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My Focus Mk3 Champions Edition


JW1982
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Must admit they look nice & I'd like a set but just can't justify spending that much on a set.

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After some negotiations with the Chinese seller this kit did only cost me €52,-.

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They look very nice, though I like more the horizontal version of these for the Mk3 (I believe even Ford sells them as an accessory)...or a combination fog/DRL. Or, the best version, DRLs incorporated into headlights :D

I'm surprised that Ford doesn't have it's own DRL system for Mk3 like it had for the Mk2 - with low beam at 80-85%...or does?

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I guess it is just a matter of taste. Personally I prefer the vertical DRL.

Apart from the original Xenon headlights with integrated DRL Ford offers the (extremely expensive) horizontal Nolden DRL kit and the (also expensive) combined DRL/fog lamp kit from Osram as an accesoire.

Next to this it is also possible to activate the Scandinavian DRL function. On the Focus MK3 this basically means that the headlights and taillights are always on if the engine is running. Only the headlights (like the Focus MK2/MK2.5) is no longer possible. Possibly because this is illegal in many countries.

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Definitelly a matter of taste... :)

Oh yes, they're pretty expensive from Ford here in Slovakia too...I believe they go as high as 300€ per kit...which is absolutely ridiculous, considering you can get the Osram kit for about 220€, or even less when it's on sale from a regular accessories seller...

I didn't know that the scandinavian system with low beam only is illegal :O ... though I guess it makes sense, it's different light beam pattern than regular DRL so I guess it could be because of that...

But then yes, separate DRLs do make sense, having all the lights on, all the time, is not that necessary so it's better to save the bulbs and use just the DRLs during the daylight :)

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Today I installed LED lights behind the reflectors of the front door panels. I made some brackets which bolt onto the existing mounting hole of the door panels. On each bracket I drilled holes and installed 3 pieces of 5 mm red LED lights. Next I soldered the LED's, a suitable resistance and the wiring together and sealed the connections with epoxy for extra insulation.

The LED lights are connected to the puddle light outputs of the door modules. This way the LED lights light up if the car is unlocked or one of the doors is open.

 

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The reflectors are illuminated nicely and the light is evenly spread.

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If the door modules support it the puddle light output can easily be activated in the vehicles Central Configuration of the BCM.

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  • 2 weeks later...

As a part of my future plans I decided to buy myself a performance air filter. Because of some good experiences from the past A K&N replacement filter was my first choice. At first I was planning to buy the normal K&N E-2993 replacement air filter but because of the little price difference I decided to buy the K&N E-9289. The K&N E-9289 is the replacement filter which is also included in the K&N 57S-4000 kit.

Compared to the normal K&N E-2993 replacement filter the E-9289 replacement filter has a larger filtration surface and a removable cap which converts the air filter into a semi-open air filter.

Today I received the air filter.

 

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The filter looks really nice. Unfortunately the weather was pretty bad today so I did not have the chance to install the air filter. I hope the weather to be better tomorrow.

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Get yourself out there and fit it, its only a 2 minute job even in the dark. I fitted mine a few months ago and removed the snorkel too, it sounds great! :)

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  • 1 month later...

Really nice things you've done to your car JW. The introduction of LED'S into the doors reflectors concerns me a little though. The photo you've posted shows the LED'S very well but where is the screw (which is one of a few) which partly attaches the door card to the door? Am I right in assuming you've used that screw to attach your LED'S?

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I used the door card screws to secure the LED brackets. I used some longer original screws which I still had from my previous Focus MK2. The extra holes in the LED brackets are needed to insert a screwdriver to fasten the door card screws.

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As I thought. It would be good of you to let us know the measurements of the bracket you made and which wire you used and where you tapped the power from (maybe a pic to show). I'm suprised Ford didn't do this as standard in the titanium x spec focus.

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I did not take any measurements of the brackets. I removed the red reflectors from the door cards and made some prototype brackets which fitted exactly inside the door panels. After some testing I made the final design rounded brackets to spread the light more evenly and added the holes to insert a screwdriver.

The reflector lights are connected directly to the door modules. I used the following Pin numbers of the door modules:

Puddle lights (Positive)

Connector C2 pin 6


Ground

Connector C2 pin 18

This will only work if your car has puddle lights or door modules that support the puddle light function. To make it work the puddle light function needs to be activated in the Central Configuration of the car.

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Ok JW thanks. My car is a titanium x and has just about everything except adaptive cruise and illuminated door reflectors.

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Some time ago I found some illuminated rear bumper reflectors on eBay. However the price was ridiculous so I decided to wait a little longer. A few weeks later I found the same reflectors in an internet auction. I made the seller an offer and bought the reflectors for a really good price.

The reflector lights have 2 functions. Position lights and brake lights. Because of legal issues and also a matter of taste I decided to only use the position light function. I modified the wiring of the reflector lights, installed protective sleeves on the wiring and some waterproof connectors to make assembly/disassembly in the future much easier.

