Faults:

After 82000 miles together I can report that the car has been very reliable with only slight niggles to report.

The petrol gauge doesn't always register on very cold mornings.

The rear number plate lamps seem to be very prone to internal corrosion and have been replaced three times.

The front end does seem suffer from a lot of stone chips.

The traction control is a real nuisance when trying to make fast getaways.

General Comments:

The car is surprisingly quick for a 1.6. On a quiet stretch of continental motorway it managed to reach (and maintain) 127mph with three adults, two children and a boot full of luggage. This is well in excess of Fords quoted top speed.

Economy is very good with over 40mpg easily attainable on motorway journeys.

Handling is excellent.

Braking (with ABS) is also excellent.

Tyre wear has been low. It is only just on its third set of front tyres.

The air conditioning seems to take very little power from the engine.

Faults:

Driver's electric window stopped working.

Knocking sound from inside the dashboard.

Intermittent squeak from rear seat-belt housing.

Exhaust rasping under acceleration.

Steering wheel not correctly aligned with driving wheels, when steering wheel dead-centre car moves to left.

General Comments:

Nice styling.

Lots of interior space and comfortable place to be.

Great steering and handling.

2.0 engine rougher and less rev-happy than 1.4 in previous 1996 Fiesta.

After owning for two weeks build quality is not instilling confidence.

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

With its superb interior and handling it is great to drive, although it does lack slightly in power for a car of its engine size.

All round a very nice car and would buy another.

Faults:

Persistent rattling of the tailgate also under the car at the rear.

Knocking on the driver's side front wheel when cornering at low speed.

General Comments:

This a poor car! It is noisy with poor build quality and appalling fuel consumption. I'll buy German next time!

Faults:

Tailgate remote release operated by itself while driving, motors replaced.

Car recalled by the manufacturer twice.

General Comments:

Car corners and brakes well.

The engine is gutless, needs to be in 3rd gear to overtake.

Faults:

When I picked the car up from the dealership it had a steering fault - the steering servo had gone and it was leaking steering fluid.

It had three sets of brakes in the first three months to prevent the steering wheel shaking violently when breaking at around 60mph.

The driver's side front window dropped inside the door and smashed when I put it down.

It has had four leaks in the passenger side footwell which effected the electrics.

General Comments:

Although I've had a whole catalogue of problems with the car, I still love it. Driving it is great fun, it's fast and handles superbly for a fairly big car.

The biggest complaint I have is with the dealership, they are awful.

That said, I'll be buying another Ford in March, probably the Fiesta Zetec-S. I'm dying to see how the 1.6 Focus engine fairs in a smaller car!!