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Ford Focus ZX3 Hatchback - Part IV
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I'm using Chevron 89 or Exxon 89 and got around 30mpg for 40% city/60% highway.
I saw more and more Focus now, so we are not unique anymore Just saw a malibu blue ZX3 yesterday with some underbody kit, looks so nice.
Go Focus!
I stay in first and zooom-I'm gone.
I love to throwing it into 3rd about 60mph and feel it surge forward. I wish Ford had placed a red line on the tachometer. I believe red line is 6800rpm which is not bad at all.
Also, my drivers side window makes creaking noises as well and I have not been in an accident. I have had my Focus since December.
It seems like most of you guys have had a hard time in the north and northeast getting your car parts or even ordering the car. Down here in Dallas, most of the car lots are full of Focus and a good supply of hatches--even since the end of October. But I guess being one of the largest markets in the nation helps a lot.
If anyone can tell me if they have had any suspension problems please, please, speak out! I need some answers. I have been taking my car to a dealer other than dealership I bought it (I purchased it 100 miles away). I have been there twice with this problem and they are beginning to think I am crazy. My car kinda feels lopsided. I don't know if it's the shock or spring or something is bent. Who knows! I'm thinking about replacing all the springs and shocks. I looked at Eibach's site but did not see springs for Focus or Shocks at Tokico's site either.
Thanks again for the input, think positive thoughts so my car will come in next week, and I’ll do the same for all you others waiting or in the shop!
I owned a 1984 Civic, which was a wonderful car, great hatchback, nimble, and reliable as dirt.
But my 1993 Ford Escort passed it up as the most reliable car I've ever owned; it earned the name "Trusty" because in almost 70,000 miles it never had one problem. That Escort was built in the same Hermosillo, Mexico, plant where the ZX3 is built.
Since the Escort, I've owned a '96 Contour SE, and will finish the lease on my '98 Explorer when (if!!!) the Twilight Blue 5-speed ZX3 I've ordered gets here. I once thought that Honda had an edge over Ford in the reliability department, but my Escort shattered that belief with no trouble. By the way, since Honda doesn't sell the Civic SI hatchback any longer, the ZX3 is also a lot closer to the spirit of my old '80s Honda than anything Honda currently makes.
Good luck to you!
Don
About the reliability, it's too early to say now, at least I have 4,100 trouble free miles on it so far, I'll let you know when I pass 100K )
This car has a beautiful form, but it's incredibly functional, as well. I don't know why I've never owned a hatch before; I think I'm now a forever convert. :-) Still no problems (fingers crossed). Things seem to running smoothly. Now have 3500 miles, and have noticed a definite improvement in gas mileage.
Focus rocks!
Thanks again.
Also, when I get my new car should I use the higher octane gas or is the engine better suited to the regular stuff? I really want to take care of this baby. Speaking of gas, my state is chuck full of monster SUVs and most people think I'm nuts for wanting a HB. I almost hope gas hits $2.00 just so I can zip past them in my hatch and laugh as they're all crying at the Chevron.
Glad to hear you're getting good mileage w 5 spd.
Waiting on delivery of SE w/all xcept auto and leatherEngine oil / break-in
This my opinion: Never trust what's in the car on delivery. Junk, water, metal filings, all contibute to early engine failure. Plus mfrs. use camshaft and other prelubes which can change oil viscosity. So, after you have that first ride, change the oil and filter w/ petro-based oil (API spec minimum). Run the engine 250-500 miles, change the filter only, unless you're switching to synthetic, now's the time to do that (Follow syn oil procedures). W/ petro oil change the oil and filter again between 3000-4500 miles (if you drive for long periods change it more often). You can also protect the engine better changing the filter twice as often.
Break-in is a little more complicated. This is THEIR opinion!!!!!
Here are a few links that you might want to look at: Everybody has their opinion on this one. I don't believe you'll ever find two mechanics that'll agree on this one!
http://fourps.wharton.upenn.edu/~simon/r1/archives/v02/msg00660.html
http://www.micapeak.com/TL1000S/faq/#Q4
http://www.koan.com/~pollys1/YFS200/High_Output/Engine_Break_in.html - pseud for one of the top engine builders in the world.
http://www.bostonengine.com/articles/fresh.html
http://driversedge.com/breakin.htm
Also, when I get my new car should I use the higher octane gas or is the engine better suited to the regular stuff? I really want to take care of this baby. Speaking of gas, my state is chuck full of monster SUVs and most people think I'm nuts for wanting a HB. I almost hope gas hits $2.00 just so I can zip past them in my hatch and laugh as they're all crying at the Chevron.
speaking of switches, why are the door locks in when unlocked and out when locked?
http://www.solairesunroofs.com/focus.htm
Has anyone had a sunroof installed yet?