Today the weather was nice so I installed the reflector lights to the rear bumper and I also installed the wiring. I Used the original grommets to feed the wiring to the boot of the car. In the boot I connected the wiring to the existing wiring loom to the tail lights. I soldered every connection and used heat shrink tubing for insulation.

 

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The illuminated rear bumper reflectors look really nice. The light output is about the same as the original taillights.

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Excellent mod JW. We're those illuminated reflectors from the USA by any chance?

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No, I bought them from a seller based in taiwan. The quality of these reflectors is pretty good. The lenses do even have the same FoMoCo logo and approval numbers as the originals.

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Oh. Care to post a link to that seller?

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are they legal where you live

Oh. Care to post a link to that seller?

The seller I bought them from does no longer sell them. However there are someother sellers on eBay.com or AliExpress.com which offer these illuminated rear bumper reflectors.

are they legal where you live

in the Netherlands these illuminated rear bumper reflectors are perfectly legal. Our traffic law requires 2 mandatory rear position lights and also allows an additional pair.

However an additional pair of brake lights or rear fog lights are not allowed. This is why I decided to only use the position light function of the rear bumper reflectors.

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  • 1 month later...

The last few months I have been reading about and searching for a suitable diagnostic system for my Focus MK3. As a professional (industrial) mechanic I maintain and diagnose all of my cars myself. I already owned a Ford specific FoCom diagnostic system that I used for my previous Focus MK2. Unfortunately the FoCom system has limited support for newer Ford models like the Focus MK3.

Until now I used a good quality ELM327 interface and the FoCCCus software. This software is great for changing the Central car Configuration and does also have the ability to update the firmware of some modules. However updating the firmware at a Baudrate of 500.000 Kbps will take a really long time. Next to this the FoCCCus software does not support some functions I need for future modifications of the car so it was time for something different.

After a lot of research I decided to buy myself the original Ford IDS system. Unfortunately the original (Bosch) VCM 2 is extremely expensive. The cheapest one I found costed €1800,- and for that price it does not even have a licence yet. Basically the original VCM 2 is not affordable for a private user.

I started the search for a decent goog quality VCM 2 clone. There are litterally hundreds of (mostly Chinese) manufacturers that produce VCM 2 clones. Clones can be categorized into 3 different categories:

1. Direct copies of the original VCM 2. These are 100% identical of the original VCM 2.

2. Direct copies of the original VCM 2 with cheaper components or even missing components on the circuit board.

3. Clones with their own single circuit board. These clones are internally completely different from the original VCM 2.

When buying a VCM 2 clone it is very difficult to determine which type and quality clone is offered. Currently the SP-177 and SP-239 clone families are very popular. The SP-177 clone family consists of a number of clones.

 

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The difference between the different SP-177 clones are:

* Quality of the circuit board (soldering and components).

* Supported car brands (supported software).

* With or without WIFI (some versions do support WIFI but come without the WIFI dongles).

Technically the SP-177 clone family is a 100% direct clone of the original VCM 2. This type of clone does have 2 circuit boards which have the same layout as the original VCM 2 circuit boards.

Next to the SP-177 clone family there is also the SP-239 clone family. The SP-239 consists of 2 different types of clone:

* SP239-B. This clone has the same looks as the original VCM 2 but is internally completely different. This type of clone has its own single circuit board.

* SP239 and SP239-W (WIFI). This type of clone is also called VCXdiag or VCXnano and has its own exterior and internal design.

Finally there are lots of clones that are based on a different clone instead of the original VCM 2. The quality of these clones are usually quite low.

Many sellers do not mention clone family names at all or mention a completely wrong name. Fortunately many sellers will display pictures of the clone they are selling. These pictures can be used to determine the type of clone and its quality.

Personally i used the following criteria to find a decent clone:

* Pictures of the circuit boards.

* Circuit boards a direct copy of the original VCM 2.

* Brand/type of components the same as the original

* Positive feedback from previous customers.

Based on these criteria I found a seller on AliExpress who offered a clone that looked very nice for a fair price. I decided to took the gamble and ordered the clone. As described it arrived within 4 weeks

 

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After I received the VCM 2 clone I opened it to compare it with the pictures from the advertisement. The VCM clone turned out to be completely as described. This VCM 2 clone is 100% identical to the original VCM 2. After some testing is turned out to be fully compatible with the original Ford IDS software and it can even be updated to a new Ford IDS software version.

 

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Currently I am running Ford IDS version V97.05 without any problems.

I updated the firmware of all modules that are installed into my car. Updating a module literally takes just a few minutes while updating the instrument cluster using an ELM327 interface and the FoCCCus software took over 70 minutes.

Last week I also managed to unlock the "Special Functions" of the IDS software by acivating the engineering mode. Now I have even more posibilities than a "normal" Ford dealer.

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How did you manage to unlock special functions, is that in the module programming section, car config area?

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