Focus with 120k on the clock?

cold_filter

Ok thinking if getting a focus ghia, it has 140k on the clock its on sale for 4k, i wont be using it a whole lot apart from trips to galway/mayo and would prefer something with a bit of comfort and a 1.6 is a grand size engine for that, any thoughts on the mileage?

Kimbot

What year is it??

Those foci are unsung heros of reliability.

You should get a good lot of miles out of it.

cold_filter

Its a 2001

Kimbot

its pretty high alright but I'm confused, you say 120 and 140... surely it can't be both!!

cold_filter

Sorry i was looking at 2 one with 120 and one with 140, the one with 140 looks in better condition!
After having 2 fiats i don't want to buy any more lemons!

Kimbot

Well if the engine was maintained well enough then there is no hassle with reliability!!

cold_filter

Grand lads thanks for the advice

Daryn

I bought a focus 1.8 tddi with 132.000 miles on it 2 months ago and so far its perfect, the mileage isnt an issue as much if the car is well looked after .
I Paid around the same money for mine so your not gettin ripped off on the price either..
best of luck with it

bazz26

The most important thing with high mileage cars imo is current condition and service history. If the car was looked after properly then more than likely the owner(s) were the same with the service history. Check all relevant documentation. If it doesn't have any I would walk away.

Bradidup

At least theres a good probability thats the genuine mileage, you could go off and buy something that has only 90 mileage and pay an extra few grand but the thing could have had more than the one you are looking at. I never trust mileage on any car from any dealer. Get a good mechanic and go through everything.

old boy

service history was invented by main steelers to fleece the already fleeced joe public, get a mechanic or give the aa 140 lids

maidhc

old boy wrote:

service history was invented by main steelers to fleece the already fleeced joe public, get a mechanic or give the aa 140 lids

!!!!

No it wasn't. If you have a service history you can be pretty certain the car was never clocked, that essential maintenance has been carried out, and that the car was serviced as per the manufacturers recommendations. A mechanic cannot tell you any of these things unless he strips the car back to its component parts.

gyppo

You're probably as safe buying this as a similar car with half the mileage from the same year.
As others have said, theres a good probability the mileage is genuine. The focus 1.6 is a grand car, and is on the whole, pretty reliable.

Check for any misfires - coil packs do give up on these. Give the car a good going over mechanically, and pay attention to things like shock absorbers, bushes, and other suspension components, as these will be tired by now.
Get the car as cheap as you can, and keep a few pounds aside for repair - its at an age where engine ancillaries, eg alternator, starter motor, etc., might need replacement in the future.

Service history on such a car would be a huge bonus - bargain hard if theres none.

Bradidup

old boy wrote:

service history was invented by main steelers to fleece the already fleeced joe public, get a mechanic or give the aa 140 lids

If I was buy new Toyota I would get it serviced by Toyota because I know they will use genuine parts, specified oil and will log the mileage & service records on a computer. Alternitivlly I could go to some back street mechanic that will use bogus parts and the cheapest oil and pay him cash, get away without paying vat and have no record of the service to show the next person I flog the car on to.

artnotort

steer slear of fords when ever possable , mainly because back when the focus was launched they reclalled millions of them because of safty issues , plus you can do much beeter then one of them with 4 k , you'll get a renault laguna for that ( frencdh i know but there cheapt to repair if anything go's wrong ) also a an old bmw isnt a bad idea either ive seen many people drive e30-e36 m3's for 200 k miles before selling it and buying another

maidhc

artnotort wrote:

steer slear of fords when ever possable , mainly because back when the focus was launched they reclalled millions of them because of safty issues , plus you can do much beeter then one of them with 4 k , you'll get a renault laguna for that ( frencdh i know but there cheapt to repair if anything go's wrong ) also a an old bmw isnt a bad idea either ive seen many people drive e30-e36 m3's for 200 k miles before selling it and buying another

Stop talking nonsense.

FGR

Millions? I heard it was Trillions!

pred racer

maidhc wrote:

!!!!

No it wasn't. If you have a service history you can be pretty certain the car was never clocked, that essential maintenance has been carried out, and that the car was serviced as per the manufacturers recommendations. A mechanic cannot tell you any of these things unless he strips the car back to its component parts.

