My S+ is nine months old and the condition like new. Quiet cabin with no loosen components. Smooth drive with no loss in power. Gearbox grinding sound/shuddering and engine vibration are negligible. Satisfied with first service.

Looks like u kena the poison very deep.. After all the negative of dry dual clutch you still decided to get focus. ;-)

Nevertheless, Focus is really a great and quality car..

I got my focus 1 month ago with 2.45 interest rate @9 years. 6k discount for Sport

Please not to get ur fofo from Persada Auto dealership, to me their service sux.. Regretted to get my fofo from them. Lousy SA, lousy head office follow up..

I got my car for almost one month without floor mat and user manual... They told already ordered, have to wait. Promised to call back but never do. The SA not even reply my msg... I directly deal with the head office of Persada Auto.

Just finished my 1st service, 6 months driving the S+ 

The only complaints I had were pretty standard yet minor:
1. Minor gearbox shudder and sounds during stop/go traffic
2. Suspension noise over uneven road (only experience this at certain locations tho, very weird)
3. Windshield wiper shuddering at the edges

Brought it up during the 1st service, in which they updated the software and changed the windshield wipers.

Suspension seems quieter but would need to go to Cheras to test the sound thoroughly.

Overall, an enjoyable experience with a good cabin and great drive.  Very good stock ICE too, didn't feel the urge to change it yet.

Handling the accelerator should be non-issue for you as you're a MT driver.

Some info to share :
The tender of  W xxxx W will be closing on coming monday (24/3/14) , for any forumer who plan to tender your lucky number have to hurry

The number estimate will able to register on 3rd week of April

Last I check, the china made are not compatible in the voice commands (due to language) and the middle speaker built in the dashboard cannot be utilise. Not sure have they fixed those issue and come up with a perfect solution.
I spray paint on it to matte black. Powder coated will cost you around 800 and the duration is 2d1n. Powder coating affecting performance...what's your logic on this? Lol

Wanna share experience dealing with ford service center. I wanna change my broken driver side windows.

1. Sri kembangan - call asking for quotation -> Dunno the price, can't check.
2. Cheras -> Take my phone no. Call back same day.. 320 for window + labour charge.
3. PJ - Call, transfer to spare part dept. Got price for window, 165. Ask for labour charge.. Dunno. Ask for appointment. Need to talk to frontliner. Ask for transfer.. Cannot, need to call back.. Call back, no body pickup. Next day, call ask for appointment. Frontliner ask to talk to spare part department the check for stock. Still no appointment. Got transfered, but nobody pickup. Frontliner ask to call back later.. Keep calling a few time no pickup. At last got answer. No stock, but the will order. To be continue tomorrow. They will call when stock arrive.. Wonder what will happen next.

I have to question whether the better handling of a Conti car is worth the headache of owning one. It's not just Ford, horror stories are also common with Peugeot and VW. To be honest I don't know which of the 3 brands to pity the owner more.

Poor reliability in our climate is compounded by atrocious after sales service and unavailability of spare parts. 4-6 months to replace a faulty clutch is really not acceptable and I thought oil leak problems only happen for old cars. But I was brought up on Japanese car reliability where leaving cars for months in the workshop for repair comes as a shock that such things can happen.

Comparison with the Mazda CX-5 isn't the same. The CX-5 had a serious accident and its problems as described appear annoying rather than immobilizing. The owner did not lose the use of his vehicle. The problem was solved after all but in the case of Conti cars some problems never get solved or they just keep recurring after being "fixed".

After the warranty expires your Conti car is very painful to maintain for the middle class wage earner. You will be looking to sell it off but its low second hand value will be another painful blow.

I'm not deriding Focus owners here, I'm just trying to understand why? Why put your hard earned money down on a car which is almost guaranteed to give you heartache? Is the ability to corner a little faster worth a nightmarish ownership experience? Is life so boring that you need the challenge of maintaining a Ford knowing full well its questionable reliability, chronic problems, abusive after sales service and refusal of the distributor to stock spare parts?