"taking Oval To Blue Horizon" Lenny's Build Thread 2010-2015

[Lenny]

Can I suggest that once any new speaker mounting rings are screwed or bolted to the door that they are then covered in sound deadening stuff. You'll be suprised by the effect it does.

I'm assuming in the mk2 / 2.5 that the speaker pods are riveted to the door? They're screwed on in the mk3.

I fitted DEi Boom speaker baffles in all four doors in mine last March makes a great difference.

much the same as surrounding the speaker adaptor but on the inside, and few other advantages such as moisture repellent 👍

Can see them fitted on page 79 & 80

[Hassen]

Lenny, did you try the Speakers without the Boom mats and with them on? I'm curious to hear your opinion.

I had the Boom mats on mine until a few weeks ago. I felt that it was "sucking" in the mid bass as compared to the cheaper Vibe Slick 6 Speakers in the rear. Once off, the difference in sound is clearly apparent for anyone to hear the difference. It's the way it should sound from the start.

Now, I'm just wondering if I installed the Boom mats wrongly? Should I have made a hole at the bottom to let the sound waves out the back? I would be interested to know.

[tazzman600]

Reading American reviews on the boom mat around 90% stated it is a must to have a hole in the mats rear or bottom and even total removal of the bottom half of the mat !! One either likes them or not. Experimenting may be the key.

[Lenny]

Lenny, did you try the speakers without the Boom Mats and with them on? I'm curious to hear your opinion

Didn't try the Speakers without the boom mats when fitting,

Reading American reviews on the boom mat around 90% stated it is a must to have a hole in the mats rear or bottom and even total removal of the bottom half of the mat !! One either likes them or not. Experimenting may be the key.

The only holes put in mine were the screws going through to the speaker adaptors,

I brought the speaker cable out the front of speaker so it's sandwiched between speaker rim and the cup,

No holes made in the cup atall on mine.

I don't plan on making any changes to them as being sealed there much the same as a mini sub enclosure in my opinion and also keep sound inside the vehicle aswell as moisture out from contact with the Speakers,

Cutting a hole would create a moisture trap as condensation wouldnt escape easily and in my opinion defeat one purpose of fitting speaker cups,

I can see how porting them would produce louder bass much related to sub enclosures ported produce loud bass and sealed produce tight low level bass.

Personally im very happy with them as they are both front and rear can feel the tight bass on ankles.

[Hassen]

The point about being similar to a ported subwoofer enclosure makes sense. Me too I'm concerned about moisture and prevention of corrosion to the Speakers. When I install the speaker adaptors, I will have a good look around for moisture and then decide whether to reinstall them or not.

[tazzman600]

I think I've said this somewhere before but in my experience from the 80's and 90's when cars weren't as well made as nowadays that every door speaker I encountered never had rust issues or water marks so why so much emphasis put on moisture is beyond me personally but each to their own.

[GingerFlame]

I have over £100 in each of my front doors. I also have Boom mats fitted.

When I removed one of the door cards to run some extra wiring I found the back of the boom mats to be covered in water.

I was so happy I had fitted the boom mats. Imagine if that water had run into the fibres of the cone.. or shorted the power feed from one of my amps..

I have a small 1" x 1/2" hole in the bottom of the cups to run wiring & that's all.

[Lenny]

I think I've said this somewhere before but in my experience from the 80's and 90's when cars weren't as well made as nowadays that every door speaker I encountered never had rust issues or water marks so why so much emphasis put on moisture is beyond me personally but each to their own.

The outter rubber door window sill seal can pass allowing water to enter the outter door cavity,

Ford warranty on all rubber door seals is 12 Months from the day of purchasing the vehicle newly built. 😕

The rubber can get torn if opening Windows with frost on the ouside this solid imperfection on smooth glass can tare the rubber as in freezing conditions rubber would be frozen solid rather than highly flexible.

Ford have incorporated three drain holes in to the design of the front door panels,

two drain holes in rear doors,

Can see them with doors open,

They can clog up with dirt somehow😕

I cleaned mine out back when fitting the Speakers.

Ford also apply a yellowish grease to the inside of this cavity causing water to pearl on the metal if it made its way in there.

Corresponding location saw here in image of outter door cavity:

The inside door panel which has the window motor and speaker mounted on to it;

This panel also has a rubber seal surrounding it aswell as on the cable entry holes.

