Focus Mk4 Queries

[Paul9619]

Morning all,

Currently driving a CMAX 2009 and it has had zero mechanical issues since owning it other than general wear and tear etc.  So I thought I would stick with Ford and stay loyal (well maybe!)

Currently looking at a 2018(68) Mk4 Focus Estate with the 2.0 Diesel engine (150PS) in the Titanium X trim with manual gearbox. 

Is there anything I should be aware of before buying?  As I am also contemplating a Black edition Audi A4 for a very similar price.

One thing I have noticed is that for cars built in the period of Oct 18 -Dec 18 that Diesel engine is listed as annual serving but it changes to 2 yearly if bought in Jan 19 onwards. Why would that be? Different engine maybe?

The Focus I am looking at also comes with the following optional extras added:

Panoramic Sunroof, Driver Assistance pack (auto high beam, traffic sign recognition and adaptive cruise control), Convenience Pack (rear camera and park assist), Heated steering wheel, Hands free tailgate, HUD, B&O sound upgrade, Wireless Charging and full LED headlights.

Seems like a good loaded spec.

Your opinions appreciated.

Paul

 

 

[alexp999]

44 minutes ago, Paul9619 said:

Morning all,

Currently driving a CMAX 2009 and it has had zero mechanical issues since owning it other than general wear and tear etc.  So I thought I would stick with Ford and stay loyal (well maybe!)

Currently looking at a 2018(68) Mk4 Focus Estate with the 2.0 Diesel engine (150PS) in the Titanium X trim with manual gearbox. 

Is there anything I should be aware of before buying?  As I am also contemplating a Black edition Audi A4 for a very similar price.

One thing I have noticed is that for cars built in the period of Oct 18 -Dec 18 that Diesel engine is listed as annual serving but it changes to 2 yearly if bought in Jan 19 onwards. Why would that be? Different engine maybe?

The Focus I am looking at also comes with the following optional extras added:

Panoramic Sunroof, Driver Assistance pack (auto high beam, traffic sign recognition and adaptive cruise control), Convenience Pack (rear camera and park assist), Heated steering wheel, Hands free tailgate, HUD, B&O sound upgrade, Wireless Charging and full LED headlights.

Seems like a good loaded spec.

Your opinions appreciated.

Paul

 

 

Same engine, is was a bad decision to ever reduce the intervals but they now have to stand behind it for those cars.

I'd get it serviced annually regardless.

[Tizer]

Even if the service intervals have changed, there will be an oil needs changed light and I doubt many people will manage 2 years without that being triggered.  

[TomsFocus]

As above, you'll most likely need an oil change around a year or less.  But not a full service.

The intervals have been dropped to make it more appealing to company car leasers.  If you lease a large fleet for 3 years and only have to have one service rather than 3 that makes a huge difference.  Lease & warranty only lasts 3 years so longevity isn't an issue for them.

Regarding the car itself, a TX with all that extra spec must cost about the same as a Vignale?  Vignale looks better than TX and comes with a nicer interior, but does come with 18" alloys if ride is important to you.

[Paul9619]

Ok that’s reassuring if it’s the same engine. I am used to annual servicing and I do a lot of miles so don’t mind staying annual for piece of mind.

Odd that they made that decision. I imagine it will cause issues later on in life. One of the reasons I think my CMAX is so reliable is that I service it regularly. 

[south_bound]

I've been driving a Mk 4 estate with same engine and many of the same options since July last year, also coming from a similar vintage Mk2.  Can't fault it to be honest, the 2 ltr engine has good power and I find it really comfortable and quiet on long motorway runs.  Only done 12k miles so far so early days and still getting used to some features.

 

Mine is a Sept 2019 build and not had it serviced at all yet, just the usual fluid level visual checks and such like.  As above, will probably get an oil change soon and a fill up of the ad-blue as well.  

[Paul9619]

6 minutes ago, south_bound said:

I've been driving a Mk 4 estate with same engine and many of the same options since July last year, also coming from a similar vintage Mk2.  Can't fault it to be honest, the 2 ltr engine has good power and I find it really comfortable and quiet on long motorway runs.  Only done 12k miles so far so early days and still getting used to some features.

 

Mine is a Sept 2019 build and not had it serviced at all yet, just the usual fluid level visual checks and such like.  As above, will probably get an oil change soon and a fill up of the ad-blue as well.  

Thanks very useful and good to know.  

[Guy Heaton]

Sounds like a really good spec and worth going for it if it's the right price.

The rear camera is actually really useful but get the dealer to upgrade the sync to the latest 3.4  Before this, a lot of us found the camera unusable at night as it was so bright it killed your night vision.  3.4 set it to be dimmer at night, which makes sense.

Like others have said I would never let a diesel go over 9 or 10k without an oil change.  oil for diesels is different than oils for petrols.  It holds soot in suspension, which is why it always turns black straight away.    Eventually it is saturated with soot and should be changed.

[Paul9619]

Thank you Guy. Good tip for the software update 👍

[Guy Heaton]

And once it's out of warranty get it remapped to the same 190bhp that's in the ST.  😄

[Eric Bloodaxe]

7 hours ago, Paul9619 said:

As I am also contemplating a Black edition Audi A4 for a very similar price.

I'd endorse what others have said on the oil change frequency. Audi were doing variable service intervals (up to max 2 years between services) years ago. Difference was that Audi specified a different (and eye wateringly expensive iirc) oil for cars on variable service. I wasn't happy with the idea and switched mine to annual service (with normally priced oil).

I could see it making more sense for company car users doing big motorway miles though, and certainly for the leading company. (When I was doing that sort of thing a lot of cars were still on 6,000 mile service intervals so 5 or 6 (or more) services year was a bit of a pain in the bum!)

[Mark-UK]

From experience , check the Audi is a full black edition.  Before I got my Focus I too looked at a pre-register Audi A3 Black Edition (it had never been driven once after the transporter dropped it off at the dealer from Audi)

Had a test drive OK, then asked for the spec sheet of the car, there were loads off things missing from what the Audi website came with a Black Edition, I mean it was just so basic.

[Dark Andy]

I've also got a similar spec'd Mk4 TX estate (but with a petrol engine) but came to it after driving an Audi A4 for nearly 10 years. The cars were very similar in size and convenience, with the focus having the upper hand in interior space (both for the driver and rear passengers). The tech on the Focus (especially with the many options that had been added) was more prominent but I'd say the build quality and refinement isn't quite as good - by all accounts Ford have upped their game in this area but I'd say it's still not quite up there with Audi, etc yet. 

[VFR800]

2019 ST Line X 1.5D

Start/Stop - stops working.

Various rattles in the cabin.

Sometime the auto hand brake says it's failed, switch off/on and works again.

B&O sound system when pushed causes doors to rattle

Occasional lock-ups of SYNC system.

Plastics seem fragile, broken tailgate cover just by simply removing it.

Seems a tad noisy at cruise/motorway speed.