Mysterious leaks from under the dash when it rains.
Fit and finish is not the greatest, but this I've come to expect from any American manufacturer.
Wheel bearings in back tires went bad at 45,000 miles. Was covered under recall though...whew!
Brakes have squeaked badly from the very first day I bought the car. Continue to do so now.
Paint finish on passenger side door frame seems to be fading. Black turning gray.
Had a problem with battery leaking acid onto support platform underneath. Had to get various hoses underneath replaced and new battery due to acid leakage.
Rubber around windshield washers at top of hood hardened and are now starting to crumble away.
Rubber at base of antenna hardened and crumbled away exposing spring to the elements (it's now rusty...I'll have to replace the antenna soon).
All four doors make HORRIBLE "wrenching" sounds when opened and closed. Friends think this is highly amusing.
One of my fuses recently went... the one that controls the power locks and remote locking key fob. Interestingly enough, the fuse is located on the BACK of the fusebox. I laughed out loud at that one.
The driver side rear power window sometimes goes up... and sometimes doesn't. Although lately it's been playing nice with me.
The switch that controls the speed of the air conditioning fan is starting to go...it's hard to turn smoothly, and is rubbing the black paint behind it off.
The driver side seat has a larger gap between the back cushion and the seat cushion. You can see straight through it to the rear passenger floor. Not so on the passenger side. Weird.
The shocks or struts are starting to go, and the car makes some strange noises when turning. Especially to the right.
The radio turns off and on by itself. You have to push on the front control panel to get it to come back on. The lights behind the preset numbers don't always work.
The lights behind the LED odometer have an uneven appearance... some dark splotches. You'd have to see it to believe it. Also very weird.
The power train on this car, however, is top notch. The five speed manual transmission shifts effortlessly, and accelerates nicely.
The handling is delightful. Steering is precise and quick, and the turning radius is great!
I average 25-30 mpg. Not bad.
The seats are comfortable and bolster your back nicely.
There's plenty of headroom and overall room for rear passengers.
The trunk has lots of space.
Overall:
Actually a decent car where none of the aforementioned problems have overwhelmed me at one time. I bought this car used from a local Ford dealer in the summer of 2001...I had no idea it was a first model year. I learned after buying the car was owned by a single mother who traded in the car after completing MASSIVE recall work. The printout of recall work is literally as long as my body (I'm six feet tall). As of right now, I'm crossing my fingers till I've got the car paid off in July of 2006 (7 months). As I mentioned before, most of the problems attributed to this car haven't prevented me from using it as a daily driver, but scare the hell out of me. When I do trade it in, you better believe it won't be on another Ford product (not even a Mustang or Ford pickup... the only two vehicles I'm convinced Ford builds well). I'd warn away any prospective buyers... even on the 2005, 2006 models (to which Consumer Reports has finally awarded a "good quality" rating).
Note: Review updated in January 2008.
The leaks into the passenger side floorboard are a design flaw. A friend of mine looked up the diagram when mine had the same trouble during heavy rainstorms. Something that's supposed to divert the water overflows into the floorboard. It apparently hasn't been corrected yet for newer models.
Put WD-40 on the door hinges to stop them squeaking. It won't fix it forever, but it will work for a while.
My brakes also have always squealed, especially when it's damp out. I think it's amusing that my car "sings in the rain."
I haven't had the other issues with my car.
Thanks for responding. I'll give the WD-40 a try, but I think I'm going to "re-grease" each and every door... looking for a long term solution here. I've just been lazy about fixing this particular problem. Glad to hear you haven't had any of the other problems I've mentioned. 5 more months to go and this puppy is officially paid off (and perhaps I'll use some of the monthly payment money to fix a few niggling faults).
Update, March/2006: Recently received my car back from a week at Ford service. Fixed: One fuel pump replaced under recall (a recall I never received notice of... thanks Ford). Two sensors of some type or the other. And one actuator (controls the power locks and keyfob remote). It's great to have remote locks again... I dreadfully missed them. Acting up: For some reason, the interior light is on the fritz and not working. Sometimes it works, most of the time it doesn't. Oh well...I'm just glad I can drive my car again. Four more months til she's paid off. Cross your fingers.
Recently brought my car in to Sears Auto in Orlando to see about what I thought was an alignment problem. Turns out, it was just a tire with the tread coming away from the tire itself (I'll have a talk with my local tire joint about this...doesn't seem normal). One problem that isn't Ford's fault. Mileage: 73,000.
Update: Just got my Focus back from the dealership. Was driving to work when I noticed my engine fan was running, so I glanced down to find my engine was running VERY hot (nearly in the red). Made it to work without warping anything (thank God for small miracles). Had it towed to dealership, where the problem was found to be a bad thermostat unit. The unit was replaced (cost: $212.000...but would have been $480.00 if not for my third party extended warranty... labor alone was $300.00...Ford gets $92.00 per hour for labor... I should have been a mechanic). So, I'm back on the road again. Mileage: 74,398.
