gforce Posted May 14, 2013 Share Posted May 14, 2013 Well guys, you may have seen recent pics of my car, but thought it time to try and pull together a progress report in some sort of chronological order, so here goes! I'm struggling to remember all the mods and the order I did them in, and don't have photos of each I'm sure, but will give it a blast! October 2011 I decided to sell my beloved 53 plate Mondeo Zetec S 130 2.0TDCi after 2 and a half years and 60k miles enjoyable ownership. Many pennies and many more hours were spent on it, and it truly was a sad day to see it go (my boy was literally in tears!). My favourite mods on it were probably all the DIY OEM extra interior lighting, Lockwood dials, and of course Eibachs. Oh, and ST style lower mesh grille was a satisfying one as well! Oh, and heated/cooled leather/alcantara interior...the list could go on really! Anyway, I decided to bid farewell to the Mondeo as it had served me well and I seen this little Focus come up at a bargain price. 55 Plate Mk2 pre-facelift Ford Focus, 2.0TDCi 136, 3dr Titanium in Jeans Blue, great standard spec, and lowered and with aftermarket 18s on her. Here's how she stood shortly after purchase... I had long-shot ambitions of putting an ST kit on it one day, as I love the ST looks (and hate the standard black plastic bumper inserts and valances!), but doing around 30k miles a year, 20-something MPG aint an option! I started looking at parts prices and quickly realised an ST kit may be ambitious, but decided to do what I could and see where it took me. First mods were done as soon as I bought it - converting all interior lights, boot lights, no plate lights and sidelights to LEDs removed from the Mondeo. Also installed the cheap xenon-effect bulbs I had, which worked great in the Mondeo lamps with a nice white light, but these came out after a couple of days as the output was really poor from the adaptive projectors. Also installed my Parrot CK3100 which I removed from the Mondeo, straight swap with the same quadlock connector and SOT-092S loom. I then came across this forum as the one I'd used in my Mondeo days was dead on the Focus side...and then the fun began! Fancied the wing mirror indicator upgrade, and after seeing how easy it was in a guide I set about sourcing parts. Gathered up two different colour covers and two indicator units, along with a sheet of carbon 3M wrap and some speaker wire for under £20 and got to work...Silver indicator bulbs all round were also ordered and fitted. I was already desperately hunting ST parts at this stage, and managed to source a rear bumper and these genuine Ford/Ronal wheels locally for bargain prices. Wanted to store the bumper til all parts were sourced and could go on at once, but the wheels were fitted straight away... Have since replaced the tatty centre caps with blue gen Ford ones, ties in nice with the body colour and my painted calipers. Also continued to gather up grilles and surrounds and whatever ST bargains I could find, including side skirts off the bay. Got my gen Ford LHD rear reverse light around this time also from the bay for £7! Spoiler was proving hard to source, so I picked up an MS Design one in my colour, even that was a huge improvement from standard. My next ST find was a set of genuine ST-3 black bi-xenon headlights, given to me from a guy who'd sold his Focus so had no use for them. He had fitted a HID Kit, but I removed this and tidied the wires back up and re-fitted the original bulbs and ballasts that were also supplied... Then came a few subtle but common interior mods which I feel make a huge difference...heater controls and pedal covers... Few extras in the boot were also added with a bit of help from Lenny and his guides on here...second boot light, but I went for a couple of SMD LED pads like Charlie, and also wired in an additional 12V supply. This was a bit more of a faff than normal as I didn't have the extra 12V live plug wired in, but tapped into the front easy enough. Two simple but satisfying mods, highly recommended! Was running out of patience at this stage in my quest for the ST kit, then had a reply to wanted ad I placed online for a complete front bumper at a great price, so had to go for it! Also managed to source an RS spoiler as an alternative to an ST one, as it would save me respray costs. Seller just wanted a standard one in return and a few quid so worked out well! Here's a few pics of the kit finally all gathered up and being sent for paint! Dropped the kit off to the bodyshop, then a week later dropped the car off for fitting along with some fresh number plates, mudflaps and a new tailgate handle (that wouldn't leak and corrode my bulbs!), then a week after that I collected it, looking like this... Then, after some hmm-ing and ha-ing, fitted the RS spoiler... Another dilemma was badging, as I had initially planned to keep 'ST' off it altogether, but haven't come up with a solution yet for the wing badges, so ordered up some carbon inlays from DMB as I think it'll blend better than the red lettering and carbon/chrome