Hey everyone, I'm looking to buy a sporty little commuter car and I came across a 2002 Focus SVT with 108k miles. Is this a good model year? No known problems? What questions should I ask?

I'm going to hit up the classifieds here and see if any members have cars for sale by me near Seattle.

Thanks again.

If this person is serious about selling their car than they should have no problem meeting you at the local Ford SVT dealer and letting them check it out. Of course you will have to pay. There are more than enough dealers in the Seattle area to choose from.

The SVT was only available for a few years and there are really no bad ones. At 108K I would ask if the timing belt has been changed yet. Otherwise just the normal used car stuff

Although svt's have a "no-interference" engine so the timing belt doesnt [B]need[B] to be replaced because if it ends up snapping all that will happen is your engine will stall and you wont have any damage like most other engines. Although replacing it once it starts to show wear would probably be better then letting it snap...

I have a 2002 SVT with 130,000 on it and the only thing that has been replaced was the rack and pinion. I love my svt and i highly recommend them.

Although svt's have a "no-interference" engine so the timing belt doesnt [B]need[B] to be replaced because if it ends up snapping all that will happen is your engine will stall and you wont have any damage like most other engines. Although replacing it once it starts to show wear would probably be better then letting it snap...

I have a 2002 SVT with 130,000 on it and the only thing that has been replaced was the rack and pinion. I love my svt and i highly recommend them.


Wrong. The SVT engine IS an interference engine so make SURE you ask if the timing belt has been done, and not just the belt, pulleys too. If the timing belt breaks you're looking at costly repairs. The master clutch cylinder is a common leak on all Focus, put your hand on the clutch pedal and feel up it for the oily residue.

Also, the thermostat is known to get leaky, which can be corrected using a Ford Contour thermostat.


Other than that it makes for a very fun car. I drive a 2002 Silver SVTf myself and love it! However, if you're serious about getting an SVT Focus I recommend the 2003-2004 years, with the EAP and HID headlight options. You'll probably pay more, but will regret not getting them!

Yes, the SVT is an interference engine! The regular Zetec is non-interference, but SVT's use premium fuel only because they have a higher compression ratio. Beware of the clutch also- all SVT's are manual transmission.

Yes, the SVT is an interference engine! The regular Zetec is non-interference, but SVT's use premium fuel only because they have a higher compression ratio. Beware of the clutch also- all SVT's are manual transmission.

Yeah, an OEM clutchkit for the SVT is around $600 at an autoparts store, or about $450 on an ebay place. That shocks a lot of people, it shocked me.

the thermostat housings like to leak too. make sure it isnt.

I just bought a 05 Focus,, Manual.. Did a mileage check on the highway.. 75 mph... all highway.. i got 26 mpg... Can this be right.. I bought the car because of the reported mileage..

75 is kinda high see how it does at around 60 for the best mpg

I kind of thought I could go the posted speed limit... 75 mph.. I really don't want to go 60,,,,,, maybe 70.. I will give it another chance. Do the automatics do better???? The other thing I was wondering.. The epa mpg of the 07 focus.. is 37 mpg highway. Newer foci have a epa mpg of 35 mpg. same 136 HP 2.0 L engine. Did the mileage really drop in the newer cars??

Posted via FF MobileHow the mileage is figured has been changing more than the cars have..... And winter mileage is quite different from summer..... As well as many people using odd methods to determine it (grin) Not to say YOU did, but many have.....

So it IS an interference engine? Because the local dealership told me it wasn't.... those bastards

connorheidy01 Yep the SVT is an interference engine, standard Zetec is non. Change that timing belt if its original