh]

i dont know, but its really gay. i know of quite a few gts that get better milage than our v6.

i mean even if i babay the hell out of it i still get 17-18

[thorne]

from my experinace focus are absolute pieces of garbage and should be used as paper weights instead of cars. They fall apart cheap interae poor suspenion bad brakes. My buddy who lurks on the borad sometimes his Wife has a focus they both hate it . itsl ike 2 years old and falling apart.

[thorne]

ur v6 has issues then my 1995 got 26MPG freeway. as for the explorer unless its paid off your gonna be quite upside down in it. I would not trade itin or alteast look for something that would cover the residule.