Are You Truly Happy With Your New Focus?

[Old TU]

I agree with you on the new Civic. I think Honda went backwards on the design. I did drive a new Elantra, but felt the Focus was more powerful and solid. I do own a 2000 Elantra that remains in good shape. I have riden in a 2011 Scion xB and it was pretty nice, but the MPG's weren't. My brother-in-law owns a Kia Soul and loves it. The nice thing about the Soul, probably like your Ridgeline is the entry and exit. I owned a first generation xB and that is the only thing I really miss on it.

[FF4]

Hey Skippy, not sure what forum you're looking at but the new Elantra has similar if not worse issues. Water leaks, engines replace, failed trannys, electrical gremlins, way below EPA mileage, on and on.

http://www.hyundai-forums.com/231-md...1-elantra.html

The Focus community is made up of more enthusiasts, and as such I would expect more passionate discussions here. Hyundai's are more like transportation appliances than an enthusiast's vehicle.

There's nothing scientific about these boards.

[johngrantham99]

Originally Posted by a351must2

I was really happy with mine until last Sunday when someone backed into it in a parking lot and dented both driver's side doors.

Had an awesome drive up Mt Baker afterwards that helped get my mind off the dents. Still not quite the same as the Mustang in corners, but it sure stuck to the road and was very responsive/maneuverable.

The DCT transmission has only got better with time so far. The first day I drove I found it unnerving to pull into traffic as it would bog off the line and shift too early (<2000). Now it's completely different, nice and responsive off the line and shifts between 2500 and 3500 for my normal driving.

Even the MFT has been running acceptably ... it rebooted once the day I picked the car up, but has been flawless since.

I had much the same experience with the DCT initially. Not sure how adaptive the transmission is versus adapting yourself.

By the way, how much snow is there on the road to Mt. Baker? Did you drive all the way up to Artist Point?

[johngrantham99]

Seriously enjoying this car. Had it about six weeks, and just got back from a week on the central coast of Oregon where I particularly enjoyed the handling on the curvier stretches of the 101. My only quibble would be the comparative lack of low-end torque combined with the DCT. On a lot of hills you add throttle to get the thing to kick down, and then when you let off slightly it shifts right back up and bogs down. This seems like more of a problem at city speeds than the open road. At 50mph plus there seems to be plenty of passing power.

[Old TU]

johngrantham99,

Did you try to use the S mode on 101? I used my S mode for about 10 miles on Hwy 101 around Dana Point in CA and it seemed to workout pretty good. The speeds I traveled at were between 30-50 mph.

[cobie56]

Originally Posted by Old TU

cobie56,

Is the Golf TSI a GTI? If so, that is a 200 HP car that is $25K+. Also, the gas mileage isn't quite as good and I understand VW maintenance is expense. I am 5' 10" with long legs. I had to play around with the seat fore and aft, height and recline adjustments to get comfortable.

No, it is a TSI.. u can't get them in the states....around 150 hp or so, great mileage...unlike the crap vw foists upon us here (gti/gli exceptions)

[Targon]

I got my 2012 Focus SEL without the MyFord Touch or any added packages, and have been very happy with it. Fuel economy is good, daily average between local and highway tends to be in the 30-34 MPG range. There have been a few times when SYNC was unresponsive, but within 15 minutes it was back to normal.

With MyKey, that opens the door for rental companies to put limits on what you can and can not do, speed warnings, etc. Problems with MyFord Touch that some have experienced in rentals can easily be written up as the same problems that affected MFT that HAVE been fixed, but the rental company never bothered to get updated.

Overall, as long as you pay attention to details, like making sure all the doors open/close properly, trunk/hatch not having problems, etc, you should not have too many problems. The dual clutch automatic does take some time to get used to but isn't a real negative...I expect things to improve with the next model year.

[SlotTech]

I started to hate my car yesterday when I checked the oil and the dip stick was dry. No low oil warning light. Had to add 3 litres to fill it. Then I went for a drive and the dip stick showed down a 1/4 inch from full. It burns a lot of oil and I am just shy of 2000KM (1243 Miles) on the car.

[FoFoFan]

I have had mine for 3 weeks now and about 800 miles on it. Love the mileage..first tank was 35 mpg. Second tank was a trip on country roads and got 43 mpg. My NET 10 phone synch'd perfectly and my mp3 player works wonderfully. Only one small issue with the accent lighting..could'nt control colors and the dealer fixed it with no problems. This car has met or exceeded all of my expectations. I have an SEL with most of the options except moon roof. I look forward to driving it (that's when my wife isn't using it). We now have 3 Fords in our family. I was concerned that the frosted glass color would be too blue until I got it. I love that color (my wife's choice) now that I have it.

[Elizabeth]

Good stuff:
Car starts,
Air conditioning works,
Battery holds charge,
Key works from over 200ft away to blink and sound horn when searching for car in shopping mall.
Tires hold air fine,
Wheels turn,
Steering wheel is small and nice controls,
Wipers work good,
Gas cover works,
Door locks work,
Windows work,
Rear hatch works,
Rear seat fold properly,
Hood opens and closes good,
Horn works,
headlights work,
Turn signals work,
seat adjustments work,
stereo works,
heat works,
Sunroof works,
climate control fan speed adjust works,
seatbelt works,
clutch works,
brakes work,
gas pedal works,
vent adjusters work,
Central door lock works,
gastank holds gas,
no leaks,
car goes forward when press gas pedal,
nice window view,
good paint,
shiny wheels,
stereo sound good,
backs up good, shifts good (manual tranny)
Neutral works,
fog lights light up,
cup holders hold,
fancy gizmos do have bling, bling works (Of what bling features I have used...)
key fob unlocks car,
key fob locks car,
keyfob unlocks trunk,
parking brake works,
center console holds stuff,
Windshield washer squirts juice,
sunvisors flip down,
tach works,
Speedo works,
turn signals work,
one touch driver window down works,
shocks work,

These are features which work on my car.
There are others I was not able to think of off hand which work fine.
Gazillions of small internal parts all seem to work though i cannot verify they are..