I have some questions:
Has anybody seen the Rainforest Green color? does it look like the pictures on Ford's site?
How long did your order typically take?? (they told me 6 weeks)
I am 17 and a major car nut and I am excited to drive my new car! (about thew only car I would rather have is an Impreza 2.5 RS cuz I am a subaru FREAK!)
Everything is at edmunds.com! Just ask! :-)
carlady/host
One more thing....how are you getting power windows in Utah when we can't get them anywhere else? Do tell! Actually, I'm okay with the manual windows ever since a friend got trapped in a car with power windows. Something to think about, even though I did request the powers this time.
Thanks for the chrome tip advice. I'm headed to the BMW dealer this weekend to try to get one. The joke will be on the BMW folks when I drive up in my Focus and all eyes are on me!
Later--
Calico1
the brochures and pics don't do the color any justice. its even better in person! you'll love it:) i ordered my twilght blue 5spd. before i saw it. i still love my dark blue but rf green would be my 2nd choice. GOOD CHOICE!
The power windows are available in a "power group" which includes power mirrors and requires that you get power remote entry. The order code is 60A and the invoice cost is $307. More info is available from Edmunds. From what I understand the option became available in Feb '00. Good luck on the sunroof, I don't think I'd have the stomache for it.
I'm a bit disappointed to hear about the rather dull dash lighting but the rest of the styling makes up for it. Also, I read where the Focus out paced the Audi A4 in a slalom (handling) test. Not bad for half the price eh? Can't wait to take mine up a winding canyon.
I'm in Atlanta and I just got my ZX3 last week! I went through quite a bit of trouble trying to find one, they are in pretty limited supply here. Since I got mine, I have only seen one other ZX3 on the road (although I've seen quite a few LX and SE sedans). I also had quite a hassle at the dealership. My ZX3 is Sangria Red, I originally wanted to go with white, but the white one didn't have a CD player installed, which I really wanted, so I went with the red one (which has single-CD as standard). I have to say I am really happy with my red one now. However, when I finalized the deal on the red one, the dealership put the VIN number of the white car on my Buyer's Order as well as to my insurance agent. So, I was insured for the wrong car and I had the wrong number on my order!!! I was really mad about this, but the sales manager took 500 bucks off my price for this mistake. Is it just me, or are the Ford salespeople not as professional as other dealers?
I have to take my car back next week to get the cruise control and power locks/remote keyless entry installed. I paid almost $1800 for the cruise control (500 for the option, 900 for the custom steering wheel that had to be ordered, and almost 400 for labor/service), but I think it will be worth it. I do a lot of long distance driving and the cruise control is almost a necessity.
I haven't heard anything about a Ford Box with the watch...does everyone who buys a ZX3 get one of these? Incidently, my watch just broke and I need a new one. Does anyone know how long it takes to get it? Wondering if I should go ahead and buy a new one now...
Also, about the recall (00E09?), how do you check to see if your car is affected by this?
And does anyone know the item number for the armrest/center console? This is something I might have put in.
I do have to say, however, that all in all, I am very happy with my ZX3, it is everything I expected and much more. I also get great gas mileage (30-35 mpg) and I fly by the other cars, even the V6 Mustangs, they eat my dust every time!
I bought my zx3 with only a/c and abs. I'm a college student trying to get by on as little as possible. I'm starting to wish I got the power windows and maybe even the power locks w/ remote. The crank on the windows makes the door pockets useless, and trying to crank the passanger side window while driving is not recommended. I would have gotten cruise, but it wasn't offered at the time (Nov.) I guess the only way the factory offers it, is to buy the whole steering wheel at over $400. I really hope at some point they will just sell the control pods for the wheel.
As far as reliability goes, I'm straddling the fence. I looked at civics last year before settling on the zx3. The civic is just too generic. Too many of them on the road. They don't seem to do anything exceptional, just well. Well, except maybe the engine, especially the si. The zetec has more power but just isn't as smooth. My whole ordeal with the lame suspension has really made me wonder how well my car was put together. Recalls happen all the time, even on Honda's, but that doesn't stop my friends from making fun of me for buying a ford. I guess right now with the bitter taste in my mouth after spending so much to get my car fixed I'm expecting and looking for things to go wrong with my car. So far so good though.
Oh, one more thing. About warming up the car. Ten seconds sounds more than enough. The way it was explained to me, it really doesn't do much good to let the car idle for minutes. It just wastes gas. You just need to give the oil pump time to circulate the oil through the engine for a few secs. before taking off. The only time I ever let it idle for long is to warm up the heater on cold sub-zero days. So, just start up the car, buckle up, and take it easy on the revs until the engine warms up.
