Over 1450 comprehensive car reviews in Honestjohn's Car-by-Car Breakdown. What's good, what's bad and what to watch out for. The full story on all popular models on sale in the UK since 1990.

Ford Focus II (2004 - 2007)

What's Good

Second generation Focus 4,342mm x 1,840mm x 1,447mm, has also provided its C1 floorpan for Volvo S40/V50/C50, Mazda 3 and Ford C-MAX. Fitted with Ford's Intelligent Protection system which earned a best in class 5 star NCAP crash safety rating. In UK from late 2004.

Engine line up: Desc/Euro stage/CO2/Combined fuel cons/Max speed mph/0-100kmh or 62mph/50-100kmh or 31-62mph 4th gear

1.4L chain-cam Duratec 80PS, Euro 3&4, 159g/km CO2, 42.7mpg combined, 101mph, 0-60 13.8 secs.
1.6L chain-cam Duratec 100PS, Euro 3&4, 161g/km CO2, 42.2mpg combined, 111mph, 0-60 11.6 secs.
1.6L chain-cam Duratec 100PS AUTO, Euro 4, 180g/km CO2, 36.9mpg combined, 106mph, 0-60 13.3 secs
1.6L belt-cam Duratec Ti-VCT (variable valve timing) 115PS, Euro 4, 155g/km, 43.8mpg combined, 117mph, 0-60 10.5 secs
2.0L chain-cam Duratec 145PS, Euro 3&4, 170g/km CO2, 39.8mpg combined, 127mph, 0-60 8.9 secs
1.6L belt + chain cam Duratorq TDCi 109PS, Euro 3&4, 127g/km CO2, 58.9mpg combined, 116mph, 0-60 10.6 secs
1.6L belt + chain cam Duratorq TDCi 109PS CVT Auto, Euro 3, 146g/km CO2, 51.0mpg combined, 113mph, 0-60 11.2 secs
2.0L belt + chain cam Duratorq TDCi 136PS, Euro 3&4, 148g/km CO2, 51.4mpg combined, 125mph, 0-60 9.0 seconds.

Keyless entry, Bluetooth hands-free phone system with voice control, optional in dash satnav, dual driver/passenger climate control, 385 litre luggage area expands to 1,245 litres in hatchback, 4,473mm estate carries up to 1,525 litres of cargo, 15" - 17" wheels with 195/65 to 205/50 section tyres, hydraulic PAS on 1.4 and 1.6 petrol models; electro-hydraulic PAS on diesels and 2.0 litre petrol. Very fine, virtually faultless drive.

Euro NCAP 5* Occupant safety, 2* Pedestrian safety, 4* Child safety.

Road test at www.honestjohn.co.uk/road_tests/index.htm?id=154

Variations including saloons and estates all the way up to a 300bhp four wheel drive 160mph Cosworth and a 7 seater MPV/estate.

Good looking saloon announced February 2005 along with Focus ST with turbocharged 220PS 5-cylinder Volvo engine, like the S40 and V50, from Jan 2006.

1.8 litre, 125PS, Focus FFV hatch and estate which runs on BioEthanol starts at £14,095.

Announced 13 September, 2006: "The 2007 model year Ford Focus and Focus C-MAX now offers customers even better value for money, with specification enhancements and reduced prices on many models."

"Entry-level Focus Studio model reduced by £400 giving a lead-in on-the-road price of £10,995. LX has increased by £100 and gains as standard, body-coloured door handles, power heated mirrors, dual horn, and trip computer. Sport has been increased by £150 and is now also upgraded with body-coloured door handles, power heated mirrors, dual horn, and trip computer. Zetec non-Climate model is deleted in the 2007 model year line-up. Zetec Climate is reduced by £150, while Ghia models have a Sony CD system with MP3 connection, new exterior mirrors with side repeaters (same as Focus ST). Ghia price is increased by £225. Titanium is reduced by £380 to offer improved value for money, and benefits from new exterior mirrors with side repeaters and privacy glass."

