Current Ford Focus worse than the old model?

BrianD3

For the past while I've been driving a pair of Focuses and comparing them. Both 1.4 LX, one a late Mk1 the other a Mk2. IMO Ford have lost the plot with the Mk2, it is no better in many areas than the old one and is worse in some areas. I can only think of one or two areas where the new one is better.
1) the diesel engines compared to the ones originally fitted to the Mk1
2) the EuroNCAP rating

I dont think the build qulaity of the Mk2 is any better and the interior and exterior are much more boring, ugly even. I can see what Ford were aiming for with the new dashboard they've used softer materials to try and give it an upmarket feel. Well IMO it hasn't worked as the new dash feels like its made of rubber plus it has a far more boring appearance.

Performance from the 1.4 engine is much more spritely in the Mk1, probably because the car is less bloated tha the Mk2. I was surprised to find the gearchange was more fluid in the Mk1. The Mk1 is more economical, again probably due to being less bloated. The Mk1 is smaller and more nimble, Mk2 is higher, wider and at times feels like bloody MPV although it does still handle very well. I think ride comfort and refinement are about the same in both cars.

I am not a Ford fanatic but I have friends that are, some have been buying Fords for over 30 years and they say that they prefer the old Focus too.

colm_mcm

headroom is a bit tight in the hatchback too.

Henry Ford III

I cannot agree. The Mk2 is way superior from the ground up. Stronger, more rigid, safer, all be it heavier.

A 1.4 litre engine is a bit marginal to power either car. 75bhp or 80bhp respectively will give slow but safe performance.

My view is that a 1.6 is probably ideal for Irish conditions.

Headroom is fine, above average for the class. Some models have height adjustable seats. I'm 6 feet 2 inches and have no issues.

maidhc

The old one looks nicer IMO (I would be biased when I have one), but saying that the new one grows on you and doesnt have as ugly a rear end as the Golf (purely subjective view).

I really dont get the whole "soft feel" dash as being an indiator of quality thing. The old focus dash had a bit of originality, but the new one could be from a VW or toyota.

The diesel options at the moment are pointless. A slightly underpowered 1.6 or an overpriced 1.8. The 1.8 is a fantastic engine (I have it), but a 1.6 with 110 horses would be so much more sensible for Ireland.

ando

BrianD3 wrote:

Performance from the 1.4 engine is much more spritely in the Mk1, probably because the car is less bloated tha the Mk2

oh jaysus I had a 1.4 mk1 and found it soo slow and underpowered at times. Your saying the newer model is even slower....

bazz26

ando wrote:

oh jaysus I had a 1.4 mk1 and found it soo slow and underpowered at times. Your saying the newer model is even slower....

Yes, the new car is heavier and slightly bigger but the same 1.4 litre 80bhp and 1.6 litre 100bhp engines have been carried over from the old Focus.

Henry Ford III

The current 1.4 has 5 bhp more than the mk1 and needs it.

The 1.6 is good, and well up to the job.

yop

The 1.4 should never be purchased in my opinion, it is pure dead for the size of the car that it pushes.
I have not yet driven the new 1.6 but have been driven in it & I know it is hard to tell but personally It seemed quicker

Henry Ford III

80bhp vs 100bhp and increased torque to match.

That's a 25% increase. It makes the world of difference.

Alun

maidhc wrote:

The diesel options at the moment are pointless. A slightly underpowered 1.6 or an overpriced 1.8. The 1.8 is a fantastic engine (I have it), but a 1.6 with 110 horses would be so much more sensible for Ireland.

The 1.6 TDCi did use to produce 110ps before they made it stage 4 compliant. I have an older 1.6 TDCi C-Max with 110ps and it's more than adequate, I'd say.

Henry Ford III

Alun wrote:

The 1.6 TDCi did use to produce 110ps before they made it stage 4 compliant. I have an older 1.6 TDCi C-Max with 110ps and it's more than adequate, I'd say.

As I said somewhere else, the detuned 1.6 TDCI is just that.

It's nothing to do with emissions I think. Peugeot, Citroen, Mazda, and Volvo are selling 110bhp versions right now.

Ford have a stock of 1.8 TDCI 115 bhp engines they need to sell. They cost a good bit more too.

An unwise marketing move imho.

