Yeah looking at a breaker, mainly because hopefully I can get one the same colour! Minus the rust, even though it's an ST, it's just a standard focus wing isn't it?

I was looking at a bodyshop changing the wing but from the looks of it its quite do-able at home?

5 hours ago, jonj1611 said:

I was looking at a bodyshop changing the wing but from the looks of it its quite do-able at home?

Haven't done it myself, but as far as I understand, yes, it's a bolt off, bolt on job  no welding involved... But, the bodyshop will have experience of any minor fettling involved for a good fit. Not sure how perfect a job DIY would be.

Will see what type of quotes I get.

Ok something I have noticed, the car has spacers fitted all round, I did think it looked a bit wider on the wheels than normal. I am not a big fan of spacers myself even though the car looks nice, if I remove them do I just use the bolts are on the car for the wheels? Sorry if that's a daft question.

Looks like 20 or 25mm spacers.

Well tonight is full of surprises, seems the car also has H&R lowering springs!

If I remove the spacers will it mess up the geometry? Never had spacers or lowering springs before!

I say bolts but didn't realise the Focus doesn't have wheel bolts, sorry long time since I have had a ford

The wing isnt a hard job overall from what I remember, the Haynes has pretty much everything on there so you shouldn't struggle.

Spacers wise, I was never a fan but I also ran H&R on mine too, depending on how wide a spacer you have you'll notice that it may ride a little more 'huggy' in the corners at pace, but I never found them to be a nice feeling, i always had a degree if uncertainty as to where the limit was; with them off the car will find the wheels easier to turn so it might feel that touch more agile. Nice and simple bolt on/off usually, merely slips between hub and wheel.

Have a play, if anything you gain that bit of mechanical experience you haven't explored yet- It not a hard one overall, but for a first time the wing can be a little time consuming, so if you're planning to have a go just plan around the light available is my only advice, and if you're unsure make sure to take pics as you go to refer back to!

The sill cap bit does seem to be an easy one, and the crushing isn't the worst I've seen.. I'd be tempted to leave it be if it's not noticable, just have the cap off, tidy the paint and splash on some decent sticky stuff. Enjoy the rest of the money saved on getting it pulled/sorted after its pulled and put it to a re-laquer or new bonnet, etc.

Some jobs although niggle-y, just aren't worth doing for the minimal difference it'll make given the amount you'd have to spend to get sorted, it's all down to personal preference if it isn't of mechanical concern 😉

Thank you for the advice, I never actually noticed the car feeling any different when I was on the test drive but then I have never had an ST so didn't know what to expect, I am more of a standard person, like things as they were designed for. My days of modifying cars etc are long behind me. But I must say the drive was incredibly nice but I did feel as though I was picking up more bumps in the road etc and now I know why! Not sure what to do about them to be honest, might have to sleep on it. I have a garage with lighting so thankfully not restricted to daylight hours! Especially this time of year though it still gets cold!

My Haynes manual doesn't seem to cover the wing, I will have to look through it again.

Mechanically the car is sound, its all cosmetic, looks like someone has really spent some money on getting the mechanicals done but let everything else go. Strange because it is a really nice drive and sounds lovely.

But for me I like the car to look as good as well so I will do all the bits I can and hopefully bring it up to a good standard. First thing to go is that wing if I can get a replacement, the rust is in 3 areas I can see, no point wasting time trying to save it and spend money getting it painted etc.

Going to order some Tigerseal for that end cap.

Again thank you for the replies, sorry if this thread is a bit all over the place, rather keep it in one place that start multiple new threads

Right if I remove the spacers, will it mess up the geomatry/tracking?

If anything, removing the spacers will improve the geometry.

As for the tracking, that really depends if it was done after the previous owner put spacers on. If not it should improve too, it shouldn't cost too much to have it checked after you remove them, it can pay for itself just to prevent uneven tyre wear.

Yes reason I asked is because now the car is absolutely faultless to drive, tracks perfectly, so was just wondering if removing the spacers would cause that to go out, I am getting 4 new tyres fitted so probably worth doing anyway, thats if I ever got the locking wheel nuts off, dealer can't find it!

Can't help thinking of the old saying, "if it ain't broken, don't fix it"

I need to jack the car in order to change the tyres, how do I jack it on the front right with that sill like it is? I believe that used to be the jacking point! Where would I jack it now?

1 hour ago, jonj1611 said:

I need to jack the car in order to change the tyres, how do I jack it on the front right with that sill like it is? I believe that used to be the jacking point! Where would I jack it now?

What sort of jack are you using? A trolly/floor jack goes further in to the sub frame area, if you're using the standard scissor there's a couple of points you can use, but again it depends on the type of jack. Ome with a groove that runs along the sill you should be okay to drop back a couple of inches, if it's a flat block type one then I would look to invest in a cheap trolly really. They do make things so much easier, well worth the outlay for how much hassle it saves.

