Why do people love the Ford Focus so much

UNKNOWN_370

100%

Me and my wife test drove a focus se last year. great handling and superb turning radius for a FWD. I was impressed with features to cost. The trunk space was slightly subpar for a hatch, compared to a mazda 3 but handling was very similar. It could have used slightly more low end punch but acceleration was very smooth. acceleration was in the 7.5 second range to 60mph... not bad. NVH was within range of a car that caliber and fit & finish was pretty good. I think the Focus is a benchmark for the "american car" segment in compact cars. The Mazda 3 is still a little better but it's rare to get that much performance from inexpensive american cars.

I wonder how the new chevy sonic stacks up?

Lug

The Sonic competes with the Mazda 2 and Ford Fiesta. It's a sub-compact and apparently would drive the OP insane with it's smallness.

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shadoquad

Yep, the Cruze competes in the segment with the Focus.

UNKNOWN_370

True... We test drove a Cruze. I didn't like it. seating is way too high, steering is the most artificial I've ever felt and acceleration was extremely slow. Interior fit and finish was nicer than the focus though.

I meant sonic by handling though... The sonic looks like it has potential for fun. The cruze is NO FUN.

ERZperformance

I sat inside a rental once and the car inside is small as hell. I'm only 5'10". I sat in the front passenger chair (which hardly have enough space), and even my 2.5 yrs old son with the car seat feel some tight in the back. I do like the Ford Fucsion. Rented that car a few times and pretty satisfy with it.

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Thechidz

I agree. rented a focus a few years ago and complete garbage. Ended up having to pay for a new wheel in that car. Rented a new one this summer and while some of the new tech is okayish the engine was already having problems at only about 10k miles. JUNK

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Iceagetlc

The only other Ford I'd own besides my own is a new Taurus SHO. The ST is impressive and I'm excited to see how it does but I don't think I could go back to my Caliber Srt4 hot hatch days.

As for the ride quality being as bad as the Z, the Z's is bad for a purpose, I can't see why a base focus needs to ride rough. Poor design choice there.

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Cmike2780

Enough with the trolling. Not only is that going to stir things up, it has nothing to do with what your thread is suppose to be about. There are plenty of things to complain about the Z but the ride quality isn't really on that list. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that stiffer springs and low profile tires will make the car more prone to a stiffer ride. You could say a 458 Italia has shytty quality too if we apply your "logic."

You're getting a lot for $16k. You can't find a Civic at that price unless it's the stripped down DX. If you're lookin for sports car handling and luxury comfort, you're not going to find it for $16k. The base Focus is commuter appliance, kind of like your POS Prius. At least with the Focus, there are some speedy variants that can be had. I want to know what car in the past has the same technology, fit, finish and performance you're comparing this to. Considering just about every car segment has grown considerably over the years, I also don't understand why the size of an economy car would even be an issue. They're all kind of small, but this segment had much smaller cars in the past. I actually decided to lease a Civic a few months back because I got a really good deal on it. It's boring to drive, the interior is okay, but it does what it's suppose to for my purpose so I think it's a great car. It's great on gas, pretty roomy unless you're fat, plenty reliable and gets me from point A to B. Complaining about it's flaws is pointless and moot.

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daisuke149

I had a focus rental this week.

it was plenty big enough. rode nicely. was extremely quiet ( more so than i expected by far. better than some luxury cars ive been in)

and the engine had more than enough pickup.

asdfsammich

F'ing lol post

I like reading the 1600's posts usually cuz the logic is always full of unexpected plot twists.

Especially the part where you accuse the guy of beating off haha.

Compliment 1600 dude, for real, funny stuff.


Tapatalk & such etc

cossie1600

You are right ride is subjective. Let's not get into that as it will just be a pissing contest. Let's go back to what I said in the first post. I said the Focus rides almost as bad as the Z. We both know how both car handles. If a regular Focus rides only slightly better than the Z, what does that say about the Focus' ride? Do you honestly think the Z rides like a C class? Would you feel better if I say "Focus rides slightly better than the Z"? Does that help you and couple others beat off faster?

BRZ has 200HP. If you think it is enough, more power to you. Given the hype it's been getting, you would have thought they just dropped a 3.8L 911 motor in there. What difference does it make to wait three months or twelve months? Horsepower growing out of trees now?

My C6 Corvette had a $56K MSRP, I only got it for $45K. Yeah I didn't get much discount on it. If you want a good deal, look on the Corvette forum. Dealers are constantly offering them for 5-10K below sticker.

RX-8 has fuel starve? That is new as I am not sure how the car dominated CS for years with 1/8 to 1/4 of a tank. If you read the owner's manual of the RX-8, you will see Mazda tells you specifically that the rotary engine is DESIGNED to burn oil. That is just the way the motors are built. Is that truly a problem or just ignorant owners? Also my RX-8 had a sticker of about $26K, it came with 232HP in 2007. The BRZ has what, 200HP with a sticker around the same? Since it is down 32HP, how is it not overrated? Are you contradicting yourself now?