Alun

Henry Ford III wrote:

It's nothing to do with emissions I think. Peugeot, Citroen, Mazda, and Volvo are selling 110bhp versions right now.

So are Ford ... in the UK! They sell the 90PS 1.6, the 110PS 1.6 (with DPF), and the 115PS 1.8. All are stage 4, with the 90PS 1.6 being achieved by detuning, and at a cost of £1000 les than the 110PS version. The 1.8 could apparently be easily made Stage IV without the need for a DPF. Apparently there are big problems getting hold of the DPF's for the 110PS version, hence the two alternatives. Here in Ireland we only get the 90PS 1.6 and the 115PS 1.8 for some reason or another.

Stage IV compliance might not be that important here, but in the UK there's some tax break on company cars that effectively makes Stage IV a must in that market. The detuned 1.6 and the modded 1.8 were a quick way for Ford to do that without running into huge supply problems with the 110PS 1.6 due to delivery problems with the DPF. The fact that they may have a large stock of 1.8 TDCi engines hanging around was just fortuitous for them, I suppose.

MercMad

I was in the UK last month and rented a brand new ( 70 miles) 1.6 Focus 5 door.

I didn't like it !

I couldn't get comfortable in the seat, I found the road noise and engine noise to be unreal on the Motorway ! Even my mothers 1.0 3 cylinder Corsa cruises more quietly !

The engine is quite harse at any/all RPM !

I was looking forward to the drive, the 1.6 was adequate but I was surprised at the gearing, it was sitting at 3500RPM at 72MPH in 5th !

The car felt solid though, decent quality and spec !

Then for the return journey the next day I actually found the seat height adjuster..............and this transformed the car to me !

Such a simple thing ! Fact is because I was uncomfortable I was negative about the car, and everything annoyed me. Having the seat sorted actually turned the experience into a more positive one. I would place it high on the list if i were after a car in that bracket, having driven the new Golf, Astra and Megane recently !

Still didn't like all that noise though !

Big Balls

What exactly do you expect from a hatchback car suited at families??? It's not meant to set the world on fire!!

The interior isn't great you say, it's slow and it's not much better than the old model?

And....??

colm_mcm

Big Balls wrote:

What exactly do you expect from a hatchback car suited at families??? It's not meant to set the world on fire!!

And....??

If you were to believe the English motoring press, the Focus is the be all and end all.

Big Balls

Yeh but you must agree, if you heard someone complaining about their 911 Turbo or something you could understand!

But the Focus was never meant to be a luxurious car???

Henry Ford III

colm_mcm wrote:

If you were to believe the English motoring press, the Focus is the be all and end all.

It's the best all around car in it's class, bottom line.

p.s. The Irish motoring press, and more importantly the sales figures, agree.

maidhc

Henry Ford III wrote:

It's the best all around car in it's class, bottom line.

Objectivity at its best

Its a good car alright, but not exactly streets ahead of the Octavia, Golf or Corolla

lomb

Henry Ford III wrote:

It's the best all around car in it's class, bottom line.

p.s. The Irish motoring press, and more importantly the sales figures, agree.

i wouldnt say that, the exterior styling isnt as good as the last one. the reason sales are high is due to several reasons, the main one being pricing, specification and discounts. compared to vw say, the ford is at least 3000 euro cheaper for an equivelent model with equivelent spec. the diesel is even cheaper again.
fair play to ford on the pricing, and opel as well, but in fairness dont u think if they could get 3 thousand more like they do with the golfs they would?

Henry Ford III

It could quite easily be argued that the Golf is overpriced. Punters (incorrectly in many peoples view) perceive VW to be a premium brand.

lomb

thats a good point, but can i ask do u think
mercedes or bmw are a premium brand and why?
i do believe the golf is overpriced relative to the competition but i for one am willing to pay that premium. i think interiors on fords and old opels left alot to be desired. the vws interior where u spend all your time is straight out of a car several classes up.
of course opel moved the game on with the new astra, but after having been driven in it as a passanger, the road noise did not impress me. i have a sneaking suspicion vw loads the insulation against road noise in the bulkhead and the doors.
i dont mind listening to noise but only when its coming from a free revving engine like the toyotas of yesteryear.
as regards the new focus i have never driven or sat in it, but i do know the looks are definately not as good as the futuristic old one. that was one beautiful car especially in 3 door. i even considered seriously buying one, i loved the looks that much

Henry Ford III

What defines a premium brand?

