My Focus Mk3 Champions Edition

[JW1982]

The difference in brake dust between the front brakes (Brembo discs combined with ceramic Textar pads) and the rear brakes (original factory fitted ATE discs and pads) is stunning.

 

Rear wheels after approximately 1000 KM. The wheels are almost completely covered with brake dust.

 

 

Front wheels after approximately 1000 KM. Most of the dirt on the wheels is just sand/road dirt and no brake dust.

 

The dirt/brake dust on the front wheels is also a lot easier to clean.

Just a bucket of warm water with Meguiars car soap is enought to clean the front wheels in less than 2 minutes.

The rear wheels take a lot longer to become this clean.

Needless to say that the rear brake pads are going to be replaced also. Unfortunately Textar does not offer the Epad ceramic pads for the rear axle of the Focus MK3. ATE is currently one of the few manufacturers that offers ceramic brake pads for the rear axle of the Focus MK3 so i will probably install a set of these ATE ceramic brake pads.

[JW1982]

The only downside of installing bigger front brakes was that my original 15 inch steel wheels with winter tyres did no longer fit. Not really a problem because I also own a set of original 8-spoke Y-design Focus MK2.5 wheels.

After reading several winter tyre tests and reviews I decided to buy myself a set of Barum Polaris 5 winter tyres. Barum is a sub-brand of Continental. Barum is known to offer really good value for money.

I also decided not to install the prescribed 215-50-17 tyre size  but the slightly wider and lower 225-45-17 tyre size. The circumference of the 225-45-17 tyres is an almost perfect match to the circumference of my 225-40-18 summer wheels. My car is configured to run on tyres with this circumference so there is no deviation of the speedometer at all.

After I monitored and compared the online prices of these tyres (prices change almost every hour and the price differences can be quite big) I ordered the tyres from an online shop. The tyres arrived 2 days later.

 

After the tyres arrived I decided to measure the width of the 205-50-17 Continental Sportcontact 2 tyres that were installed on the 17 inch wheels. To my surprice the 205-50-17 Continental Sportcontact 2 tyres were much wider than the suggested width of 205 mm. These tyres were just over 220 mm wide. 

The next day I gave the 17 Inch wheels a good clean and removed all tyre weights. Next I tootk the 17 Inch wheels and the new Barum winter tyres to my local tyre specialist to have the old tyres removed and the new winter tyres installed. After the new tyres were installed I gave the wheels another quick clean to remove the excessive tyre mounting paste. Next I applied some wheel sealant to protect the wheels from dirt and salt.

 

 

The Barum tyres have a really big rim flange protection which protects the rims very well.

Despite the wheels are almost 8 years old (I bought them new) they are stil in mint (like new) condition. The wheels still have the original paint which is very shiny and really sparkles.

After installation the 225-45-17 Barum polaris 5 tyres do almost have exactly the same with as the 205-50-17 Continental Sportcontact tyres that were previously installed on these wheels. Both tyres are just over 220 mm wide. The tread of the Barum tyres is however 195 mm wide while the tread of the Continental tyres was 185 mm wide

Last weekend I installed the wheels onto the car.

 

My first impressions of these tyres are pretty good. The tyres are a lot less noisy than my previous Goodyear Ultragrip 8 winter tyres. This morning the ambient temperature was 0 degrees Celsius and the traction of the tyres was excellent. Only time will tell how they perform in real winter conditions like ice and snow.

 

 

[JW1982]

In advance of the annual service next Month I performed an inventory of all parts that need to be changed.

Apart from all service parts (engine oil, oil filter, sump plug, cabin air filter, etc.) I also decided to take a closer look at the known weaknesses of the 1.0 ECOboost.

First I removed the original recirc valve from the turbo housing. This is literally a 5 minute job. 

The original recirc valve is a vacuum actuated membrane type of valve. The original recirc valve is made of plastic/rubber and is known for premature failure as a result of ageing/hardening of the rubber membrane material. After I disassembled the recirc valve the membrane turned out to be aged/hardened (as expected) and showed already some early stages of cracking. 

The original recirc valve costs over €170,-. In my opinion way too much money for such a cheap, poorly designed piece of plastic/rubber.

 

Fortunately there is an alternative. Turbosmart offers the TS-0203-1265 as an alternative for the original recirc valve.

