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Ford Focus Hatchback ZX3 - Part XIV
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Florida is treating me great, job is goin well, and the weather is finally cooling off a bit which is a nice treat... my thick northern blood bakes under the Florida sun.
One thing I have noticed with my Z is the tremendous power hit that the car takes while using the A/C... in mine it/s almost like i have to use my AC switch as a turbo... crank it off while jumping on the highway, then putting it back on after i get up to speed. Anyone else notice this?
anyways, happy driving all...
NJ
New 2.4l 4 cyl. should be around 145hp, while being more economic, quieter, smoother and lighter than our 2.0l zetec.
Maybe Ford should wait with Focus premiere in America and bring it on in 2002/2003 with new engine?
I've said it earlier, I'll trade-in if there will be a new Focus with better engine.
njzx3, enjoy your florida's turbo edition (low 50's tonight and cool weather ahead for you in the next few days). I must agree with you, A/C in focus is a power sucker. New engine should make a significant improvement in that area.
Are you considering trade-in for 2002 or 2003 with a better engine?
vadp, I know that your frustration will go away if ford will fix it. I wish you luck and better service department.
what engine are you talking about?
I suspect it's the engine in just released Mondeo.
But that one is a 2.0 liter one.
http://www.ford.co.uk/newmondeo/news/news-story1.html
Mean no offence to anyone.
Ford/Blue Oval/Focus forums, I forgot which forum it was, though.
It sounded very promising.
"Focus gets "tricked out" with new Limited Street Edition".
http://www.blueovalnews.com/
European Ford vehicles have been using 5w20 oil for at least a year. It provides better fuel economy and they have 10,000 mile oil change intervals. I believe Ford will be using 5w20 in all North American vehicles and increasing the oil change interval by 2002.
Don't expect to ever see the new Mondeo in the USA. I have read a few quotes from Ford execs who say the Mondeo will not be coming over here. If it does it may be badged as a Mercury.
air intake and throttle assembly is different on the 2 z"s. also, you are
right-on about the a/c sucking power. with the zx2 it is barely a
noticable difference.the zx2 zetec appears to be gutsier and a smoother
performer. i believe they were not built in mexico.
on the issue of sourced parts,i maintain there is a question of quality
of the mexican sourced parts.i have stated this many times previously
and i had concerns about that issue before making my purchase.i was hoping that doubts were to be proven wrong.also, on the brake squealing
it will probably come out later that there is a problem with pre-mature warping of rotors. again cheap begets cheap. do i like the
z ? sure. presently, i can overlook the nuisance problems and quirks.
safety issues and long term reliabilty is a whole other matter of consideration. thankfully,we have each other here to air out our gripes,
likes + dislikes. the z is a cool car in search of a little more refinement
in a couple of key areas. heres hoping that ford will step-up to the plate
and do what needs to be done to make it right.
Here are the two problems I'm having:
1. The Kona roofrack scratches the trunk when it is opened. Poor design! How come no one else has mentioned this? Nothing on the rack or trunk is adjustable so why me? I can live with this though, bought some rubber pads and the dealer provided me with touchup paint.
2. Mileage, my manual transmission car may only have 1200 miles on it but I've never hit over 21 mpg, and there is city and freeway driving in there. Any suggestions? Does it require a longer break-in period or should I be concerned about this now?
Please help... I'm a poor student who had a dream of owning a new car. I saved up money over the years and bought a Focus. I love the sucker dearly and I want things to work out.
I am glad I've got the A/C today, what with the SF Bay Area getting its first rains in quite a few months. But, for fuel economy's sake I try and keep the A/C off as much as possible.
I was intrigued by the "Street Edition" Focus mentioned in the BlueOval News, mostly by the availability of the 6-Disc in-dash changer. I'm forever swapping CD's in-and-out. Would love to get a changer installed, provided the style flows with the existing facia. A chrome exhaust tip could polish off my rear end, too (as-it-were!).
treva
Not offensive. Most of us educated in US do not use proper English, my self included. Thought I use to, but today I know better. Sorry to say that, but it's true.