Ford factory fitted speakers;

The magnet on the speaker fits within the protruding speaker brackets,

As result the Speakers Don t enter the door cavity,

If water was to enter the cavity through the upper window seal it wouldn't reach the factory speaker.

here they are sitting flush on kitchen table

Aftermarket Speakers have a much larger magnet; entering the door cavity up to 4" where there is only the rubber sill of the door seal blocking out water,

Since Ford have three drain holes fitted in the bottom of the front door cavitys and rubber seal around the inner panel

I'm happy to have fitted the full speaker baffles uncut however my main reason for fitting the speaker baffles was to prevent vibration of doors,

all other advantages were a bonus and considering the lengths ford have gone to allow water escape the door cavity; indicates to me that there is risk of water ingress,

So I won't be putting any holes in the baffles atall.

Above images taken from my guide on fitting Ford Logo puddle lights

link: http://www.fordownersclub.com/forums/topic/46244-guide-fitting-ford-projector-puddle-lights-mk2-mk25-focus-05-12-front-doors/

Thanks for reading 👍

[tazzman600]

Good points well made. I'm taking my door cards off hopefully tomorrow to see for myself especially after the influx of rain we've had. Got boom mats and if I see water on my Speakers then on they go with minimal holes but if no water then they'll still go on but with a larger hole for porting reasons and so the speaker can breath.

[Lenny]

Final update of the build thread

 

I haven't been on the forum for a while now but figured I should return to post a final close out update on the focus build thread to notify those whom may be watching for more progress. 

 

It's safe to say this focus build thread and guides are now complete there won't be anymore from me. 

I will return to it near end of this year to fit ST front & rear bumpers with alternative exhaust tips, 

However that's as far as things will go. 

 

It's been a fantastic five years of planning and watching it progress, 

Id like to thank you all for joining in with the project and encouraging me to progress further with the build, 

Although mostly carrying out the alterations in the driveway of my home by myself; having the great people of this forum to hand on my mobile with the ability to share images and progress made it feel as though we were all here on the project together which has made the process alot more enjoyable. 

 

so what's lenny going to do now? 

 

Well nine years ago before the focus project and kids, myself and now wife vickiW bought a house together which with the exception of the kids rooms and exterior gardens; i haven't done a whole lot of changes inside to make it our own until recently. 

 

The process has become somewhat more enjoyable than the focus build because were doing it together and there's no silent treatment from her when I purchase a new addition 😀

 

My current project is the living room area, 

We don't or I should say didn't really light the fire much

and lose or well lost alot of heat through the chimney opening.

So last weekend I sent family away for day and got busy with dust mask, lump hammer & chisel 

 

https://youtu.be/Ge3SoeBOPOI

 

had the chimney capped off and took fireplace completely out also lifted skirting, architrave and old laminate flooring. 

 

 

Plan to create a jam jar time capsule with the kids and insert to cavity block at rear of chimney breast prior to blocking it up like a tomb 😀

 

 

Temporarily boarded up using tube of silicone sealant and sheet of 9mm MDF 

 

https://youtu.be/rp_3NOVcUvQ

 

Didn't go ahead with bricking it up and plastering just yet as theres a few other things to be done prior to that which i will now explain; 

 

The double doors dont ever get used,  

 

As result these have been removed and area will be bricked up along with the chimney breast.

 

 

Before having the brick work carried out on fireplace and door space, 

I've to contact the local electrician and have part of the floor chased out with a Kango.

 

I plan to run coaxial & Cat7 cables to left corner then fit a 2" PVC pipe feeding from left corner under ground then up middle of double doors.

This pipe will contain 7 metre HDMi cables and RCA to seamlessly allow connections between a cabinet and TV which will be mounted on wall where the double doors previously were.

 

 

A cabinet somthing like this will house devices in bottom area. 

 

 

Plan to fit a Celsi curved wall mounted electric fire on chimney breast in place of the real fire,

With a floating mantle strip of wood situated above,

 

So things are still busy as ever but on an alternative project with a shared interest that is closer to home. 

 

I won't be documenting future progress on the living room as I don't feel it's appropriate for the forum, 

The above was just a sample of plans in the coming months. 

 

Thanks for reading, 

I'm still available on forum moving forward and enjoying watching other peoples build threads

I'm not disappearing just closing out this project and moving on to another one 👍

[Philf1]

Lenny it's a little like a sad farewell I will miss your regular updates and fantastic explanation of work on the focus its been a pleasure reading about the mods.

I'd also like to thank you for introducing me to mighty car mods I'm slowly making my way through their YouTube channels.

Give our love to Vicky I also miss her occasional interruptions and humourous comments.

