2000 Ford Focus SE 2.0

Summary:

Acceleration of a VTEC engine and dependability of a KIA

Faults:

When I bought this car I thought it was pretty good for the bucks.

Too bad, I had to change the CD player 3 times, front left tire 3 times, and brakes 2 times.

Oh, and did I mention the seatbelt 5 times??!!

This car is pretty sporty and has good acceleration even on the base model, but it's very undependable. It breaks down every couple of weeks thanks to the cheap Ford parts. The dealer offered no help whatsoever, so I called the Ford helpline and now Ford is sueing them for making me pay for stuff covered by the warranty.

Same with my dad's Lincoln LS, cheap mechanical parts inside the car and out, sure it looks great for the first 6 months, then you better get your wallets ready. If you're looking for dependability, try Honda or Acura. I bought the Acura 1.7EL and I love it, most importantly it doesn't breakdown.

General Comments:

- Good acceleration, but bad traction because of the tires.

- Very cheap and bad quality standard equipment and mechanical parts.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 20th August, 2001

2000 Ford Focus SE 8v split-port

Summary:

Best bang for your buck out there!!

Faults:

The only thing that went wrong is the trunk closing mechanism didn't retract fully preventing me from closing the trunk easily. A good slam would close it. The dealer replaced the defective part under warranty and now it works great! I leased the car with 19,000km on it initially and it is the best car I have ever owned :)

General Comments:

Some owner has posted a review on here complaining of a small boot (trunk) space. The Focus has a very decent trunk size for a compact car and what about the fold-down rear seats, just pop them down and you have a huge trunk!! Ever seen the trunk size of a Honda Civic or Toyota Echo, now those are tiny trunks!!!

The Focus won many Car of the Year awards because Ford finally got it right, great handling, huge interior room for a compact, great drivetrain and the best value in a compact car out there. Sure you can get a little sharper handling or more power from a Japanese manufacturer, but you will pay at least $3000 US more for that if not more, and is it necessary? Not in my opinion.

The Focus just plain works in every aspect for me, day in and day out. I never considered a Ford product before, the Contour was a joke, but I am totally pleased with my Focus and look forward to driving it everyday. There is nothing out there even close in its price range that can compete in terms of styling, handling, cabin size, comfort. The Toyota Echo looks like it was squashed between 2 trucks, too narrow and ugly. The Honda Civic is a fine product, but check out that price tag!! No thanks!! The rest of the compacts are either too expensive or lack styling, performance, or both... (GM products... Cavalier, ugh!!)

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 10th August, 2001

2000 Ford Focus ZTS

Summary:

Good car for the price

Faults:

Multiple recalls, but they are expected from a new model car.

Brakes needed to be totally re-done @ 15,000 miles. Not covered by warranty as a "wear" item. Not pleased.

General Comments:

All around a good car, but the brakes issue really bothers me. I would like to know if others have had the same problem.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know

Review Date: 2nd August, 2001

4th Oct 2001, 11:29

My brakes also went bad @ 20,000. Every brake shop suspected that maybe there's something else wrong because they thought that was too soon for brake work.

8th Oct 2002, 17:44

I had to bring my Focus in for wheel bearings and it has 33,000 miles on it. They told me that I need new brakes and rotors. Everyone I have talked to says that that doesn't make sense.