overlays as well. After all, the badges can always come off again! So have de-badged the Focus Titanium off the rear, and fitted ST wing badges, front grille badge, and still have rear tailgate and overlays to fit. Along with possibly a TDCi badge with the red 'Ci' carbon'd as well... Sourced a Mk2 ashtray complete with lighter from eBay and fitted straight away. Also fitted the lighter surround ring with an LED 286 bulb which gives a nice glow at night. I have fitted a few CREEs now, 6000K reverse, sidelight and foglights and love them! Remaining mods now are getting an exhaust sorted to fill the bumper cut-outs, so ordered a pair of 4inch slash-cuts from MIJ Exhausts through eBay and my mechanic is gonna knock up the pipework. Wheels are in dire need of a refurb, so need to pick a colour for that (possibly black to tie in with spoiler, front centre lip and rear diffuser), next month hopefully. Gonna order a set of blinds for the rear tint look, and I'm currently in the middle of an upgrade to the facelift rear lights...literally, in the middle of it - I did the passenger side last night in the dark because I'm impatient, but when the skies opened at about 11pm, I called it a night! Had to come to work today with car looking like this, but will get it sorted as soon as I get home this evening. Full guide will follow soon... hopefully! Think that's about it for now! Has come quite a way in the 18months or so that I've been driving it, and have done just under 50k in that time with regular services and no serious bother. I'm sure there are small mods I've left out and probably got some of them !Removed! about face, and my pics aren't great and are missing in a few instances, but it'll do the job! Hopefully I'll be able to keep this updated in one place from now on with the future upgrades...and once it finally looks the part, I might start looking into giving it a bit more oomph then as well, with an upgraded intercooler and remap. Comments welcome...as long as they're nice! ;) Thanks for looking! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenny Posted May 14, 2013 Share Posted May 14, 2013 Well guys, you may have seen recent pics of my car, but thought it time to try and pull together a progress report in some sort of chronological order, so here goes! I'm struggling to remember all the mods and the order I did them in, and don't have photos of each I'm sure, but will give it a blast! Comments welcome...as long as they're nice! ;) Thanks for looking! Great Work done there Gary mate,RS rear spoiler looks excellent on the blue body and I love the ride height looks sweet! Clear units will make it seem wider too, low and wide looks aggressive Grrrr!!! Looking forward to updates mate, 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigante Posted May 14, 2013 Share Posted May 14, 2013 good work gary mate certainly a nice example of an st conversion much bargain hunting n work gone into it 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b4zz Posted May 15, 2013 Share Posted May 15, 2013 looking good fella looks a different car. like the rs spoiler imo doesent look outa place one bit 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted May 15, 2013 Author Share Posted May 15, 2013 Cheers guys, really happy with the way it has turned out so far. Completed the facelift rear light conversion last night, complete with an LED strip at the top for the dual-lit RS look, and what can I say...I love the upgrade! It's one I had never planned on doing, but got the lights for a steal at a local breakers complete with looms and I think it makes a massive difference to the rear end. looks much 'cleaner' and seems to make the RS spoiler blend in that bit more. I took pictures as I went along as best i could (when I remembered!) so I plan to write up a guide for the conversion...just an update of what's already been posted on here really with a bit more info on the wiring and some extra pics. Hope to get it typed up this evening. Stupidly enough I don't have any pics for this thread now with the conversion completed on both sides! So will upload some of those later as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FOCA Posted May 15, 2013 Share Posted May 15, 2013 Its looking good! - i think the blinds or tints would really suit it now - are the blinds more expensive than getting tints done by a pro? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted May 15, 2013 Author Share Posted May 15, 2013 Thanks pal. The blinds are actually the same price in my case, as I got a quote of £70 to do the 3 rear windows by a very reputable local tint guy, and the blinds are £71 posted. Think that's a pretty competitive quote I got for tinting though, so they'd maybe be cheaper for others. I like the idea of the blinds being easily removable if needed but they still give the tinted look. And the only very minor 'issue' I've ever heard with them is on the 5 door when rear windows are down and the shades still on, but obviously this won't be relevant to the 3 door. Plus, a previous owner had tints on the car and removed them badly leaving a layer of tint glue on the windows. I scraped this off myself, but nicked the heater elements in a couple of places, so I'd need to make a damn good job of sorting if I was gonna put tint on, otherwise it could burn right through it I think if I turned on the rear de-mister! Won't have this problem with the shades as I'm assuming they won't be touching the glass. