So, it's a female. Haha.. Somehow I figured out ladies have very peculiar thoughts or opinions when it comes to cars. Just don't take it too seriously.

Cheers.

This post has been edited by SportyHandling: Nov 26 2013, 11:43 AM

Yes, the Focus shares the same pricing with Sylphy Altis and Civic, and also the class is the same I believe, hence they are frequently being compared. The Lexus CT200H is more costly than the Focus I think, about RM30k-40k more expensive?

I agere the interior quality of the Focus, the fit and finish are quite impressive. All other Japanese equivalents feel pale, cheap and plasticky in comparison.

THanks for the information. So perhaps this sound from the steering wheel is common in most if not all Focus models? Fortunately the rattling sound is not akin to something like metal parts rubbing together, but rather plastic parts rubbing together. Hence, the noise is more "pleasant", though it is still noise. Not a big issue.

Yes, I too think Ford vehicles especially the Focus is in a class of its own, excluding some jerk and grinding issues plaguing some owners. Personally I don't have much interest in Peugeot vehicles, mainly because of the brand. And moreover the 408 to me look too ugly to be given consideration. The 508 is okay but at that segment I would be looking at the Nissan Teana instead.

Another 1,000km before your car is scheduled for the 10,000km service? Anyway hope the grinding sound can be eliminated once it's in for service.

So your car does not have jerks since 2,000km. That is good to hear. It's only the grinding sound.

Okay so I guess the jerks at low gears/speeds do not affect all Focus models and only certain vehicles. As for the grinding sound, looks like this is consistent for most if not all Focus models starting from 9,000km.

Okay. So the grinding sound patterns is not the same with different Focus models.

Let's be more specific. The grinding sound only happens at low gear or low speed acceleration.

In my vehicle, there is no grinding sound from new to now, about 3,000km on the mileage. Only once I hear it when going uphill. On levelled roads, the grinding sound at low speeds is *very soft*, so I assume there is no grinding sound.

From Craving's post, the grinding sound in his vehicle only comes up at 9,000km.

Is the grinding sound in your vehicle loud enough to the point of annoying? If it is, then I suppose the SC is obligated to rectify it.

The grinding sound is very subdued, very soft. Hence I don't know if I can classify it as a "legitimate" grinding sound or not. Since it is very soft, to me there is no grinding sound in my vehicle.

Yes, I am in the cabin with the windows up, and the vehicle is already moving at low speeds.

FWIW my ears are very sensitive and can pick up even the tiniest sounds that other people may not even bother. If I feel the grinding sound is very soft, it will be non-existent to others.

I have had a peek at the new Mazda 3, pictures from the internet. The hatchback looks good, the sedan just average and not as good looking as the hatch. Though the pricing of the Mazda 3 may be the biggest factor in influencing buying decision. From papers it looks like the price will not be less than RM130k, likely to be closer to RM140k if not higher.

Yes, that statement is misleading and similarly I wonder it it's typo on that quote regarding the battery failure within the first 3 years or 100,000km ... Anyway, when the time is up for the battery, I guess we will eventually find out if we will have to fork out our own money or the SC will replace it free of charge.

Anybody drove up Genting Highlands with the Focus, since there are many comments on the grinding sound of it when going uphill? I was thinking of doing a trip sometime next month just to see how the Focus will perform when going up a steep slope.

Thanks for the response. Yes, the road up Genting Higlands is definitely steep, so a good place to test the performance of the Focus. Will try D first, then halfway up the journey switch to S and see the difference myself. I can predict the S mode to be more suitable in these driving conditions since at a steep gradient the rpms will need to be constantly high enough to maintain a reasonable speed or acceleration power.

Looks like on the 7th and 14th the rooms are fully booked. Will see how it goes.

Yes, the downshift is quite a smooth transition in Sports mode as there is little or no jerk when the driver applies the brakes to slow down the vehicle. In S-mode, the revs or rpms are kept higher for a more sporty drive, so if you tap on the brakes the vehicle may not downshift as quick as in D mode, so at lower speeds the rpms are higher. If you drive aggresively in S-mode fast and furious stye, such as the vehicle already at high speeds and you slam on the brakes hard, then the abrupt change in speed may cause the rpms to shoot up high(in S-mode) since in Sports mode the gear changes happen or operate at higher speeds than in D. The high rpms when tapping (hard) on the brakes in S-mode will cause a "jerky" feel when compared to D since in D the downshift is at lower speeds, at lower rpms.

