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Fusion Or Focus Diesel Estate On A Budget. Which One Should I Go For ?.


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Hello from new member. :)

I have owned a few Fords in the past mainly a Capri 2.0S and a Sierra 2.3 Diesel Estate then a Sierra 1.8TD estate but have been driving minibuses ever since, mainly Transits and VW T4's

The car that I purchase will be used for commuting and for part family days out and long trips when we don't require the Minibus.

I am almost ready to take the plunge and buy myself a Ford Fusion 1.4TDCI or Focus 1.6 TDCI.

The Fusion and the Focus have pretty good reviews in terms of fuel efficiency and reliability but if possible I would like to hear from club members who have first hand experience of both cars.

Currently I drive a 9 seater Minubus but am now looking for a small , reliable and very economical vehicle.

I like estate cars with diesel engines such as the Focus etc but the Fusion is also classed as an estate that should give more practical room than a Fiesta theoretically.

The Fusion seems to fit the bill but so does the Focus estate 1.6 TDCI. Both seem to claim to achieve over 70 MPG on a steady motorway cruise which is @ double what my minibus can achieve, partly due to the weight of the minibus and that it has the aerodynamic quality of a barn door.

At the moment my choices, limited by budget in terms of purchase and insurance costs are in order of preference subject to advice to the contrary from club members:-

2005 54 reg Fusion 1 1.4 TDCI with 80000 miles on the clock with recent Cam belt . @ £2000

2005 54 reg Fusion 1 1.4 TDCI with 60000 miles on the clock with recent new clutch. @ £2000

2006 06 reg Focus Estate 1.6 TDCI with 145000 on the clock with cam belt changed. @ £2600

My budget for a second car are £3000 max :unsure: and that includes insurance and road tax.

Would there be any benefit for me to save up and pay extra for a Fusion 2 or Fusion 3 or are the extra luxuries not really worth it for £1000 or more?. Would I be better off getting a Focus 1.6 TDCI estate?.

I can get fully comp insurance for @ £375 on either of the above Fusion 1's and @ £485 for the Focus.

Which would have the higher maintenance costs not counting fuel economy as they are both similar in that respect.

Do the Fusion 1.4 TDCI and the Focus 1.6 TDCI have DPF's ?.

Thanking You in anticipation for any constructive advice.

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Well my money would be on the focus est tdci as i have one, lovely car, maintenance costs would be the same as the bulk is servicing. mines on a 05 plate bought at 108k and I got the belt done and paid £1420 so shop around. euro 4 cars dont have a dpf euro 5 cars do, but the downside is euro 5 road tax is cheaper.

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Good Morning.

Thanks for the reply.

I have been reading that there can be expensive problems for cars fitted with DPF's and that many people pay to have them removed to avoid these problems.

Thanks Again.

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Which years and engine diesel engined derivatives of the Fusion and Focus diesels do not have a DPF's fitted please?.

I can't afford to be paying out £1400 for a new DPF'S every couple of years, might as well buy a petrol engined model.

Would a 2005 Fusion have a DPF'S on the 1.4 Tdci ..

Thanks

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Which years and engine diesel engined derivatives of the Fusion and Focus diesels do not have a DPF's fitted please?.

I can't afford to be paying out £1400 for a new DPF'S every couple of years, might as well buy a petrol engined model.

Would a 2005 Fusion have a DPF'S on the 1.4 Tdci ..

Thanks

Pretty sure it won't have as the Fusion is a Fiesta base and they did not fit DPFs to the 1.4 TDCi.

I would choose the Focus just because it is a Focus, but it is going to be personal preference at the end of the day. Your username makes me think you already know what you want :)

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The main reason I was thinking of the Fusion 1.4TDCI was, as you mention, I was led to believe that it wouldn't have a DPF.

If I could get a Focus estate for similar money to the Fusion then that would provide us with more room and should hopefully have a 6 speed gearbox box. The transit minibuses that we drive at work can cruise at 70 MPH at @ 2000 revs in 6th gear so a 6th gear would be a bonus..

Does the Focus 1.6 TDCI ( 90 ) engine have a DPF fitted ?.

I was talking to a Peugeot owner and he thought that only the engines with more than 90 bhp had a DPF fitted.

It's confusing trying to find out which engines are DPF free.

If I ended up buying a Focus with DPF fitted then I would look into having it professionally removed ASAP.

Thanks

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The 1.6 TDCi 90PS Engine in the Fiesta did not have a DPF (at least in the UK), but I'm not sure about the Focus.

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mines a 2005 1.6 tdci euro4 so no Dpf, its got no 6th gear either though. apart from it being stated on the logbook I dont know how else you would know for sure, but for family days out ect in my eyes would beat the fusion hands down, mine is also an estate, I bought it as a stop gap car and to ship my dogs about till I found the right BMW 530d touring, I like it so much its stopping for now, stopped looking for the bmw and even thinking of getting a newer model focus est to what I have as its one of the nicest cars Ive ever driven, and Ive had a lot of cars.

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Thanks Georgen.

I might just have a look around for a bargain Focus 1.6 Tdci Estate around 2005. but will make sure that it doesn't have the dreaded DPF.

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I have a Focus 2006 1.6 TDCi [110] and can confirm that it most definitely does have a DPF. I believe that the 90bhp does too, although I can't be 100% sure. I can also confirm that it will not get 70mpg on the motorway. I've had it a bit over a year now, and I've averaged about 55mpg over that time. Dips to high 40s/low 50s in winter, and obviously higher during the summer.

On a long motorway run I usually get mid to high 50s.