Gabe
Am I supposed to ask the dealer myself about that recall? They haven't sent me any kind of notice or anything. I've never had to deal with a recall before, so I don't know how it works. Any advice would be appreciated.
Happy driving!
it goes for $289 and it looks nice... Later
About the recall(s), I took the VIN the dealer gave me and registered on the Ford Owner Connection site. I looked under recalls, this is what it told me:
-"Vehicles Not Affected
-The vehicle(s) listed below are either
-not affected by or have already been repaired
-for the currently posted recalls."
Sounds like they already took care of my car then....at least for now.
later,
Gabe
here is a copy from the site , my car is affected.
>This web site feature is provided as a reference tool for our customers to inquire if their vehicle is involved in a specific safety or emissions recall. If you have received a first class notification letter or a postcard from Ford Motor Company about a recall, or if your vehicle is shown here as affected by recall, we encourage you to contact the service department of your Ford or Lincoln Mercury dealer. Your dealership will be able to determine if the necessary parts are available. If the dealer has the parts in stock, or if the dealership is able to order the parts for immediate delivery, we suggest that you schedule an appointment to have the recall work performed.
Affected Vehicles
One or more of your OwnerConnection registered vehicles has been identified as unrepaired in a posted safety or emission recall.* If you own other Ford Motor Company vehicles that are not registered with OwnerConnection and would like to check whether they may be affected, please register them here.
Affected Vehicle VIN Action
2000 Ford Focus (my vin number is listed here)see details (my car is affected)
Vehicles Not Affected
The vehicle(s) listed below are either not affected by or have already been repaired for the currently posted recalls.*
Vehicles Not Affected VIN
(if no vehiical is listed here than there is no car effected.)
While I was impressed by the ZX3, I wouldn't really call the Jetta "inferior" to it, especially the newer ones. They're just not the same league of car, but I don't mean to detract from your Focus at all. A VW is a poor man's Audi, while a Focus is a poor man's VW.
In fact, a friend of mine is looking for a new car, and I'm trying to steer her toward the ZX3. It is an amazing ride for the money.
For the record, I leased a 2000 Alero V6 coupe. I wanted to try a V6, and Volkswagen V6s have gotten horrifically expensive since 1996.
After comparing the two I felt both cars had great designs and would be fun to drive. I did have some concerns about VW reliability after reading some internet posts but can't say if that's accurate. While the new Jetta/Golf is clearly a significant engineering improvement over the older design and is great looking I didn't see it winning European Car of the Year. I chose the Focus not because it was cheaper but because I felt I was getting more overall and -bonus- it cost less. Besides, a German was a lead engineer on the Focus so they're brothers under the skin anyway
I can afford to own either a fully-loaded Jetta or a fully-loaded Focus. I did not settle for the Focus because it was 'within my price range' or anything. I went with a Focus because, IMHO, it's dynamically a much better car. Period.
I can only see three types of drivers who would be interested in a Jetta, especially a loaded one:
1) Drivers who are impressed with the styling.
2) Drivers who are devoted VW fans.
3) Drivers who need a car that says "Hey world! Look at me! I make enough money to be driving one of *these*!"
I guess what I'm trying to say is this... Just because it's the least expensive choice, it doesn't mean it's the poor-man's choice. In this case, I believe the least expensive car just so happens to be the best choice.
A few years ago...I was very intent on buying a 318TI because it was a cool size, had a hatchback and was almost reasonably priced for a BMW (base model). And hey some cache for a BMW is pretty cool too. I was disappointed that BMW North America dropped the 318TI.
Now, as a proud owner of a zx-3 with no regrets...I was wondering if any zx-3 owners out there ever have a friend or was a former owner of a 318TI care to voice an opinion. Does anyone see any kinship or similarity between the 2?
Both have a 4 cylinder DOHC engine (BMW is 137 HP), hatchback, quite short in length. I think there are a lot of similarities (on paper).
I am raising this topic to return some sanity to this string of responses. (Mind you...comparing a Focus to a ZX-3 may be less than sane...I agree) because I have enjoyed the ZX-3 topic and I would like it to remain fun and enjoyable to read people's excitement (and sometimes disappointment too). We all are sympathetic towards drebe17 and like tickbitty's enthusiasm and most excellent plans.
Anybody get a watch lately and what color. I don't mind those topics at all! Enjoy driving and spread the word that the ZX-3 is fun and affordable and surprisingly 'just right.!'
NorwayDoug
Mind you...comparing a
Focus to a ZX-3 may be less than sane...I agree
I wanted to say...
Comparing a 318TI to a ZX-3 may not be that sane
sorry about that.
ND