Pat
Michman,
Thanks for the info on the 5W-20 weight oil. Most interesting. Wonder where one can buy it. Synthetic might be okay as it will stand up to the heat better than dino.
Pat
http://www.discussion-board.com/clubfocus/
confirms recall. parts are not readily available. they are offering a 3
day free loaner. what if parts take 2to3 weeks? who knows? these
clowns are clueless! im calling ford,ill report back.
The fuel economy gain for 5w-20 is minimal, but it is a cheap way for Ford to increase their CAFE numbers.
I would like to know more about the stumbling. Is the A/C on? Does it feel like the A/C clutch is kicking in? Does it stumble upon initial tip-in, or while cruising?
Now here is how i see things from my perspective, I have a problem with my A/C not being cold. Clutch noise and some kind of engine noise. Brake dust and alot more that i posted earlier on.
Now knowing others have the exact same problems and i have LOTS of warranty left, why would i allow myself to get overly excited about them?
Ford will NOTICE at some time and date that these are valid concerns to NEW Ford owners and address these issues with their Dealerships.
If they don't?
We are a small forum here. BUT with the advant of the InterNet we have a voice that can be heard.
Trust me on this.
Keep notes and receipts. A Diary of your gas fill ups and mileage when problems occured.
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Now off topic?
I bought this Scotch Guard in a can (with a 50% free can added) and after testing on a small hidden patch applied it to the front seats and oversprayed all the plastic to boot
Was worried that i left drips/blobs in a few spots but when i hopped in the car to leave for work i forgot to check how it came out.
This stuff is GREAT! Just spray on and it's done. Might try a bead test with a small amount of water to see how well it works but my fear of spraying it on was not worth it.
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Krown (Canada) gave me a 'cash or cheque' quote of $90 Beaver Bucks plus tax to undercoat the ZXer. Taking it in on Thursday.
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Hey let's keep the grief comming but never forget that this is still a very nice avant garde automobile.
With respect,
Whyford?
Thanks for the heads up.
W,
You guys are great support in times of feeling down. Thanks!!!!
Once again, going back to my experience working at a dealer...they charged over $500 for undercoating and rust proofing, when it actually cost the dealer LESS than $100 "do the work"...AND once the rust proofing and undercoating was done by the dealer it voided the manufacture's corrosion warrenty. So, say in 4 years you have a problem with the boyd paint, the manufacturer is not responsible, and the dealer won't do anything either....
Save your money.
But now they have a reformulated version out. I bought a can when I got my ZX3. I also had an old left over 1/2 can that had been in the basement since my last car was new. I applied both cans and there is a big difference. The old stuff was more like a quick evaporating chemical (you could get high spraying it) while the new stuff seemed to be water based and not nearly as much fun to apply. It will be interesting to see if I can tell later which side is which.
The A/C doesn't seem as cold because it always comes on with a default setting of bringing in outside air. On a hot day this can be a good thing since it helps purge the hot air from inside the car quicker. Rolling the windows down for the first minute or two will help even more. After the system starts working though the addition of hot outside air reduces the system's effectivness. So once the A/C starts cooling, hit the recirculate button to make the system recirculate the inside air only. Pretty soon it should be cold enough to make your glasses fog up when you step outside.
As a rule, when driving at highway speeds, the difference between the increased drag of rolled down windows and the load from an A/C compressor are a wash. In many cases the rolled down windows are actually more of a drag then the A/C. You may get actually get better milage on the highway with the A/C running! I find the difference to be too minor to care about.
Keeping the windows up also goes a long way towards "fixing" those rattles and other noises I keep reading about here. That and cranking up the radio.
"Keeping the windows up also goes a long way
towards "fixing" those rattles and other noises"
O, really?
Just keep the windows up and forget about those abnormal noises?
Such an easy way to solve the numerous problems, John.
BTW, Ford would definitely benefit from the customers like you, sir.