Thanks for the reply. I have one of these :

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sealey-1025HL-2-25tonne-Trolley-Rocket/dp/B005TFSI5K/ref=sr_1_8?crid=3JB8XHTB7IDQP&keywords=quick+lift+jack&qid=1576621689&sprefix=quick+lift+%2Caps%2C209&sr=8-8

But its quite big! I had it on my old car which was a 4x4, the Focus ST is a completely different beast and lowered, I don't think I can physically get it any further underneath than the jacking point on the sill

Drive onto some wood or bricks to give you an extra couple of inches so you can push the jack further under.  Or use a black of wood to spread the weight on that jacking point if you can do that with the skirts?  

Might be worth investing in a Low Entry jack for future use.  I've got a Sealey LE2500 (not sure if they still make them!) which has never failed to get under a lowered car but it's just a shame it's so heavy!

I am wondering if it is worth jacking at the offside rear jacking point as that should technically lift the front higher as well, well it did on my Golf and then might have clearance to get the jacking point in the middle front somewhere. Can't give it a go right now as garage needs clearing.

I think that jacking point is too rusted to be pulled back out, there is an awful lot of rust under the car, not the body but the rear suspension components etc, some of it is just dirt but a lot of it looks really rusty, I am hoping its just surface rust, nothing that can't be replaced but don't really want to start spending out on parts, the car went through the MOT a few weeks ago with no mention about it.

I am thinking about getting it waxoyled or however its spelt

On 12/15/2019 at 3:27 PM, jonj1611 said:

I was looking at a bodyshop changing the wing but from the looks of it its quite do-able at home?

I replaced both front wings on my MK2 saloon 2-3 years ago due to major rot on the bottom part which meets the sill.  There's 100% no welding, just LOTS of bolts and screws to remove.  Also, the plastic female fittings that some of the screws fix into where totally spannered and had to be replaced.  Once you have a replacement wing you can use it to see where all the fixing points are.

Thanks, do you mean the bumper brackets? A bodyshop who gave me a quote for them to put the wing on said they always break and need replacing. But I wasn't sure what bit they meant.

Someone has bent the jacking point which has caused some rust to set in under the car, the wing is no longer attached as its actually rotted away at the bottom, only thing holding it in place is the sideskirt end cap.

42 minutes ago, jonj1611 said:

Thanks, do you mean the bumper brackets? A bodyshop who gave me a quote for them to put the wing on said they always break and need replacing. But I wasn't sure what bit they meant.

Someone has bent the jacking point which has caused some rust to set in under the car, the wing is no longer attached as its actually rotted away at the bottom, only thing holding it in place is the sideskirt end cap.

Yeah (if I remember correctly), it was the fixings that mated the wing to bumper.  The other fixings were "proper" bolts, the wing to bumper fixings were screws and the crappy plastic things.

Many thanks 🙂

On 12/15/2019 at 2:36 PM, jonj1611 said:

As for the trim, I am not sure if it is the sill that causing the issue, I think the adhesive has just come away, maybe Tigerseal or similar will be the answer?

However due to rust that I found that I didn't notice I am thinking about just replacing the entire wing rather than messing around with rust treatment and painting etc.

Cars had a tired life mate 😞 I bet muck has built up behind the sill cover and over time with water & pressure the cover is being forced out, which has forced it open, our sons ST was similar and when he removed the wheel arch liner the muck behind was really bad, enough to seed a row of potatoes.

That sill has been jacked up by a standard trolley jack with no attachments.

You know of anyone who has an industrial jet wash ? Not the general use type but the ones that could blow you to the moon & back, one of them will quickly remove the lose rust and crap from the underside, though not the best time of year for drying the underside out.....summer job. 

I found out what was in the end, the bottom part of that wing is missing! Its rusted away entirely so its no long attached to the car. Thats what is pushing the end cap out, the end cap is holding the wing in lol. I am getting another wing soon so will get it all replaced and resealed 🙂

1 hour ago, Ian Lanc said:

Cars had a tired life mate 😞

It's a strange one this car, the underside looks like it has been sat in water in places, I mean the main chassis is fine, just normal, its mainly that bit in the picture and some other bits that bolt on, but the chassis itself is fine. Odd.

But the engine, wow, that is the quietest most looked after engine I have ever had, I contacted the mechanic who was the last person to stamp the service book and he said he had worked on that car for the last few years and the previous owner spared no expense on services etc, all genuine ford parts including the cambelt and waterpump etc. The interior as well is first class for the cars age, everything works and looks like new and with heated cloth recaros its a bonus 🙂 Can't fault the engine or interior, its just the body work, someone has spent an awful lot of money on the engine etc but left the body which is a shame.

I am going to refurb the wheels myself(hence wanting the jacking point done), I have a new, well secondhand bonnet and wing coming.

The car is booked into the garage Friday to have the spacers removed, H&R spacers so will sell them on I think

After I have put the bonnet and wing on and get the underside sorted going to machine polish it myself. I have a garage at home so its a lot easier especially this time of year.

Will give it lots of TLC and hopefully it will be the stunning car I know it can be.

16 minutes ago, jonj1611 said:

It's a strange one this car, the underside looks like it has been sat in water in places, I mean the main chassis is fine, just normal, its mainly that bit in the picture and some other bits that bolt on, but the chassis itself is fine. Odd.

Cars living a life near the sea seem to deteriorate like that, knew of one golf mk1 and it looked great but on the inside it was rotten as hell, spent it's life from new living in Skeggness.