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Comments
The Euro market ZX3s incorporate a backup light, as well as rear fog lamps in the rear bumper. These were probably eliminated in the US due to insurance concerns / replacement costs (my guess).
I just had the exact same problem with my '94 Ranger. They had to bleed the brake line in order for the lights to go off.
I can't remember if they were auto or stick.
With my auto tracer going up a long highway entrance ramp, I had to turn off the air conditioner some times. The auto Focus had plenty of power for me. I had the seat cranked up to the max. I found myself looking over the top of some cars in front of me (neat feeling). I had never seen any pictures of how the rear hatch opened. There is a little well in the trunk, maybe 4 or 5 inches. I was afraid the bottom of the hatch was flush with the floor of the trunk. Open the hatch and your stuff would roll out on the ground. I wish the Focus had an inside fuel door release. I know you can pry those doors open with a screwdriver. But you'd probably know someone did it. Anyone thinking about getting an aftermarket
locking gas cap. I checked out the power windows and tilt steering on a sedan and want both options. I thought the ZX3 felt really tight and sure footed. It took 10 or 20 minutes getting used to sitting so high. I ran over bumps, I could hear them, outside(like it was the car next to me ran over the bump) but not through the car. I was sold. I'll put my order in as soon as all the options are available.
The 2.0 liter zetec motor provides good low end torque and is smooth and quiet. I wish I could get that performance upgrade offered in the ZX2 S/R. It has 140hp and 205/55R 15. It would have been nice if Ford made those options standard on the ZX3.
Does anyone know if the factor will provide ZX3 owners with that chip?
What is your experience with driving the new ZX3?
In addition to transport holdups (which seem to be common everywhere) I'm sure you've heard about the preproduction recalls that stopped some of the production lines for a while.
I tried everything to get mine sooner, but Ford's customer assistance center is less than useless. I just had to bear it. (For a long-winded diatribe on my buying experience, look for my post titled "Diary of a Ford Buyer" a few weeks back in the station wagons topic.)
Finally picked mine up last night, an SE wagon in autumn orange. Have driven all of six miles on it so far, but think I'm going to be very, very happy with it.
Good luck on your purchase; it will be worth the wait.
well our zx3 is still awaiting a left front fender thanks to rudolf the dead [non-permissible content removed] reindeer! the hood and bumper are in as well as grill, lights and radiator supports. while it is in the bodyshop having the repairs done we may just have some customized paint done. can anyone give me any good links to where we could view some custom paint jobs? what the hell the whole front end needs painted anyway... might as well get started. thanks...and a happy and SAFE new year to all!
Here is a major problem our dealership faces on an hourly bases:
We are having trouble geting Beetles with CD players and Aluminum wheels because VW wants us to sell more Jettas and put a stop sale on stocked Beetle orders. Of course everybody gets upset by this. The customer would have to wait a couple of weeks and pay more (service wants money to install it and parts has to pay for this stuff), the sales person can't negotiate a price and can't get aa sale for a couple of weeks till the part comes in, service doesn't work for free and they can't do anything till the part comes in. Parts has to pay for it and get sick reminding everybody everyday that the part is on back order and they have no clue when it is coming or if it works (we frequently get new parts that don't work or are damaged or the catalog gave us the wrong part or the mechanic gave us the wrong info or the wrong part is in the box or we were shorted and have to order another one ect.). This goes for all vehicals and their accessories (i.e. Ford floor mats are one of the worst). The customer gets upset and calls customer service which calls the dealership wondering why we haven't done anything (dealerships for thee most part are not owned by the car company) and we say the part is on back order.
The dealership gets a negative rateing because the customer is upset, which gets the dealership upset especially if the customer no longer wants the part (accessories form Ford are non returnable and the parts departments hate sucking up parts that nobody wants).
The moral of the story is:
Know what you want and know where to get it.
If you don't like the car on the lot, order what you want.