Dont rely totally on service history, a friend of mine used to buy new cars, run them till their first service, then disconnect the clock for the next while (he did constant milage so he knew how often his services came up) service it himself, reconnect the clock then when due bring it back to the main dealer to have it serviced and get his little book stamped. so 2 years later he sold the car with half the mileage and a full service history! Or his brother worked in a ford garage and they just made up the service history with the aid of the garage stamp(this car wasnt even a ford it was a peugeot and it wouldnt run with the clock disconnected)

maidhc

pred racer wrote:

Dont rely totally on service history, a friend of mine used to buy new cars, run them till their first service, then disconnect the clock for the next while (he did constant milage so he knew how often his services came up) service it himself, reconnect the clock then when due bring it back to the main dealer to have it serviced and get his little book stamped. so 2 years later he sold the car with half the mileage and a full service history! Or his brother worked in a ford garage and they just made up the service history with the aid of the garage stamp(this car wasnt even a ford it was a peugeot and it wouldnt run with the clock disconnected)

Indeed, I agree. But this goes for everything. You just have to be use common sense. I demanded invoices when i was buying my car, and they were provided instantly without any questions being asked. I was told it was serviced once by a different dealer, which I also confirmed with a 5 second phone call.

pred racer

yeah thats the best way.
Ive never bought a car with a service history(till the one i have now) and I just tend to not believe anything im told by the seller. If Im not satisfied on any level I just walk away. I dont mind faults i.e. repaired crash damage etc once the price reflects it.

impr0v

I've a '01 1.6 petrol approaching 100k and hasn't any problems engine-wise. It required a new power-steering pump and back brake pads to pass NCT, otherwise fine.

TychoCaine

I bought a '99 1.4 focus with 50k (miles) on the clock 4 years ago and just pensioned it off to the wife after putting another 65k up on it. The things that have been replaced in that time are suspension bushes, timing belt, battery, coil pack, wheel cylinders and the wiper linkage.

The only one out of the ordinary was the wiper linkage (connects the wiper motor to the wiper arms). Everything else would be considered normal wear and tear. The suspension bushes lasted at least 50k, where as in some cars (such as my Volvo) they can go in half that time. The wheel cylinders (little hydraulic doohikies that work the rear drum brakes) on some cars need to be replaced every time the shoes are changed. Mine still had the original ones. The 1.4 Zetec engine's timing belt will last 100k, where as lots of Astras and Golfs need theirs changed at 50k-60k.

Up until recently I've even taken it to my local Ford dealer for servicing because they were so cheap. A regular service costs < €150, and the timing belt only cost €250 to change. Ford parts are cheap, the main dealer labour charges are more than reasonable and the Focus itself is bulletproof. I'm actually seriously considering offloading the Volvo S80 I just bought and buying a nearly new Mondeo TDCi just because I had such a good ownership experience with the Focus.

Gary

Spitfire666

by any chance is it white with a couple of ariel stubs on the roof?
Sounds like it could be an ex garda car.

Spotted a white mondeo the other day with the stubs on the roof being driven by a couple of foreign lads and sure enough it was an ex garda car.

JohnBoy

artnotort wrote:

steer slear of fords when ever possable , mainly because back when the focus was launched they reclalled millions of them because of safty issues , plus you can do much beeter then one of them with 4 k , you'll get a renault laguna for that ( frencdh i know but there cheapt to repair if anything go's wrong ) also a an old bmw isnt a bad idea either ive seen many people drive e30-e36 m3's for 200 k miles before selling it and buying another

what a load of twaddle. the focus is quite possibly the best car in its class for reliability, so what they recalled some of the early ones to fix a few things, they're great little yokes to clock up miles, my gf has a 1.4 with 110k on it, going strong and no plans to change it (although there is an ssia burning in her bank account so i dont know how long that will last) i had a 1.8td with 120k that drove like new, and apart from a few minor paint marks looked like new. they're carrying there mileage better than any ford has ever done before.

go for it, and i'd reccomend the 1.6 over the 1.4, official mileage rating isn't much worse than the 1.4 but if you're a spirited driver you'll end up flogging the 1.4 to make it go so it ends up drinking as much as the 1.6 would anyway