Fortunately I'm either lucky (not usually though) or less critical. I can make my brakes creak a bit if I apply just the right amount of pressure at slow speeds. I wouldn't consider that to be a problem though. When I drive next to a wall, like a concrete divider, with the window down I hear some rattling. But I've never owned a car that didn't make strange noises under similar conditions. I admit it would be nice to have something that only purrs. I guess I should buy an Oldsmobile next time. Or a BMW - but the zinker isn't in that price class and I don't expect it to behave as if it were.
I don't mean to make light of anyone's problems. I realize some (many?) have real problems with their cars and deserve better.
pound foolish. either that or they are content with trading x amount
of lives for x amount of dollars spent. cost/risk/benefit factor. what
a damm shame to blow it on a potentially fine car such as the z. im getting ready to trade as soon as recall is done.im upset because the
value is going to depreciate in light of all the recent recalls.in regard
to noises - there are rattles present with windows up . there is also a
genuine problem with warped rotors as well.i will take my loss now
and consider it a hard lesson learned. i dont plan on waiting for additional recalls,this has been plenty.whats next?
joke. ive witnessed it first hand. what a rip-off.
make strange noises under similar conditions."
jwkessler1,
Well, i don't know what kind of the cars you drove before, all I can say that I've never owned a car that made similarly strange noises under similar conditions.
I'm not gonna go through the names of all of the junk I was priviledged to drive. I still own the 3-cylinder Chevy Sprint with 252K on odometer. And that thing doesn't make a lot of abnormal drivetrain noises.
There is something very wrong with the MTX 75 design. Did Ford save a couple of bucks on the tranny in order to give us fog lights as standard equipment?. I don't know. I would happily trade the lights plus the steering wheel leather among with the aluminium wheels for the properly functioning tranny/clutch assembly.
Maybe it's just me.
zx3beast,
I don't know what to say. The things don't look too good. The lesson will be learned. If you are serious about the trading the thing in please let us know about your experience. Wish you luck.
I said, "ok, then I'm not driving this car off
the lot now...I want a loaner til it's fixed." He said he couldn't authorize that, and I said to find someone who could. In ten minutes, I had a loaner...but when I asked if I'd have it for a week, he said, "No, the parts are local...so it should be fixed tomorrow." ? ? ? All of a sudden, when they had to pay for a rental car, it'll take one day, instead of a week. That in itself makes me worried. What exactly are they going to DO to "fix" it in one day now? First thing tomorrow, I'm calling the general manager, and explain all this, so that I can be guaranteed that everything will be repaired properly, and that my wheel WON'T fall off, when I'm tooling down the 101 at 75mph!!! Or, I want a NEW, 2001 ZX3, same color and goodies, at no add'l charge.
If you want to be the first kid on the block with the latest car, you had better expect to be the lab rat. Sorry guys but that's life.
Now if only I could get my 8 track installed.
radvlik
dvasher@online.emich.edu
I cancelled my appointment for the rustproofing. I have a couple of things that confuse me though and the first one is the Ford dealer offered me a Rustproofing/Scotch Guard/paint protection package, so it's okay for the Ford dealer but not an outside Company?
I read through the white owners manual and didn't notice anything in it about rustproofing voiding and warranty.
If zgrrrl worked at a dealer and that's the way it is...then that's the way it is i guess.
Just thought for peace of mind and only $90.00 it was worth it. I called Krown and told them what i heard and they said they never heard of such a thing and told me theirs was petroleum based whatever that meant. Oil?
Anyhow thanks for the heads up.
W,
zx3beast maybe a young first time buyer of an automobile and gets nervous about recalls.
Heck i am 42 years old and this is my first new car. I was worried but after driving the car for four months i kinda bonded to it. I played with the trading it in scenario many times but i really do like the car.
Does it start every day? YES
Wish the remote door opener activated way before i had my keys ready to open the door though.
Heck i know of MANY types of new vehicles that people i know are having problems with.
Mine will be paid off in about two months....
Not sure if the financings make things larger than they truely are?
Heck i owed more on used sports cars than what i paid for my ZX-3.
Nuff said and i hope i made sense.
W,