If you are touchy about something (people keep hearing rattles when they are driving on the worst roads in the state and then blame service even though there is nothing service can do), buy a Honda (of course you will be paying through the nose).
Never call customer service because of backordered parts. They won't help (they know the part is on backorder and everyone just has to wait because companies like Ford outsource their stuff so somebody else makes the part and Ford has no direct access to these people (neither do the dealerships). Since you called to complain (that's how customer service sees it) the dealership gets a nasty call. The same goes with unfixable problems (like road noise), stuff that doesn't exist (there are serveral people here that expect our dealership to know how to modify vehicals, especially in the area of transplanting an engine or transmission from one kind of vehical to another).
Thanks for any reply.
PROJECT ZX3..SORRY TO HEAR YOU'RE CAR IS STILL IN THE SHOP. BY THE WAY ...I DID RAISED H.. IN THEIR PLACE. RELENTLESSLY CALLING THEM EVERY SINGLE DAY SINCE THE PROMISED DATE, EARLY DECEMBER. I WAS THE BIGGEST PAIN ON THEIR BUTT AND VERY MUCH VICE VERSA BECAUSE OF BROKEN PROMISES. ANYWAY I WAS TOLD I SHOULD BE ABLE TO GET IT TOMORROW(I HOPE)
THEN I'LL CALL IN SICK ON TUESDAY TO HAVE FUN WITH MY ZX3(HEHEHEHE). I'LL KEEP U GUYS UPDATED OF MY FIRST DATE WITH MY BABY..AND HER NAME IS FOCUS.
(I GUESS I'M GETTING CRAZY)
Will write more later...gotta look at it some more!
Anyway here's the info i need...DOES ANYBODY HERE CAN FOLD THEIR SIDE MIRRORS? BEC I THOUGHT THAT'S HOW I COMES WITH. secondly, IS YOUR INDOOR CEILING LAMP LOCATED BY THE FRONT AREA ONLY OR ARE THERE SUPPOSE TO BE TWO.
OH YEAH...ONE THING THATS BOTHERING...I DIDN'T NOTICE UNTIL I DROVE MY CAR AWAY...IT ALREADY HAS 50 MILES ON IT...WHAT DO YOU GUYS/LADIES THINK?
i'm so happy you finally got your zx3! 50 miles...maybe you raised so much hell the dealership went out and drove it to thier lot instead of waiting for a transport! haha! i wouldn't worry about it..mine had 20 on it. i didn't really have the car long enough to notice any of the features you question. but i did notice one thing on mine...my zx3 doesn't have the lock out latch/knob to go to reverse on the shifter. does yours? i know the one i test drove did. can anyone elaborate on that? on another note... i drove up to my dealership bodyshop and our zx3 is still sitting in the same spot. i could just die. still waiting on parts. i can only imagine how protracted this wait is going to be as it's hard enough to get the car delivered. everyone please say a prayer for us. it can't hurt and we sure would appreciate it.
2) Only one dome light in front
3) When I picked up my car all the papers I said the car had 34 miles on it. When I sat down I noticed 236 miles. And since it had taken over 2 hours to take delivery I was not going to go back to redo the paperwork. I assume the dealer got it with 34 miles and others test drove it before me. Thats what you get buying of the lot.
Anyone know what their state law is that defines when a car is called a "demo" after so many miles?
UNTIL THEN, THANX FOR THE INFOS
I HAVE A FEELING THAT THEY'RE NOT GOING TO FIND THE OTHER KEY. WHERE ELSE COULD IT BE? THEY GOT THE CAR WITH 2 KEYS AND ONLY ONE WAS FOUND WHEN I PICKED UP THE CAR. THEY BETTER FIND IT BECAUSE IM NOT PLANNING TO SHELL OUT 100 DOLLARS FOR THERE MISTAKE AND THE INCONVENIENCE OF HAVING MY CAR REPROGRAM.
