thats surprising.. her in Southern CA, i go to the junkyards almost weekly and rarely ever see more than one or two.

Couldnt say about the SPI, i know its the lowest performing engine in the focus range, but ive seen many of them over 200k, so they must be pretty reliable.

 

There is many many threads on here about the Duratec motors on here. I believe they drop valve seats or something like that. On the last thread I read, I heard of some people not having the problem till 200k, but others had the problem as early as 50k. It really depends on how the previous owner drove it. I wish I had a junkyard with Focii in it!!! The local place I go to has maybe 1 or 2, and they are all usually stripped.

 

There is many many threads on here about the Duratec motors on here. I believe they drop valve seats or something like that.

Funny you say that. There were a couple (SOHC) with the head off, just laying on the side of the car...........and I saw how the chamber on the head was beat like something was banging around. I couldnt figure out why they looked like that but that would explain it. It was quite puzzling. It looked like a bad nitrous explosion.

 

How do you know its the motor gone bad that put it in the junkyard??

 

Well, I dont know for sure.........all I can say is that I saw a few SOHC motors where someone pulled the head and left it because it was damaged. The combustion chamber looked like someone beat it with a hammer. But the piston and piston walls were fine. It confused me. I thought maybe detonation, but then it looked like something was banging around in the cylinder. Also, over 90% of the cars did not have any body damage. It was like seeing whole complete cars; engine, trans, interior.....everything. ZX3's, wagons, you name it.

Is my 2000 SE considered a Zetec ? The valve cover says "2.0 Split Port". Is there anything I should grab from the junkyard to keep as a spare ? Anything that goes out and would be good to have in case of any emergency (sensor, switch, anything).

 

There are plenty in the junkyard near me, and most (like 90%) of them have front end damage as if they rear ended someone. I tried looking for a spare hood because my buddy wanted to play around and make a boser hood.

When I think about it I used to work at a delivery place that had Foci in the fleet and when it rained the drivers wrecked the non-abs cars by rear ending someone.

 

Same here, they all have front end damage.

 

All the ones I see are wreaked. Any you don't see are probably due to some sort of engine or tranny damage or something deeper like a unrepairable body damage you can't see. Some cars do get fixed only to find the repair didn't work. Take Zab's SVT for instance. They fixed it but its still having problems so it may be totaled out.

 

Ford Focus Sales figures
1999: 55,896
2000: 286,166
2001: 264,414
2002: 243,199
2003: 229,353
2004: 208,339

2005: 184,825
2006: 177,006
2007: 173,213
2008: 195,823
2009: 160,433
2010: 172,421
Well over 2,000,000 TWO MILLION FORD FOCUS made up to 2010
Stats from Wiki

With so many made and driven and thus plenty to also crash, run out of oil, burn up,etc...

 

I remember that same thing when i worked at sears. People said the same thing about a certain VCR or TV "i see these being fixed alot they must be junk" It wasnt that, they were the most affordable so there were alot more sold.

Whay are there so many in the junkyard. What are the death of these motors ? Thanks for your input.

Ide bet there are way more on the road in your area then in the junk yard.

I bet the majority of the cars with good body parts have SOHC engines and the ones with front end damage are the DOHC Zetec

The lowest amount sold 2005-2007 ide bet very few of them in the junkyards but more on the road still.

Maybe the reason the 2005-2007 sales are the lowest is because there are still a ton of the 2000-2004 still going strong.

I still see a ton of them on the road and its good to see i got a pretty reliable car.

My last car i seen alot of them the first few years it came out, after that there were fewer and fewer on the roads. If you seen one it was always dead in some ones driveway or it was a manual.

 

It's a cheap car and they made a lot of them. Why wouldn't you expect to see them in the junkyard? Cheap cars get bought by people who don't have a lot of money to spend. When something major breaks (probably because it wasn't maintained properly) and they can't afford to fix it... off to the junkyard it goes. Sorry to sound harsh but let's be realistic here.

 

Thats the way it is



Right on the money^^^ Thats the way it is!

 

I hate to say it the Split Port 2.0/ SOHC / is the SPI. The SPI is like a time bomb with the valve seats, at least that's how I felt when I had a SPI Escort. It was on its second engine when I bought it; overheating the engine can worsen the chance of valve seat drop.

Speaking of cheap cars, my junkyard has so many Escorts that they have their own special section, and most don't have body damage either. Every other car is sorted my manufacturer.

 

In regards to overheating. I also own a 94 Saturn Wagon. They are notorious for overheating because the fan does not come on until it damn near overheats. The temp gauge will get just before the "RED" and then the electic fan will turn on. I hooked up a bypass switch with a relay and could manually turn on the fan. It has 413K miles on the original motor. Anyway, when does the fan on my 2000 SE come on ? Should I run a manual switch also ? Should I change to a 180 degree thermostat ? If so, where can I get one ?

 

Ehh I think that was kinda an old GM thing, on some of their cars the fan didnt kick on until like 235*. The hotter the better the emissions, and that's how they passed the emissions standards of the day. Some of GM's cars didn't even have temp gauges, just an idiot light!

An aftermarket gauge or a good scan tool will tell you the temp, mine kicks on at 207*.

 

Same thing around here. Alot of Escorts and Focuses. Seems to be a good mixture of Zetec's and SPI's though. Hardly any body damage on either but on SPI's most likely a valve seat not sure on the Zetec's. But it's the same for Cavaliers, Protege's and few other well selling cars around the same time.

 

Here in CT I see a hand full every month that have DOHC zetecs, and once or twice a month I see a Duratec, and they are their because they were crashed, but I do see a whole lot SPI's in the junkyards, and I think we all know why that is????

#4 valve seat.

 

Just went to West Hazelton Harry's u pull it in PA, more than 25 nice focuses over there. I maybe saw only 1 spi, plenty of zetec and few duratec but mostly automatic.

 

Thanks for the info ill have to go check it out was there very many zx3s?. I havent been there in a few years

 

OK, so since Im a newbee to the Focus, can someone answer my previous questions.
1. Are there any parts I should look to grab as "stand-by" from the junkyard (sensor, switch, injector, etc.). I mean is there anything you wish you would have had at 10pm when the junkyard and autoparts store was closed.
2. Is there anything worth grabbing off a Zetec to put on a SPI ?
3. Should I go with a 180 degree T-stat ? I dont see them at parts stores but I do see them on EBAY. Should I run a manual fan switch ? 207 seems quite high for an aluminum headed 4 banger.

Thanks for your input.

 

1. Are there any parts I should look to grab as "stand-by" from the junkyard (sensor, switch, injector, etc.). I mean is there anything you wish you would have had at 10pm when the junkyard and autoparts store was closed.

In my opinion, get it when you need it. Most stuff that are worth picking up at a salvage yard can usually be lived without until you can get to one. All major part that can fail and cripple the car probably shouldn't be bought from a salvage yard anyways, especially if it's a common failure.

 

Update. I went back to the junkyard to pick up a few odds and ends. Looked at the SPI heads that were laying around. Spun the cam gear and could see the valve seats on a few "GONE" ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! I promise to never ever floor mine or not let it warm up. Sad to say that I will drive it like a Grandpa knowing this. But then again, who floors a SPI anyway ?

 

I only ever see one or two at the junk yard. If the yard is organized by brands like the one here is pop over to the GM section. Not only is the section larger than the ford, dodge, full size and small size truck sections all put together, but you'll find 20 to 30 cavaliers and sunfires which is basically a fofo competitor. I think focus wins. lol