Hi, looking for some advice?

Current car is 1.6 tdci ford focus zetec econetic 2014 which I have owned for 5 years, looking to upgrade to a newer focus (between 68 plate 2018-2022) and trying to decide if I should stick to a diesel model or switch to petrol. I currently do alot of town driving and 5 minute runs on the motorway near my home few times a week so not doing alot of long drives so would be grateful for any advice and do all the newer diesel models use adblue?

2 minutes ago, tnl54 said:

should stick to a diesel model

If you want to sleep at nights and not worry about engine failures then I'd recommend you look at the 1.5 Ecoblue.

Of all the modern Ford engines the diesel 1.5 Ecoblue is perhaps the most reliable, noticeable by the lack of people complaining about them here on the forum.

Yes you will need to use Adblue but it's no worse than having to occasionally having to fill up your screen wash.

I was looking at the 1.5 ecoblue and good to hear the adblue is easy to fill not like some other cars out there.

I wouldn’t touch a diesel with those sort of journeys. It will constantly be trying to regen. Then you’ll get dpf problems. 

My current diesel has no issues ever with the dpf and had it 5 years and had a fiesta diesel before that and had no issues with the dpf either but do know the new models have a different engine which is why I asked the question? Cheers for your feedback 👍 

What sort of length town journeys? It’s the time needed to get the exhaust warm rather than speed. 

The early 1.5 EcoBlue doesn't use Adblue.  Changeover in build was roughly August 2020.

Expect a lot more DPF regens and more frequent oil changes compared to your Mk3 1.6 TDCI.

Around 10 / 20 mins each time with some days 30mins depending on where I'm going. 

Tom - yeah that's what I was worried about that the newer models may cause more issues with short runs 

 

I do tend to do a nice long run every few months.

 

Hi Tom, you say "The early 1.5 EcoBlue doesn't use Adblue.  Changeover in build was roughly August 2020" - Out of these which one is better with or without adblue?

 

5 minutes ago, tnl54 said:

Hi Tom, you say "The early 1.5 EcoBlue doesn't use Adblue.  Changeover in build was roughly August 2020" - Out of these which one is better with or without adblue?

 

Swings and roundabouts really.  With the older one you don't have the cost and hassle of refilling Adblue.  And no chance of faulty Adblue components in future.

However the EGR is worked harder to meet the emissions requirements, which ultimately means even more regens and more oil contamination.

The later models have a larger oil sump to better cope with contamination over a longer period.

Honestly, if you don't mind the hassle of topping up the Adblue, I'd go for as late a model as you can afford personally.

Long runs are needed every week or two really, one every few months won't really help.

39 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

Swings and roundabouts really.  With the older one you don't have the cost and hassle of refilling Adblue.  And no chance of faulty Adblue components in future.

However the EGR is worked harder to meet the emissions requirements, which ultimately means even more regens and more oil contamination.

The later models have a larger oil sump to better cope with contamination over a longer period.

Honestly, if you don't mind the hassle of topping up the Adblue, I'd go for as late a model as you can afford personally.

Long runs are needed every week or two really, one every few months won't really help.

Cheers Tom I'll keep that in mind when deciding, I have heard the 1.0 ecoboost has lots of issues so want to stay clear of that, not sure if any of the other petrol models are better.

I am also looking at hyundai i30 so will compare everything and make a decision. (Last 4 cars have been ford's so probably will still be a ford 🤣)

 

 

 

 

 

54 minutes ago, TomsFocus said:

if you don't mind the hassle of topping up the Adblue,

Personally I'd not say putting 10 litres of AdBlue in the filler approx every 7000 miles is any hassle, as I said earlier no worse than topping up the screen wash. The cost is typically £12 for a 10 litre container so not that expensive.

Oh yeah definitely sounds like the adblue version would be the better option if went down the diesel option.

24 minutes ago, tnl54 said:

I am also looking at hyundai i30 so will compare everything and make a decision.

The i30N is a cracker but I guess you mean the "normal" versions!😀

You might find the SEAT Leon well worth a look also. 

 

oh no the N version looks stunning 🤩

 

22 minutes ago, Eric Bloodaxe said:

The i30N is a cracker but I guess you mean the "normal" versions!😀

You might find the SEAT Leon well worth a look also. 

 

oh no the N version looks stunning 🤩

40 minutes ago, tnl54 said:

(Last 4 cars have been ford's so probably will still be a ford 🤣)

Been there!

 

There are plenty of threads on here covering the petrol models so I won't go into detail with those.

The only petrol options in the Mk4 are the 1.0 EcoBoost or the 1.5 EcoBoost.  Both of those use a chain for the cams.  And a small wetbelt for the oil pump.  Unlike the pre-Mk4 1.0 which used a wetbelt for both the cams and the oil pump.  It's too soon to say how reliable the chain engine will be long term.  We are starting to see a few failures now.  But nothing like the numbers of the old wetbelt engine so far.

From around 2020 the mild hybrid system was added to some 1.0 EcoBoost's, giving up to 155bhp from the MHEV and enough torque to rival a diesel.

Also worth noting that road tax is a flat rate of £190 on every car registered since 2017*.  So there's no longer a tax incentive to choose diesel over petrol.

(*MHEVs are £10 a year cheaper, but that's barely noticeable on the current rates.)