Ford Focus 1.8 Zetec v 1.8 TDCI both MY08, which one ?
 

I need a run around for maybe around 6mths, i've been looking at the Ford Focus.

I'm not familiar with the Focus engines, which would be the better out of the 1.8 Zetec petrol or the 1.8 Zetec TDCi which is the diesel version, both are on an 08 plate.

Is their any reduction in road tax for the diesel ?

The only thing that slightly puts me of the TDCi slightly is it's a turbo and that's one more thing that can go wrong but the couple of reviews i've found say it's a good engine.

I've changed the originally thread from a 1.6 to the 1.8 version as the 1.6 will probably be a bit under powered.

Don't know what year, but there is a 1.6 Focus diesel engine that is famously unreliable IIRC.

I've got a mint seat Leon 53plate 1.9 tdi with 106k on the clock always maintained regardless with mot till next July for £900 very reliable get in and go if you wNt a cheap runabout that'll get you anywhere in the uk:thumb:

Short miles = Petrol

Long miles = Diesel

The 1.6 petrol has no Torque at all, so be prepared to rev the nuts off it just to overtake anything

Second hand diesels? No thanks, unreliable sh!te, they CANNOT keep up with emissions regs, and the technology supposed to do so, fails, expensively. Trust me.

I've took into aacount what you said and have changed the thread title to the 1.8 versions, couldn't be doing with having nothing on the foot pedal to over take.

Are 2nd hand diesels that bad, didn't realise that, are they all that bad ?. So you could be inheriting problems ?

Neither. Mk2 focus wasn't as well built compared to the mk1 or mk3.

1.8 diesel is fine; its our old 1980's friend but with a better turbo and common rail. So long as it's had the lower chain/wet belt changed; a lot of garages just change the upper cambelt. If it fails while driving it will smash pistons and bend the conrods. That, the cam sensor and the dual mass flywheel are the only real issues these commonly suffer.

Petrol suffers from water leaking into the spark plug wells...usually a failed core plug in the cylinder head.[Or rainwater dripping through the washer nozzles. Oh and head gaskets although the 1.6 is worse for that. Coolant leaks usually cause that. The solonoid for the swirl flaps also pack in making the power delivery "lumpy".

And IIRC both have the 5speed gearbox which hampers motorway fuel economy.


Oh, and make sure the bonnet opens....quality lock design. And harder to get round than the older model without smashing apart the mechanism

Ali, thanks for that detailed reply, it's appreciated.

I didn't realise that the Focus had so many issues, mainly on the petrol engines. So if you wanted to play as safe as you could with a used Focus would the 1.8 TDCi be the better option based on what you have said, what about the 1.6 TDCi ?

Most of my runs would be fairly short and obviously a petrol engine is better on shorter trips, it's just the amount of problems the petrol engines seem to have would put me off.

I've never had a diesel before, would it be ok on mainly shorter runs, using it to go to work etc

In short, for short runs, petrol.
Look at Seat Ibiza.

Its a toughie this, because your asking about a used 8 year old car. If its been parked over wet grass or used in wetter parts of the country, the engine choice not biggest of your worries.

Both petrol and diesel models have their faults, regardless of maintenance; Its always worth checking the pollen filter on these model as the fuse box is in the way so its often left to clog up, burning out the heater resistor. Its a good indication of how cared for the car is.

1.6 diesel should be avoided as they basically have zero tolerance to the wrong oil and/or poor maintenance...they "can" be good for 200,000 miles. BUT die much earlier if neglected or used in the city (lowest record for me is 40,000 miles). So at this age with unknown history, the odds are against you.

1.8diesel...if its a model without a DPF, which If I remember right, the focus 1.8TDCi doesn't have one (confusingly, the Transit Connect with the same engine does), short journeys is not an issues so long as you floor it and run it to the rev-limiter once every few weeks to clear the soot out and exercise the turbo vanes....obviously make sure the lower timing chain/wet belt has been changed before doing this (10 years/120,000 miles IIRC).

1.8 petrol; I just realised I made an error on that...this is the Mazda derived engine, which doesn't have gasket issues so ignore me on that. Same as with the water in the spark plug wells as its a different head design. The solonoid for the intake flaps and coolant leaks is still an issue though.

I'd avoid the 1.6 petrol with the Ti-VCT, (variable valve timing) as this can go on the fritz, the catalyst is also a bit iffy on these giving engine fault lamps and its a bitch to change (subframe needs to be dropped down). I remember it well as I had to do the same car three times as my gaffer supplied me with "React" branded aftermarket catalysts...and the welds were so shyte it leaked like a sieve...putting the engine light back on 50miles later.

Cheers for those pointers Ali

I took on board a lot of the advice on this thread which was mainly to stay away from 2nd hand diesels and the issues that the 1.6 had, i went for a 1.8 petrol Titanium model on an 08 plate. It's just a run around for a while, it seems nice to drive and has some nice spec for the money.