That's it now off to wipe my eyes.

See my parts for sale on thread "philf1s Spirit Blue Fiesta ST180 parts for sale"

[JC600]

Look forward to seeing the final update Lenny......been great reading your build thread. :D

[Dan P]

Flipping heck! How big is that telly?

Your build thread has been an inspiration. Thanks for all your help and advice.

[GingerFlame]

www.yorkshiredetailing.co.uk - approved resellers of the Highest quality detailing & Valeting supplies

[Lenny]

Little car related update;

Had a flat tyre on rear passenger side for a week and didn't know it thought was buckled wheel from missus driving on the sunday😀 35mm reinforced sidewall checked pressure following friday had 4Psi 😦

Here it is

Changed yesterday car needs timing belt change aswell as new spare 16" tyre and standard service before MOT in July

here's what Ford said; 

Timing kit €570

Oil pump washer leak €195

front passenger lower arm Bush €150

Rear trailing arm bushes rear lower stabilizer link bar bushes slightly deteriorated €560 

Standard service €190 

That's €1665 excluding tyres which were just fitted four @ €125 per corner😥

[JC600]

That's expensive!!!!

[Lenny]

2 hours ago, JC600 said:

That's expensive!!!!

Totally agree mate,

Puts me off buying a car from private seller if I ever was buying one, because my focus drives fine with no oil leaking on ground or shaking when driving well since wheel change it's driving 100% 

I understand the timing belt is wear and tare but thats only 35% of the bill 😯

[JC600]

1 hour ago, Lenny said:

Totally agree mate,

Puts me off buying a car from private seller if I ever was buying one, because my focus drives fine with no oil leaking on ground or shaking when driving well since wheel change it's driving 100% 

I understand the timing belt is wear and tare but thats only 35% of the bill 😯

One of the reasons I went back to older cars......Contitech cambelt & drive belt cost £12 for both, on the Escort. And done them myself.

MG on the other hand cost £700 for timing belts (there's 3!), water pump, pulleys etc.....but that was fitted, all genuine MG Rover parts. :)

[Hassen]

23 hours ago, Lenny said:

Little car related update;

Had a flat tyre on rear passenger side for a week and didn't know it thought was buckled wheel from missus driving on the sunday😀 35mm reinforced sidewall checked pressure following friday had 4Psi 😦

Here it is

Changed yesterday car needs timing belt change aswell as new spare 16" tyre and standard service before MOT in July

here's what Ford said; 

Timing kit €570

Oil pump washer leak €195

front passenger lower arm Bush €150

Rear trailing arm bushes rear lower stabilizer link bar bushes slightly deteriorated €560 

Standard Service €190 

That's €1665 excluding tyres which were just fitted four @ €125 per corner😥

 

Were you driving on that tyre still? The thread looks like it pretty much gone? Just wondering if there's an issue with the camber like last time as it looks worn on the one side more than the other. How many miles did you get on the tyres btw? Good thing you are getting them replaced :)

If you are looking for tyres, check out www.Tyreland.ie as they seem to have the cheapest prices online. You can get the tyres fitted at a local place after delivery. They had Toyo Proxes for €80 odd euro when it was over €100 everywhere else I looked recently. I got 4 Federal tyres recently for €85 balanced and fitted. So far they are holding up well in the dry and well with a big reduction in road noise. 

Timing kit the cheapest I found was on eBay as that engine is in various other cars. Maybe you could get a local mechanic to fit it then to save a few bob. That's what I did to mine as the Ford Garage was asking similar money as you were quoted. 

How old is your car Lenny? Participating Ford dealerships offer the Motorcraft service for €130 euro for any Ford vehicle 5 years or over. Check it on their website as that's €60 your pocket :)

Hope you get it all sorted before the NCT. I just had mine and had issues with emissions, which got sorted by using Dipetane to clean the fuel system. 

[Lenny]

23 hours ago, JC600 said:

.

[Lenny]

On Monday, April 18, 2016 at 3:42 PM, Hassen said:

 

Were you driving on that tyre still? The thread looks like it pretty much gone? Just wondering if there's an issue with the camber like last time as it looks worn on the one side more than the other. How many miles did you get on the tyres btw? Good thing you are getting them replaced :)

If you are looking for tyres, check out www.Tyreland.ie as they seem to have the cheapest prices online. You can get the tyres fitted at a local place after delivery. They had Toyo Proxes for €80 odd euro when it was over €100 everywhere else I looked recently. I got 4 Federal tyres recently for €85 balanced and fitted. So far they are holding up well in the dry and well with a big reduction in road noise. 