I am just letting you know that GT3 rides slightly better than the 370. There was no malice or anything behind it. I just know that from my time with it.

My RX-8 didn't have run flat new, Corvette did have the Goodyear Run Flat.

I definitely don't have good comebacks given I have had or driven the cars mentioned. Matter of fact, I autox and track all of them with some firm data on them. Would that help you better than magazine stats that you love?

Btw, nothing against the Z or ST Focus as I don't know how that car drives or what it has. I don't consider them the same as a $16-20K Focus, just like how EVO is different than the regular Lancer. My original dig was at the Focus and the reviewers who love them. I am not sure how it got from regular Focus to Focus ST?

I don't hate on the Z. Matter of fact, I love mine. I am just realistic enough to know the car is not perfect and there are shortcomings due to the price. Some of you guys seem not to think so.

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UNKNOWN_370

1.Why are you even comparing a C-class to a Z? You shouldn't even be expecting a ride comparison as they are two toally different driving concepts.

2. The BRZ is a good car but has already been outclassed by the older miata and loses around the track to the gencoupe. The new miata will most likely be coming next year and will be even lighter. Talks of FI are circulating too... Sot the only thing i see the brz having an advantage in is being a true coupe hardtop and 4 seats.
3. Rx8 costs as much as a brz and it gains it by 32hp. It's other comp, gencoupe 2.0 kills it by 74hp. Its other comp, the miata is underpowered by 42hp yet is a better handler. Want to talk about hype? I give you the toyobaru. The ricers dream. Now don't get me wrong. I would DD that car in a heartbeat. But corporate hype is giving it a name and it hasnt eclipsed any comp. At least in the first year, the Z was killing stangs and GTO's and the 2010 camaro SS tune was not as good so the Z was keeping up.
4. You drive 997's on trac ks all the time? Good for you. I can only afford to be on one maybe 3x a year if im fortunate enough to. But remember a bunch of modded cars on a track isn't the end all be all of opinions when comparing DD's.

Anyway, you are entitled to your opinion. But i don't know why you are so perplexed by opposing opinions. My experience with the focus was it gave just enough firmness to feel sporty. It's not a benchmark car but its good,
As far as why we are talking about the ST? It's the focus submodel of interest... Besides weren't you the one who whined about "Do you like it so much cuz it comes in turbo?" It's a thread, its how shyt is discussed. You don't like it? It's your thread... Close it. Anyway im outta here. I shoulda known better to come into one of your threads.

cossie1600

I simply used the Z as a reference in my first post! The Focus rides not much softer than the Z and it doesn't handle anywhere like a sports car. Is it a good thing to ride similar like the Z? Of course not, well unless you think the Z rides like a Mercedes. I am not sure why you take so much offense to it, I was knocking the Focus, not the Z.

Tell me once the turbo hits on the BRZ...

I did two sessions in a GT3. I got as much as I need out of it. It's too expensive for me to track like you said.

I am still kind of puzzled at how a Focus bashing turned into Z bashing? I just purely want to bring up the crappy Ford Focus I rented at work last week. I had high expectations for it given all the hypes that the magazine gave it, yet I had nothing but headache with that car. I moved onto a Subaru Legacy this week, it's better but still $hitty

mjd77

This whole post just reinforces my feeling that once you have a sports car (no matter which one it is), you get spoiled mighty fast and after that, driving anything that is not a sports car pretty much feels like crap. It's mighty tough to downgrade.

UNKNOWN_370

1.Sometimes your wording comes off as comparison vs showing similarities. I agree with CMike
2.When the turbo BRZ comes out... I will be elated and wont have anything to say. Till then... It's still overrated as of now.
But you making that future BRZ reference is like me saying, Tell me once the Z35 is out. If it's not out? Why make that comment? Some would call that fanboyism.

3. I don't bash the Z or focus. There aren't many cars I don't like. There are "Type of People" that buy a certain "type of car" I don't like but not cars.


You seem to always to talk about fanboying when i post simply based on my satisfaction with the Z or any other type of post. You always seem to make the fanboy reference but yet you are the one aligning with BRZ turbos before they exist.
I personally would be willing to leave nissan for a better performing car in the price range. My issue is i dont normally pay over $50k for sports cars and rarely do i buy used. N when i do? They're newsed, with under 10k miles... Since my priority leans toward handling and i wont drive a sports car that takes more than 5.5 seconds to 60 and 13.5 the quarter. I am left with few choices. Show me a muscle car under 3400lbs and i will consider one... Muscle cars don't give me the connection to the road I need and lightweight 4 bangers don't give me enough power.
Addressing the Z's shortcomings through modification has left me extremely satisfied and I see no need to trade or buy anything else till a new generation-set of cars hit the dealers. You seem to think, if someone doesn't have little to no complaint about the Z. They are fanboys... That's stupid. Somehow the non-fanboy should own a Z and feel like it's barely acceptable for anything other than driving to work... That's bullshyt.

But guess what... There are other cars I/we admire too. We just don't have to self loathe what we own to praise the next newest thing.