It's a tough question. Can't be exclusivity as the 3 series BMW outsells the Mondeo in the UK. Can't be name alone since VW means "peoples car". Is it marketing?

p.s. I like VW Golfs btw, especially those with a small bit of power.

lomb

Henry Ford III wrote:

What defines a premium brand?

It's a tough question.

it definatley is, id say price and exclusivity define it, maybe marketing. vw falls down on the price (except maybe they charge 15-20% more than they are worth), the marketing in the past was certainly very good.
maybe its the thud of the doors, but hang on ford and opel thud as good if not better, maybe its reliability. but ford are way more reliable than vw, everyone in fairness knows the focus is nearly bulletproof.

personally id say vw has a history with the golf, dating back decades, the shape seems to change according to modern tastes. the interiors are first rate and they have great value retention. i dont like the polo, passat or other vw with the exception of the toureg, which i think is a porsche underneath?

i agree the golfs particularly in 2.0 gt tdi is a great car, but it unfortunately comes at a VERY high price:(
the one we are getting next week the 1.6fsi 6 speed tiptronic should be very nice, il post a review when we get it:)

Henry Ford III

Best of luck with it Lomb. Tiptronic should be a bit of fun.

junkyard

Firstly I would have to say I was never a big fan of Ford cars in general but the recent Ford products have really got their act together. The last Focus was a huge leap forward when you consider its predecessor was the Escort. I think the current Focus is a step forward again from the older Focus, its a far sleeker design and the build quality is most definitely better. The Focus 1.6 Zetec is the one to buy as regards value for money and a great engine. If I was buying a car in that class I would buy a Focus. When you consider the s***e VW are churning out at the moment Fords are streets ahead.

maidhc

junkyard wrote:

Firstly I would have to say I was never a big fan of Ford cars in general but the recent Ford products have really got their act together.

I would have thought Ford got their act together with the launch of the First mondeo in 1992. Everything car after that has been fantastic both in terms of driveability, looks and reliability: the 1996 Fiesta, the Ka, the Focus...

There are still quite a few people who refuse to even consider buying a ford car. Not sure why

Henry Ford III

The Ford Puma was excellent too. Fiesta based admittedly, but a hoot to drive especially in 1.7 litre form.

Big Balls

Henry Ford III wrote:

p.s. I like VW Golfs btw, especially those with a small bit of power.

Oh FFS here we go again... I think you'll find a hatchback with 240bhp is a fairly quick car as opposed to "small bit of power".

I really find it amusing how much you defend the blue oval badge Henry! Do you work for them or what??

Claiming that the Golf/Astra are all sooooooo far behind the Focus is just pathetic.

McDonalds sells by the bucket loads too - is it any f**kin good for you???

Big Balls

maidhc wrote:

There are still quite a few people who refuse to even consider buying a ford car. Not sure why

Residuals.

maidhc

Big Balls wrote:

Oh FFS here we go again... I think you'll find a hatchback with 240bhp is a fairly quick car as opposed to "small bit of power".

Not all golfs have 240bhp though, I dont think Henry was referring to a particular model, but I might be mistaken.

What hits the residuals is the image, and the "people who would never buy ford", it is all a bit circular. Having said that the residuals of Fords arent bad. The Focus and Fiesta certainly are not much worse than anything from VW. The Mondeo suffers alright.

Henry Ford III

Big Balls wrote:

Oh FFS here we go again... I think you'll find a hatchback with 240bhp is a fairly quick car as opposed to "small bit of power".

I really find it amusing how much you defend the blue oval badge Henry! Do you work for them or what??

Claiming that the Golf/Astra are all sooooooo far behind the Focus is just pathetic.

McDonalds sells by the bucket loads too - is it any f**kin good for you???

Ah come on B.B's! I was actually being quite complimentary to your beloved Golf there

The Focus is the market leader. There's no disputing that is there? The Golf is overpriced imho, and the Astra dynamically flawed. Nice looking in 3 door form however, as I've said here before.

Go back to the ST thread for more on the relative merits of your GTI if you wish.

p.s. A "small bit of power" meant any Golf but a 1.4 petrol, and 90bhp diesel.

p.p.s. I don't work for Ford btw