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted May 29, 2013 Author Share Posted May 29, 2013 Little update on this as I've been on relatively little of late. The day or two after I finished the rear light conversion I tried getting both night time and day time pics, but finding it near impossible to get good night time ones for some reason! Will try again tonight and get daytime ones tomorrow. And I'll say it again, I love the difference they make to the rear end! Nearly gives it a wider appearance which suits the spoiler. I also ordered these bad boys a couple of weeks ago and had them fitted over the weekend whilst I was away, so I'll get pics of the finished rear end tomorrow, including exhaust, DMB gels and facelift rear lights! B) Still have the blinds in my eBay basket too, but would like to get the car valeted and in desperate need of a wheel refurb, so need prioritise them somehow! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenny Posted May 29, 2013 Share Posted May 29, 2013 sweet, Looking forward to getting some pictures next to it on Sunday evening mate, Hopfully the weather will be good. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted May 29, 2013 Author Share Posted May 29, 2013 Hopefully so mate! I'd have liked to have planned for it better and got everythin checked off my list, but things have just been so hectic lately I never had a chance, haha! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b4zz Posted May 30, 2013 Share Posted May 30, 2013 i look forwred to seeing the pics fella 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted May 31, 2013 Author Share Posted May 31, 2013 Well guys, managed to get a few snaps today of the exhaust and the finished rear lights. I didn't get night time pics yet, but I might over the weekend to show the LED strip mod in them. Anyway, here's a few to highlight the exhaust and my badges and inlays...hope y'all like! I had initially wanted the tips flush with the bumper, but turns out they were too long to sit flush on the driver's side as the pipe bend is pretty close behind the bumper, so he sat them out the same on both sides, but I think the slight protrusion actually suits them well! Maybe a thicker rolled-in style tip would suit better as well, as these thin slash cuts maybe blend in a bit much to the black rear diffuser, but the pics don't so it justice if I'm honest. And the slightly burnished tip matches well with the car's body colour. Not 100% on my DMBs, was always a fan of the original blue oval and it matched the car well, but they're staying on for now at least. Really like the inlays as I didn't like the original red lettered badges. Anyway, comments welcome as always! WARNING: Picture Alert!!! (I'm rubbish at deciding which pics look best and which ones to pick to post up, so I'll just put up nearly all of them!) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted May 31, 2013 Author Share Posted May 31, 2013 Looking at those last two pics has just confirmed how badly I need those blinds for the tinted rear window look! They're def top of the list...I think, haha! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brigante Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 The tips look good mate Fill the cut outs in the bumper nicely How are they mounted exactly? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted May 31, 2013 Author Share Posted May 31, 2013 Cheers pal. I had a good look on STOC forum for pics of STs with different tailpipes to give me an idea of what looked good. Wanted to fill the holes as you say, so something 3.5 or 4 inch seemed the norm for upgrading to on the ST. Another key factor for me, as always, was keeping the cost down, so went for these Jap style 4 inch slash cuts with burnt tip, and they were only £29 posted for the two... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-JAP-STYLE-SLASHCUT-Burnt-Tip-Exhaust-Tail-Pipe-Trim-/320575816029?pt=UK_CarsParts_Vehicles_CarParts_SM&hash=item4aa3cec15d Would maybe have preferred these ones which I've seen on a red ST-kitted TDCi over on focusowners, and think they suit the ST bumper perfectly. They're also an inch shorter in length so would sit pretty flush to the bumper, but at over £50 posted for the two, I went for the cheaper ones! http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/220831346373?