"The changes are part of Ford's programme to offer value pricing on all models, and gives easy £500 price-walks between LX, Sport and Zetec Climate, and only £750 to Ghia/Titanium. 2007 model year also sees changes to the body-colour options on both Focus and Focus C-MAX with the addition of Frozen White, Ocean Blue and Verdigris."

TUV 2008 Report for cars 2 - 3 year old. After analysing seven million main inspections from 194 different models for over 160 criteria – including lights, brakes, chassis, exhaust and oil-loss – Coming in third and fourth were the VW Golf and Ford Fusion (2.2 percent each), and the Honda Jazz (2.3 percent).

More at www.ford.co.uk

Focus user Group www.ffoc.co.uk

Last updated 15-11-2009

What's Bad

More than 6' wide.

Styling much more conservative than original Focus.

Still some Euro III diesels in the line-up mean extra 3% BIK tax base.

Passenger side headlamp bulb very difficult to replace.

Rainwater or heavy morning dew falls into the load area when the hatchback is opened.

What to Watch Out For

Starting and running problems and the car reverting to limp home mode can be due to the Power Control Module cluster gateway not closing properly and draining the battery overnight. May need to be reloaded with manufacturer data to overcome a sofware error.

Estates have suffered water leaks due to non sealing of hatchback hinges.

Mysterious 'Engine System Faults' on diesel leading them to lose power and revert to limp home mode may be caused by an intercooler pipe weld fault leading to a crack in the pipe. On 1.6TDCI the thin steel turbo to intercooler pipe can split. It cracks in two places in opposite directions emanating from the "start" and "stop" of the upper bracket weld. Fractures are of a fatigue nature resulting from vibration ,the bracket being rigidly attached to the engine.

Problem of 1.6 and 2.0 16v diesels slipping into limp home mode put down to throttle butterflies sticking or their spindles wearing prematurely causing them to stick. The throttle position sensor identifies this and sends a message to the ECU to limit the engine to limp home mode.

Front windscreen rubber surround can come adrift at the top middle of the screen directly below the aerial.

Front leading edge door seals can come adrift, admitting water.

Rust appears on the back of the front wheel arches. The underseal in this area is inadequate and Ford has introduced a fix which involves a small strip of plastic that runs the length of the under sill and front wheel arch.

Pipes to screen washers can spring a leak and drain into spark plug orifices, causing corrosion of the plugs that leads to them becoming stuck fast in the head. Seems to be a TSB to replace the original washers with a revised design to stop water leaking onto the cylinder head.

End of plastic dipstick of 1.6 TDCI engine can break and drop into sump requiring removal of sump to retrieve it.

On the 1.6 auto, a sound like a relay clicking on and off repeatedly at idle or light throttle settings (at first thought to be connected with the rough idle) is explained as the Bowden cable connecting the gear shift to the gear box has an alloy junction box situated inside the car under the interior fan unit to provide free play. Re-routing the cable in the engine bay so it is no longer under tension gets rid of the noise.

Spate of PAS pump failures late 2008 - early 2009 when cars were 3 - 4 years old.

Diesel Particulate Filters of EU5 1.6TDCI 110s and 2.0TDCI 136s can eventually give up at around 100,000 miles and require replacement at a cost of £1,150 from a Ford dealer or £1,034 independently. 1.6TDCI 90s don't have DPFs.

Beware when buying a 1.6, particularly an ex Motability car. The washer fluid can drip into the spark plug channel at the top of the engine and if the engine does not regularly get hot enough to evaporate it off then the spark plugs rust so badly they fuse into their sockets and become impossible to remove, necessitating a £2,500 head off job to replace them.

Recalls

September 2005 (build April 2003 to March 2005): Recall of 68,722 Focus and C-Max for checks on the windscreen wipers. Water can work its way into the wiper motor along the arm of the blade. If the water contains salt it can cause the motor to short circuit and leave cars without working wipers. In extreme cases, the short circuit can also cause the wiper assembly to overheat and melt nearby trim components. Cars to be fitted with a new cover, which better seals the motor from water. TSB 28/2005 issued 11-1-2007 to correct creaky steering in early production cars built 1-6-04 to 31-1-05 by fitting revised tie rods.