So in summary, there won't be any problems driving downhill or in any driving conditions when the vehicle is in S-mode. It's just when you drive aggressively, abrupt changes in the speeds when you slam on the brakes, then you will experience higher rpms at lower speeds which will cause the vehicle to have a less smoother transition than in D, which is normal. In more sporty driving conditions, higher rpms are ideal for quicker or instant acceleration at any point of time, so a less smooth/slightly jerky drive due to the gear upshifts/downshifts at higher speeds is experienced in Sports mode.

Yes, no jerking or grinding sound in my vehicle so far. As for your unexpected glitch in the vibration during idle, I don't experience it either, but I have to say the Focus is not as quiet as the Nissan Sylphy when it's idling in N at the traffic lights. There is a *very slight* engine vibration in the Focus when the vehicle is in N at traffic lights whereas the Nissan Sylphy is dead quiet and no vibration at all. The difference in idling vibrations is minimal but appreciable.

This post has been edited by SportyHandling: Dec 1 2013, 10:28 AM

Yesterday I let my friend test drive the Focus in the city. Even in city drives he was impressed by the power and acceleration of the Focus. He said it behaves like a rocket when he stepped on the pedal to overtake vehicles. Oh well, no surprise there. :-)

As for the rocket comment, that's not from me. I haven't driven the Toyota Vios before so cannot comment on the agility of it in 0-60km/h acceleration versus the Ford Focus. But the Focus feels quite agile (to me) already with the instant pedal response or reaction ie. no lag when you press on the pedal. Coupled by the acceleration power, the agility or drivability is good when compared to vehicles with a pedal lag or vehicles which have lower acceleration power.

1) Yes, blower speed is not very consistent, but I don't feel it too much since the speed is always at level 1 or 2 in my vehicle, rarely 3 or 4 since at those levels the noise from the blower is louder in the cabin. I try to limit the blower speed to 2, most of the time 1 since it is quietest at 1. I like a quiet cabin.

2) Can't comment on the auto wipers since mine is the low-spec non + model.

3) Can't comment too on the grinding sound as my vehicle rarely goes uphill, though I can relate to your experience, only once.

4) Yes, quite a dust magnet. No comment too.

5) I have got used to dirivng without neck support even on long journeys. Driven from KL to JB to Singapore, then to KL back wtihout much issues. Guess this is more to individual preferences. Aftermarket neck supports available at accessory shops I presume.

Yes, I can feel it in the Titanium non-plus but a caveat. The engine vibration at idle (N gear) is very minimal. My vehicle is still below 4,000km in mileage. Perhaps older vehicles with over 10,000km clocked the vibration may be more prominent, ie. stronger.

This is one reason why I mentioned my previous vehicle that replaced the Focus, the Nissan Sylphy is quieter. Make no mistake. The Focus is also quiet with minimal engine vibration. Only when compared to the Sylphy, the Focus lost slightly in quietness or NVH levels.

I will monitor further on the inconsistent blower speed but it's still not very serious in my case to the point of passing it as a fault. So far there are no issues in the vehicle, only very minor ones such as plastic rattling sound in the steering wheel when the vehicle goes over some bad surfaced roads, but I don't think the guys at the SC can do anything on it, and it's not exactly a big issue for me.

As for the grinding sound when going uphill, I will monitor it further. So far I don't hear it much when going up steep ramps at low speeds on car park ramps. Maybe the tyre friction sound when going over grooves and rough surface of the ramps have masked the grinding sound. I'll try to listen for the grinding sound when going over steep roads at low speeds, particularly those with bumps in between, but not many chances I will drive through these roads. In Setia Alam I know of one stretch of steep road with bumps, the one near the Peugeot showroom. I heard the grinding sound very clearly when I drove through this steep road more than a month ago.

Similarly, I feel sorry for you. I hope the service centre will have a permanent solution to your problem.

FWIW during the first month when I had the Focus, I did not lock the car when it was parked in the car porch overnight. No problems with restarting the car whatsover. I only started to lock the car at night once I fiddled with the positioning of the car seat. I am shocked that the car seat can still be electronically adjusted even though the engine is switched off. In this sense, I think the car consumes a lot of battery power if it is left unlocked. From that day onwards, the day I figured out the position of the car seat can be adjusted electronically, I started to lock the car everytime it's not in use.

It depends. I am an owner of the lower spec non-plus version, and I regretted for not going with the higher-spec plus model. If I could turn back time I would have taken the higher-spec model. To me, the two features that are useful in the plus version are the front sensors and auto-cruise feature. Other features may be useful too, so it depends on the individual.

If you think you could live without any of the additional features of the non-plus model, then you could save quite a bit of money there. Only if.

I only have experience with V-Kool and Huper Optik. Both are good. Huper Optik is currently on the vehicle for less than 4 months, so far so good. Can't comment on Raytech or 3M but I believe Thanish had his vehicle tinted with Raytech.