The TS-0203-1265 is an adjustable vacuum actuated piston type recirc valve. This valve consists of a machined billet aluminium housing, a spring and a precision fit brass piston. The Turbosmart TS-0203-1265 is a direct replacement for the original recirc valve. This part is even cheaper than the original recirc valve.

This weekend I ordered the Turbosmart TS-0203-1265 from the official Dutch distributor. I hope to receive it soon.

 

 

Next to this I also inspected the cooling system of my car. Most of the known weak cooling system parts (Coolant reservoir, Coolant reservoir cap, waterpump) have already been replaced within the last 2 Years. I also installed the additional electric coolant pump. 

The degas hose however was replaced in November 2014 during the recall. Despite being the latest available revision of this part it is still known to cause problems. As a result of hot coolant and engine vibrations this type of degas hose can fail prematurely. There are basically 3 different failure symptoms:

* The plastic T-piece can break/crack.
* The thin plastic pipe can crack/burst near the T-piece.
* The thin plastic pipe can  crack/burst near the quick release connection on the engine side.

The degas hose on my car turned out to show several signs of ageing/discolouration of the thin plastic pipe both near the T-piece and the quick release connection. Being a high selling part Ford tripled the price last Year. It went from less than €13,- last Year to over €40,- right now. a lot of money for a part that needs to be replaced every few Years.

On the MK3.5 Ford introduced some improvements of the 1.0 ECOboost cooling system. The MK3.5 does no longer have the poorly designed, fragile degas hose. The MK3.5 hoses have a different design and are known to be a lot more durable. 

 

MK3 coolant hoses.

 

MK3.5 coolant hoses.

After some research I discoverd that only 2 hoses are actually different between the MK3 and MK3.5. The cooling system of the MK3  1.0 ECOboost can easily be converted to MK3.5 specs by only replacing 2 hoses. An added bonus is that both MK3.5 hoses are even cheaper than the MK3 degas hose.

Today I ordered the MK3.5 coolant hoses and all other (original) service parts. When all parts arrive I will post some pictures.

[JW1982]

2 Weeks ago I received the originel MK3.5 coolant hoses that I ordered from a German parts supplier. This supplier buys the original parts in Eastern Europe / Russia. In these regions the original parts are considerably cheaper than in Western Europe. I paid €50,- for both MK3.5 coolant hoses.

 

MK3  1.0 ECOboost coolant hoses.

 

MK3.5  1.0 ECOboost coolant hoses

 

Combined expansion hose / degas hose.

 

Thin plastic pipe / hose.

Installation of these coolant hoses is pretty straightforward. The MK3.5  1.0 ECOboost coolant hoses are a direct fit to the MK3  1.0 ECOboost. 

After I drained the coolant (there is a drain valve at the bottom of the radiator). I removed the old degas hose and the expansion hose. Next I installed the new MK3.5 coolant hoses. To save time I also replaced the coolant reservoir and the coolant reservoir cap.

I had these parts on stock anyway. The old coolant reservoir and coolant reservoir cap were cleaned and inspected at a later time and stored as used spare parts.

 

Next I vacuum tested the cooling system for approximately 15 Minutes and vacuum filled the cooling system with fresh coolant. 

 

The next day I inspected the original degas hose. This hose was aproximately 4 Years old and was replaced as a preventive measure when I bought the car (a few Months before the recall). Initially the degas hose seems to be in pretty good condition despite some discoloration and ageing symptoms. However after closer inspection the thin plastic line of the hose turned out to be no longer connected correctly to the T-piece. Just one pull at the thin plastic line did make it come loose from the T-piece. Very concerning because this is meant to be a permanent connection that should not come loose at all.

I am very happy that I replaced the dreaded degas hose before it actually caused any problems. The conversion to the MK3.5 design coolant hoses should be a big improvement. These hoses do not have any known issues like the MK3 degas hose.

 

[JW1982]

Last week I received the Turbosmart recirc valve. 

The recirc valve comes as a complete kit including all mounting hardware.

Replacing the recirc valve itself is pretty straightforward. Just remove the plastic turbo pipe to have access to the recirc valve. The original recirc valve is secured to the turbo housing by 3 Torx (T25) bolts.

Removing the bottom Torx bolt is a bit difficult. Removing this bolt is a lot easier with proper tools.

 

Next I installed the Turbosmart recirc valve.

 

 

Turbosmart listed that this recirc valve is suitible for both the Fiesta MK7.5 and Focus MK3/MK3.5 with the 1.0 ECOboost engine. However the supplied manual only lists the Fiesta MK7.5.