Does anyone know anything about the front struts being recalled at all?When I turn left it makes a horrible noise like the spring is rubbing up against something. Also my emissions system light just went on.. what could be wrong with that??
I'm the writer of this review, and to date I've heard of no recalls for this particular problem. Do you drive a 2000? I'd take your car into Ford for the emissions warning... it could be something more serious.
Ford Focus 2000, worst lemon I have ever had. Does anybody know about class action suit against this trash factory? My car has died about 200 times and is not driveable on the highway.
This is my last Ford ever. Had a Thunderbird, that one broke crankshaft 2 times in less than a year. Then a Cougar - had to replace both head gaskets and have the cylinder heads welded to fill up missing material in both the cyliinder heads that should never have been fitted into any car.
NEVER A FORD AGAIN.
Hate to tell the above poster, but the Ford Focus is NOT one of the worst cars ever built. But neither is it one of the best. Because the first model wasn't screwed together all that well, you'll get your fair share of problems. And while these problems will drive you crazy once or twice, they don't all overwhelm you at once. You just fix them and move on. Not all Fords are bad autos... the Explorer is an excellent vehicle, and Ford makes great trucks while its Mustangs are tough cars. My brother drives a 1996 Ford Mustang V-6 (3.8) with over 130,000 miles, and besides replacing the clutch (this may be due to his heavy foot just the same), this car is running great.
PS--I wrote the original review. Total miles on my Focus: 78,599. Recent repairs: Battery cable loose where it inserts into engine. Cost to fix: One half hour labor $37.50.
PPS--Ford also replaced, for free, my battery... which was leaking acid from the positive terminal. The battery was a under 3 year free replacement warranty.
The same issues you have with your Focus I've had with mine.
About 1 year after purchasing the car, the brakes went out.
2 years - back doors jammed, would not open from the inside or outside, key-less entry would not lock the doors, and the trunk would not open. I had to replace the locking modules (actuators in all doors and trunk along with all fuses).
Just the other day I turned into a parking lot to park, and the car mysteriously cut off by itself (not the first time - no one could ever find anything wrong). It would not start up and when it did, it made a really loud grumbling sound (kinda like it was knocking). A mechanic checked the car and mysteriously found that something had "eaten away or beat up" my spark plugs, that were just replaced no too long ago.
The car is still is not running. I bought this car brand new, I'm the only owner and up until now, the other little issues were nothing major and the car has been good to me. Lasted from age 18 until 24, and all through college, and what a college kid goes through!! :)
"The driver side seat has a larger gap between the back cushion and the seat cushion. You can see straight through it to the rear passenger floor. Not so on the passenger side. Weird"
My Focus had a crank in the front of the seat that allowed you to move the seat part up and down. Could this be the problem?
I had to replace my shocks/struts as well (not sure on the mileage).
My ignition case also died on me and had to be replaced (over $300 and I had JUST paid the car off. Maddening).
I had many issues with the transmition carriage.
After having no problems for about 9 months, I finally convinced my husband that it was time to buy a Honda so we sold the Focus. I won't buy another, either.
I have a current problem that I am experiencing with my 2000 Ford Focus ZX3. It has very low mileage 73000km. Just recently, my power locks and trunk release stopped working. Furthermore, my remote does not lock or unlock doors or the trunk. To make matters worse, my keys will only unlock the passenger side door. The worst thing was that my driver's side door won't open from the inside. I have been climbing over my center console to get out from the passenger's side. I replaced the fuse #63, which oddly enough is on the back of the fuse panel... duhhh. I replaced the old 20 amp with a new 20amp. I wonder if I should use a 25amp fuse? Any comments? Anyway, once I replace the fuse, everything except the driver's side door works fine... trunk release, remotes all power locks work fine etc. After I start the car, and try the power locks or trunk release, the fuse goes again. I replaced the fuse again with the same results. Has anyone had this experience? I don't know if this the right place to pose this question, but I am my wits end. I read some people had to replace the actuator. Was that an expensive job? Thanks everyone.
In repsonse to the comment about different gaps in the seats, does the drivers seat not come with an electrically adjustable seat height button. This raises and lowers the base of the drivers seat to meet your requirements. On UK models, this button is located on the lower part of the front of the seat.
Hi, I'm the writer of the initial review.
Since getting my power door locks fixed (under warranty thankfully) I've since noticed some weird glitches here and there. If I unlock the door with my key and begin to get into the car, before the door's closed (or sometimes just after it's closed), the door locks will lock automatically. This is before the car's started moving. I can only attribute this to whatever Ford did during the initial repairs.
I've since paid off my Focus as of August, and I plan on keeping her as long as she remains viable.
(A side note: I recently (September) took a piece of flying wood to the windshield while on the Turnpike. I've decided to rename my Focus "Christine", after the Stephen King novel).
Current mileage: 81,471.
I have a 2000 Ford Focus LS, and the Trunk lock will not open. I'm annoyed with the fact that the seat releases are in the trunk on the sedan. I would like to get some advice on the trunk issue if possible.