Lately I have noticed my 1.6 53 plate focus zetec has been idling erratically. Also while driving the other day the car hesitated a few times during acceleration. Shortly after this the engine warning light came on. Left the car overnight and the following morning the engine warning light had gone out. Now when driving as i am slowing down when coming to a junction there has been a few times when it feels like i'm going to stall. I have looked in my Haynes manual and it seems that these problems could be related. Before tackling this i was wondering if there was a recommended place to start. Any advice would be much appreciated. This is my first post so if its badly laid out or you need more information let me know. Cheers.

Hi, I would invest in a code reader , I've just had sort of same problem

engine light displaying , engine misfiring, by using the code reader which

plugs under steering wheel it displyed code p0304 (misfire on cylinder4)

Turned out to be a faulty coil pack once I had ruled out HT leads and spark plugs.

Picked the coil pack up for £15 from the scrapyard. Always go for geniune Ford coil pack.

Hope you get it sorted and let us know the outcome ....

Hi, I would invest in a code reader , I've just had sort of same problem

engine light displaying , engine misfiring, by using the code reader which

plugs under steering wheel it displyed code p0304 (misfire on cylinder4)

Turned out to be a faulty coil pack once I had ruled out HT leads and spark plugs.

Picked the coil pack up for £15 from the scrapyard. Always go for geniune Ford coil pack.

Hope you get it sorted and let us know the outcome ....

thanks shaymen. i've thought about getting one in the past but not sure what to go for. Are there any you'd recommend?

To be fair, even some of the budget ones are very good, plus £15 is cheaper than a dealer visit, even then you can get some bells and whistles on one for the price of a single ford diagnostics. Really depends on your budget. I think somewhere on the forum there have been discussions about OBDII readers...

*Goes Searching*...

ahah - here it is:

Might be of some use to you? I didnt buy one in the end, primarily for funding reasons but I am still considering it!

Thanks for the info, although i'd just ordered one about 30 minutes before reading this. It cost about £20 delivered and is suitable for what i need it for at this time.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230644533100&ssPageName=ADME:L:OC:GB:1123

Let me know what you think.

Looks like a good buy, shame it doesnt tell you *exactly* what features it has :( i.e. exactly what sensors it can read (if any)? unless I missed that part?

My MaxiScan MS300 code reader came yesterday and meets my requirements for now. I hooked it up to my focus and it gave me the code P0352 (Ignition coil B primary/secondary circuit malfunction). Not sure what that means exactly but i'll do some research online and see what i can come up with.

I'll be back with more info.