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649 I had my mechanic fit the exhaust... He cut the exhaust from about the middle of the car and ran a new pipe back to the passenger side, with a Y-bend coming off it and piping running over to the driver's side between the spare wheel well and bumper. The tips were just welded on then and fixed with hangers and brackets/mounts. You could get somethin similar done mate, even just have a dummy tip as the driver's side one, like that red one I mentioned earlier. Could be all done for pretty cheap and would finish off the look of your ST bumper nicely. ;) I had planned to give my calipers a rfesh lick of paint last night but had too much to do around the house and garden so never got to it, but when I do and have the rear of the car up on axle stands, I'll get better pics of the handiwork. EDIT: Ha, the forum has just screened my use of a word which is short for 'Japanese' to describe the exhaust tips! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oliverb Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 Tints will finish that off a treat !! Good work mate... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted May 31, 2013 Author Share Posted May 31, 2013 Thanks buddy! I have the custom fit blinds in my eBay basket for a couple of weeks now, just have had so much on lately and another busy couple of months comin up, that I've kept talkin myself out of buying them! Birthday in a couple of weeks, so might see if anyone wants to treat me to them. Might need to get a few bits and pieces up for sale first and can justify (aka not let her know about the PayPal funds!) spending on them a lot easier then! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenny Posted May 31, 2013 Share Posted May 31, 2013 Well guys, managed to get a few snaps today of the exhaust and the finished rear lights. I didn't get night time pics yet, but I might over the weekend to show the LED strip mod in them. Anyway, here's a few to highlight the exhaust and my badges and inlays...hope y'all like! I had initially wanted the tips flush with the bumper, but turns out they were too long to sit flush on the driver's side as the pipe bend is pretty close behind the bumper, so he sat them out the same on both sides, but I think the slight protrusion actually suits them well! Maybe a thicker rolled-in style tip would suit better as well, as these thin slash cuts maybe blend in a bit much to the black rear diffuser, but the pics don't so it justice if I'm honest. And the slightly burnished tip matches well with the car's body colour. Not 100% on my DMBs, was always a fan of the original blue oval and it matched the car well, but they're staying on for now at least. Really like the inlays as I didn't like the original red lettered badges. Anyway, comments welcome as always! WARNING: Picture Alert!!! (I'm rubbish at deciding which pics look best and which ones to pick to post up, so I'll just put up nearly all of them!) The exhaust really suits the car mate, The tail lights and RS spoiler were also a great addition gives it a proper sporty shape. The blinds will really finish it off completly well done mate it looks the business proper 3 door too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stoney871 Posted June 1, 2013 Share Posted June 1, 2013 Defo get the blinds, I love mine and they really look like tints unless you're right next to the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted June 17, 2013 Author Share Posted June 17, 2013 Small update...picked these up off the bay last week, gonna give them a trial fit and then decide/await opinions on whether to stick with my carbon wrapped ones or go with these... I plan to gloss black the grilles at some stage, so along with spoiler and front and rear centre lower bumper sections in gloss black, I think the new mirror caps will tie in better than the carbon wrapped ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted June 17, 2013 Author Share Posted June 17, 2013 Here we go...what you reckon guys, gloss or carbon? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oliverb Posted June 17, 2013 Share Posted June 17, 2013 Yeah ! They look a lot smarter now mate ... Nice touch .. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce Posted June 17, 2013 Author Share Posted June 17, 2013 Cheers pal...pics came out awful (pretty common for me, haha!) in fading light, so will try get some better ones. Think I prefer them too. Need to come up with a plan to get these grilles glossed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oliverb Posted June 18, 2013 Share Posted June 18, 2013 Lol! I can never normally decide what pic to put on here as I end up taking so many different times of day and what not ! Glad you like , little things like that tend to make all the difference ! Aaahhh the grille will look off the nut gloss black too! Just pop it out and get it done pro your looking at about £50 - £60 I reckon !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
b4zz Posted June 18, 2013 Share Posted June 18, 2013 (edited) I think the gloss but like the carbon wrap one to. don't know whats happened to the text to make it so small pmsl Edited June 18, 2013 by Stoney871 Check the settings at the top of the text box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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