The fusion definitely isn't a spacious car. The boot isn't a lot bigger than a fiesta, however it's a lot more upright. Think of it as "a fiesta on stilts." The driving position is a lot higher up, but the rear doesn't slope so you get fractionally more boot space. I've only got a hatchback Focus, but i've got loads more room than a Fusion. Don't consider it as an estate as you'll be disappointed, however if you consider it as a small economical city car then you'll be delighted. It's definitely more economical than a Focus.

Tl;dr fusion is much smaller, but more economical.

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To find out if it has a DPF, go to http://www.etis.ford.com/home.do.

Click on the "vehicle" tab and type in the registration number, then look under the "emissions" in the blue box on the right.

Mine says "Stage IV + DPF Emissions".

Hope this helps :).

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Ill also add mine is a 90 bhp and definitely does not have a DPF so looks like the change must of being 2005-2006 the amount of road tax should be a clue too, mine costs £105 per year the ones with DPF are cheaper to tax.

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To find out if it has a DPF, go to http://www.etis.ford.com/home.do.

Click on the "vehicle" tab and type in the registration number, then look under the "emissions" in the blue box on the right.

Mine says "Stage IV + DPF Emissions".

Hope this helps :).

linky not worky

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http://www.etis.ford.com/vehicleRegSelector.do

You might need to register to put your reg in.

I have that one but the reg input was interesting as you could see a car you like then input the reg, saves taking down the complete vin, thanks.

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Once you have used the site a few times you have to register to enter a reg lookup.

I did, it is free.

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Once you have used the site a few times you have to register to enter a reg lookup.

I did, it is free.

so you register as a independent operator?

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so you register as a independent operator?

Yes, doesn't ask for many details. Then you can do reg lookups as many times as you want.

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Yes, doesn't ask for many details. Then you can do reg lookups as many times as you want.

Cheers thats good to know ;)

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Obviously you have to agree to the terms of use though to register :)

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Ill also add mine is a 90 bhp and definitely does not have a DPF so looks like the change must of being 2005-2006 the amount of road tax should be a clue too, mine costs £105 per year the ones with DPF are cheaper to tax.

Mine costs £105 per year too. For the Mk2.5 (2008 ish) they introduced a maintenance free DPF, which means you do not need to add the ELOYS fluid every 37,500 years. This is tax band C, so £30 a year. I was under the impression that only the 1.8s were DPF-free, so if you haven't got one either then you are definitely lucky!

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I drive a Fusion 3 1.4 TDCI (at least i think it is looking at the info from Wikipedia: Equipment on the entry-level 1 included a cassette player, central locking, and dual front airbags. The 2 featured electric heated mirrors, electric front windows, a CD player and air conditioning. The 3 added alloy wheels, front fog lights and an alarm. The + model added larger alloys and privacy glass. This + model was introduced in May 2002. Only thing missing from a 3 on mine is alarm)

It's nice and spacey, if you have a bad back like my wife the seatheight is perfect to get in.

It's also relatively economical, i write relatively cause it will depend highly on how fast you drive.

If i only drive 80 and 100 km/hr i get at max 64.2 MPG. Driving 120 km/hr will sink it to 39 MPG. Reason being the Fusion has the aerodynamics of a brick so it will get very thirsty real quick when driving fast.

Must say i don't have A label tyres, more like F or G regarding fuel economics. I think if i would fitt Michelin Energy's or similar eco tyres it would likely up the milage by 5 or 6 MPG. (Experience from our other car)

Think the Focus will be more economical at higher speeds in comparison to the Fusion, it has better aerodynamics.

Don't know the difference between the 2 as for insurance and roadtax in England but here in Holland the Fusion is cheaper on both accounts, it doesn't weigh as much as the Focus and it's new price was lower.

My Fusion had a DPF, probably because it was imported from Germany and there you need those things to get a green sticker to get into the cities. Because on my reg. papers it said it didn't have one i removed it, just replaced the front pipe with a new one (aftermarket, real cheap).

One of the best moves on the car, it immediatly ran better and more economical. DPF was really hindering the engine's breathing.

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I registered etis and looked deeper into the dpf question, now i was told the euro 4 didnt have a dpf but according to etis on my reg plate it states dpf renewal every 75000 miles, so appears I was wrong and I need to go out and get some heat into it, now i am not having any problems at 109000 miles and checking the service history it was ford main dealer serviced till 77718 miles which is when I surmise the dealer changed it so diesel fusion I apologise for giving you wrong info on the focus and apologise to you minnis for doubting you. :mellow:

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To find out if it has a DPF, go to http://www.etis.ford.com/home.do.

Click on the "vehicle" tab and type in the registration number, then look under the "emissions" in the blue box on the right.

Mine says "Stage IV + DPF Emissions".

Hope this helps :).

Mine says "Stage IV Emissions"

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I registered etis and looked deeper into the dpf question, now i was told the euro 4 didnt have a dpf but according to etis on my reg plate it states dpf renewal every 75000 miles, so appears I was wrong and I need to go out and get some heat into it, now i am not having any problems at 109000 miles and checking the service history it was ford main dealer serviced till 77718 miles which is when I surmise the dealer changed it so diesel fusion I apologise for giving you wrong info on the focus and apologise to you minnis for doubting you. :mellow:

Mine says "Stage IV Emissions"

I know you can tell from looking under the car whether or not it has a DPF or not. Of course I have no idea what i'm looking for, but I'm sure next time your car's in for a service or something they'll be able to have a look and tell you :). Also, you can't always trust etis to the letter - it says mine's a saloon when it's a hatchback.

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