The manual says that the original vacuum hose must be plugged and a platic T-piece needs to be installed between a different vacuum line at he back of the engine. Not the best solution in my opinion. When I took a closer look at the vacuum lines on my engine I found out that the vacuum lines on the Focus MK3/MK3.5 are different from the Fiesta MK7.5. The modification that Turbosmart prescribes is not possible on the Focus MK3/MK3.5 without additional modifications to the existing vacuum lines.

As a test i connected the Turbosmart recirc valve to the original vacuum line and took the car for a quick test drive. During  th test drive the Turbosmart recirc valve turned out to function correctly. However there is a good reason why Turbosmart prescribes to plug the original vacuum line and install a different vacuum line. The original vacuum line consists of a very thin preformed plastic line with silicone hoses at both ends. The inner diameter of the plastic line is too small for proper operation of the Turbosmart recirc valve.

This vacuum line is part of a vacuum line assembly that is installed on top of the engine. However the recirc valve vacuum line is basically a standalone part that can easily be seperated from the vacuum line assembly by removing 2 pieces of tape, a piece of shrink tubing and a small rubber.

This vacuum line runs from the recirc valve to the intake manifold. At the intake manifold side the vacuum line has a quick connect connector. This quick connect connector can easily be removed by removing the hose clamp. The recirc valve side of the vacuum line has a mounting clip and a rubber hose protector (grommet). These can also be removed from the vacuum line without any problems. 

Next I installed the quick connect connector to the new silicone hose that was included with the Turbosmart recirc valve. The supplied silicone hose has exactly the same dimensions as the pieces of silicone hose at both ends of the original vacuum line. Because of this the mounting clip and the rubber hose protector can easily be installed onto the new vacuum hose.

 

Next I installed the new vacuum line in top of the cam cover. I used original cloth tape to secure the hose and spirap cable protection to add some protection to the hose.

 

The original quick connect connector installed onto the new vacuum hose.

 

To make the vacuum hose fit perfectly I had to cut a minor piece of the engine cover. This way the engine cover fits perfectly and holds the vacuum hose securely in place.

 

After an extensive test drive the Turbosmart recirc valve turned out to be a big improvement. The Turbosmart recirc valve is much more responsive than the poorly designed original recirc valve. The new recirc valve opens/closes much faster than the original one. Because of this the turbine wheel of the turbo looses a lot less speed during gear changes. The gearchanges are a bit smoother and the engine response after changing gear improved significantly.

It was definetely not plug and play but very worth the effort.

 

 

[b4zz]

looking good and liking what you have done so far.

[rm9]

On 2/9/2016 at 7:23 PM, JW1982 said:

 At a Baudrate of 500.000 Kbps, the update proces takes about 7 hours to complete so I made myself an adapter cable to be able to update the software inside the house on the dinner table. The adapter cable is connected to the ELM327 interface, A suitable 12 Volt DC power source and the instrument cluster.

 

 

 

Would you be able to share how you did this? I want to update an ST cluster I've got my eyes on but don't really want to fit it on the car then have the car on for 12 hours when I can do it inside. 

Thanks

[H1ghlander1977]

On 8/29/2015 at 7:23 PM, JW1982 said:

Yesterday I was home early and decided to start installing the DRL kit.

All parts of the kit are made of good quality materials. The fitment of the triangles into the front bumper is also very good. in my opinion this kit has very good value for money. The wiring looms included in the kit are just long enough to reach next to the left headlight. I installed the DRL controller module on the plastic beam next to the headlight which fits perfectly.

The wiring loom of the DRL control module was really short. It was just long enough to reach the fuse box in the engine bay. This way the wiring will be visible in plain sight. Personally I do not like this so I decided to make some modifications. I disassembled the loom and routed all wires to the correct location. The positive wire was too short so I installed a longer wire. After all wires had the correct length I installed a protective sleeve onto the wiring. Next I attached the wiring loom to the original wiring loom inside the engine bay. I soldered all connections and afterwards used shrink tube for insulation.

All wiring looks very clean now. Basically the DRL control module is the only visible part inside the engeine bay.

 

 

In my opinion this DRL kit looks very nice. I am very happy with it.

Been thinking about getting these, how does the wiring go? 

And another question, the turbosmart recirc valve. Was it a case of just installing it or did you have to do any tweaking first?