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What neat tricks and tips have you've found since owning?

727K views 1K replies 388 participants last post by  antbarlow76 
#1 ·
Just wondering what features, tips and tricks people have found since owning?

For me I found the hidden menu to be neat. Holding trip/reset down while starting car shows the menu. Holding again for 5 seconds returns you to normal operation.

Salesman didn't know that the SE has a line in for mp3 players. Inside glovebox on top.
 
#420 ·
On my Maxima, used to run it near dry a lot, never ran out of gas. On my Saturn, ran out twice, tried to fill it before the light came on. Murano was similar to the Maxima, ran out once to see how far I could go. The Focus, have ran it low, then really surprised that it took 47 litres to fill up, meaning, i was almost out. Now I'll always try and fill before getting too low. Point? Different cars, different results and the fuel gauge is only an estimate of what's in the tank. Think you have to run out at least once to get an idea of what yours is like. Just my 2cents.
 
#421 ·
I was using the Navigation yesterday, and noticed a few cool things
1. I love the view button
a. when you are in "regular mode, it will give you the list of upcoming directions
b. when approaching a freeway on or off ramp, it gives you a diagram of the ramp so you know which lane to get in, and how the lane will flow
2. I don't know how I got there, but I also noticed it sometimes includes the speed limit of the road!

Also, not sure if everyone noticed this, but I thought I'd point it out. If you get the leather seats you get a center armrest/cup holder combo for the back seat.

On the stereo, if you dig into the settings, you can set it to index your bluetooth audio device so you can browse. (My sales person told me this wasn't available.)
 
#422 ·
also for the Nav...once you set your destination you get the next turn readout on the little drive info screen...??? Well, as you near your destination the info screen will show the 'checkered flag' for your target, but it also will have the flag either left or right of a line indicating which side of the road it will be on. Can't tell you how many times this has come in extremely handy!
 
#423 ·
Found a feature I was unaware of on the HD radio.

When listening to a HD station sometimes there is only a number 1 next to HD but when there is a number 2 also it means they have 2 channels. Switch to the other channel with the >> button under the display, << switches back to primary HD channel
 
#424 ·
These are sub-stations, much like you'd see with Over-The-Air (OTA) HD television. I've seen up to three sub-stations so far. The nice thing about these are they are extremely clear, even better than USB connected devices (sometimes).
 
#442 · (Edited)
GPS mounting location

I put my GPS on the vinyl cover of the steering colomn using a sticky gel dash pad to keep it in place better. Trimmed the sticky pad so you can't see it. Routed the garmin power cord through the dash and under the center console. You don't have to remove any panels to do this. You can just slip the power cord under the edge of the center console and back up to the power outlet.

The hardest part, which wasn't hard, was stringing the power cord through the dash. I used a straightened metal hanger and threaded it from the top of the column down to under the dash. Be careful when you do this so you don't snag anything. You will likely need to get under the dash to view what your doing here. Then tape the power cord to the hanger to bring it back up to the mounting location.

Easy, looks semi-stock and positioned nicely to keep your eyes on the road.



 
#444 ·
Glove Box bag (surprisingly handy)

I put all my junk in the glove box in a travel organizer bag. Then when I need to get something out, I grab the bag, unzip and get it. No more leaning over looking for things while the rest of the stuff falls out.

Sort of anal, but you'd be surprised how nice it works the first time you use it sitting in the drivers seat.



 
#446 ·
I put all my junk in the glove box in a travel organizer bag. Then when I need to get something out, I grab the bag, unzip and get it. No more leaning over looking for things while the rest of the stuff falls out.

Sort of anal, but you'd be surprised how nice it works the first time you use it sitting in the drivers seat.



Really great idea...it'll keep the little things from spilling out.

Also...really good reading there! My favorite Book!
 
#451 ·
This may be common knowledge, but I learned this today on accident. When streaming audio to the radio via bluetooth (Pandora, etc.), the OK button on the right side of the steering wheel will pause the audio. [thumb]

Was always annoyed having to pick up my phone to pause the stream. This will be quite handy. [cheers]

And if this is an iphone only thing, and you don't have an iphone, sorry. [facepalm]
 
#453 ·
This may be common knowledge, but I learned this today on accident. When streaming audio to the radio via bluetooth (Pandora, etc.), the OK button on the right side of the steering wheel will pause the audio. [thumb]

Was always annoyed having to pick up my phone to pause the stream. This will be quite handy. [cheers]

And if this is an iphone only thing, and you don't have an iphone, sorry. [facepalm]
I don't think it's an iphone only thing, however, I believe it's a non MFT thing. For MFT we have two shortcut buttons and I have the top one set to play/pause.
 
#454 ·
I tried locking the keys in the hatch ... and like posted earlier the Focus wont lock .. I like that. I also tested locking myself in the car with the engine off and key in my pocket. If some one tries to open the car door, they wont open. That is also a good thing. My 14 year old daughter acted like a car jacker and I stayed safe inside!!!!
 
#471 ·
Turn off traction control
Brake ON
Floor the gas in drive (revs will limit)
Release brake
Giggle wildly
Then take your Focus into the dealer to fix the inevitable chatter in your DCT

YouTube...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Msr16CLpYTE
 
#477 ·
I noticed yesterday, that while checking my Ecomode score, I had 5 leaves in both categories, but didn't get a "trophy" i did get a message saying that I do 55% of my trips on a cold engine.
 
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