Timing kit the cheapest I found was on Ebay as that engine is in various other cars. Maybe you could get a local mechanic to fit it then to save a few bob. That's what I did to mine as the Ford Garage was asking similar money as you were quoted. 

How old is your car Lenny? Participating Ford dealerships offer the Motorcraft service for €130 euro for any Ford vehicle 5 years or over. Check it on their website as that's €60 your pocket :)

Hope you get it all sorted before the NCT. I just had mine and had issues with emissions, which got sorted by using Dipetane to clean the fuel system. 

Thanks Hassan, 

I was driving few days with flat tyre and didn't know until checked pressure at which point tyre was bald from rolling flat.

reinforced sidewall on 35mm tyres wasn't obvious to see was flat 😀

had all four Avon changed to the new AVON ZV7 on Saturday just gone there, less road noise than ZV5 and outstanding grip, I usually get 8-10 months out of two tyres, soft compound but grip very well. 

Going to stick with dealership for timing belt as it's easiest for me at present but I will discuss the bushes to see how bad they actually are if needing changed now or perhaps get another few months out of it before they need doing. 

I've heard good reviews about dipetane too.

The tracking has been laser aligned to same settings as ST model since it's springs chassis and wheels are now exactly the same.it does have a bit of negative camber still but that's apparently how they are. 

Cheers 

 

[Lenny]

Been thinking about this for a while now and I've come to conclusion.

 

The focus at present is standard front bumper; I have sold the front lip and splitter a while back as I planned on fitting an ST front bumper.

 

I've had the funds in my pocket to purchase the ST bumper now for a number of weeks and I've gone off the idea since my attention is more focused on improving the interior of our home.

 

I can't leave the focus looking like work in progress with zetecS body and standard front bumper; I've gotta make it either st or stock.

 

 

I can't remove the side skirts as the original scuff plates were removed to fit and there on with tiger seal.

 

But the ZetecS rear diffuser will come off and will be going for sale.

 

The duplex exhaust tip section will be removed and replaced with a 90 degree single elbow under the stock bumper, 

If anyone is interested I can have it cut from the backbox resulting in a perfect split duplex end.

 

Finally then the tyres 

The four Avon ZV7 tyres 225/40R18 fitted last week at a cost of 480 euro.

Yep there going for sale too.

 

Will be looking 380euro shipped to UK mainland or 320euro collected for those.

Putting it back to 16" and removing the stripes.

 

Overall it will look like an unstarted project instead of unfinished, as my interests have changed and I'd prefer to spend as little as possible on the car moving forward. 

 

Any interest feel free to contact I'm not in any hurry to sell all parts are Genuine as shown on the build thread.

[Ianb]

So you're not selling the car then? Just some of the mods? :(

Best of luck with the sales Lenny!

[Lenny]

Update:

The exterior parts which were for sale have now all been sold except the ST pod from the dash with gauges but I'm not in any hurry to sell as I'm searching for the replacement dash pocket.

I decided not to sell the 18" wheels in the end as it would cost too much on shipping aswell as selling for a huge loss as the market is croudee with cheaper replica rims.

I'm driving with them on the new Avon ZV7 tyres until there needing changed, then I'll fit some 16's and put the ST rims in storage as I may use them again some day just can't part with them 😅

Anyways following precious discussion on last page where I discussed the list of things ford presented telling me it wouldn't pass the MOT/NCT 

Well I haven't had any of the list done yet, the passenger dipped beam was blown so I replaced both with osram nightbreaker unlimited very good bulbs.

rear reg plate light went too so I replaced with led units as there a pain to keep changing bulbs in.

I then put 50litres of fuel in the tank along with 500ml of Diptaine and took it for the NCT yesterday and it passed!

I was like

😟😐😯😮☺😊😅😀😁😂😭😂😀😊☺😃

Still need to get the timing belt done but the rear bushes ford were going on about being slightly deteriorated and pay us €600 to replace can wait because the car drives just fine and doesnt feel any different since new in that respect.

delighted with the result 👍

difference I suppose is ford test using a calipers and MOT test using there eyes 😁

[Hassen]

Lenny, after my Nct experience recently, I would stand by Depitane as well. Worked on my car and the wife's car. Well worth the €14 paid for it.

Great to hear the car got the nct. I mean, your car is very well looked after and it's in great shape.

If you ever want to sell the alloys wheels, I would like to get first dibs as I think it would look cool on my car.