THAT'S ANOTHER WAITING. WHAT'S GOING ON WITH THIS PEOPLE. IT'S NOT LIKE THEY'RE SELLING A BUTTON UP SHIRT THAT IF YOU LOSE ONE BUTTON ANOTHER CAN JUST BE SEWN. WE'LL THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THE CAR .THE GLITCH IS WITH THE DEALER.
I wonder how these will hold up after lots of miles - seems like they wouldn't be all that strong and long lasting.
& look at how they weathered???????
I got my twilight blue ZX3 on Dec 22nd, and have about 3800 miles on it now. Need to go in for an oilchange soon. Great car, handles awesome, and was very comfortable on a 3500 mile trip.
Mileage was on the low side, close to 29-30mpg for mostly highway driving. The advertised mileage is 34 on the highway.
Like everyone else, I hear loud noises from the front right wheel, and both rear wheels when driving thru puddles. Strange, but it does not seem to come from the front driver side wheel.
I'd like to use some deadening material to reduce the noise from the engine.. sounds rather agricultural at low speeds.
Overall, its great value for money, very comfortable ride.
http://www.detnews.com/autosweekly/0001/05/talk/talk.htm
I'm interested in the pros and cons of buying new as opposed to buying used.
Any thoughts?
Focus Dec Sales: 20,281
Focus Year To Date 55,846
Pretty cool!
By the way - you can search their images database to find several cool foci pictures. I found a Twilight blue pic that has pretty much sold me on that color.
As far as buying new as opposed to used, I say buy new. When you buy a used car, you have bought someone elses driving habits, maintenance habits, etc. Since you are buying a two year old car, it was probably a lease car. People tend not to take as good of care of their cars when they know they are turning them in in just two years. Also, you will probably have to buy an extended warranty from the dealership, just to make sure you don't run into unexpected repair costs. Even then, you may not be covered as well as you would like.
When you buy new, you get the full factory warranty. You take care of the car the way you want to. You can also learn the "personality" of your vehicle. Of course, it does cost more to buy new.
That's all for now.
1. prop up that side of the car, remove wheel& clean all the dirt & muck in the well..yes I have even used scrubb brushes & my hands to "feel" out any loose material in the well.
2. let dry throughly..this makes it easier to apply & also it will stick better!
3. wrap up, with some newspaper & tape all the suspension components, & brakelines.. cover it so you can spray around them to get full coverage of the well.
4.Shake well, & start spraying! Start with a light coat first..until you got all the area covered..then use the rest to double up on the thickness.
This coating will dry & then also deaden the sound from the outside to the inside. I have also used this very successfully to the inside as well. (under the carpet & trunk area etc..) this will seriously kill alot of anynoise as well as make your stock stereo system a bit more responsive,,esp. in the bass area!
Good luck. ps i will be doing my entire zx-3 when I get it so Ill let you know how much overall db it lowers!
Click Current Products , and you'll see Focus over on the right. 60 images in all.
The twilight blue is the 7th one down.
Enjoy!
Happy Motoring,
NorwayDoug (I think I have to change my name now that I live in the USA again!)
new. When you buy a used car, you have bought
someone elses driving habits, maintenance habits,
etc. Since you are buying a two year old car, it
was probably a lease car. People tend not to take
as good of care of their cars when they know they
are turning them in in just two years. Also, you
will probably have to buy an extended warranty from
the dealership, just to make sure you don't run
into unexpected repair costs. Even then, you may
not be covered as well as you would like.
When you buy new, you get the full factory
warranty. You take care of the car the way you
want to. You can also learn the "personality" of
your vehicle. Of course, it does cost more to buy
new."
Well, the Focus only has a three year warranty. If you finance for five years you are going to have to purchase an extended warranty anyway??
I did all the above with good results. I purchased used,off lease,and got an extended warranty. Never had a problem.
But, I agree with you, it is a crap shoot buying used. Don't misunderstand me, I want to purchase this auto. But, already I see there are going to be options available next month that are not available now. Also, rumors of a six cylinder engine next year??