I didn't consider or test-drive the Peugeot 408 as it looked ugly to me. Don't need to think about spare parts price of the Focus as there is 5 years warranty. As for FC, it is definitely one of the lowest if not the best in the 2.0-litre category. The only aspect I don't particularly like about the Focus is the grinding sound during low-speed acceleration, but my tolerance level is still pretty high at the moment.

Just an update. The Ford Focus truly impresses with exceptional handling and smooth driving. I mentioned smooth because, due to some complaints on the shuddering or jerking of the Powershift transmission, fortunately and surprisingly, the transmission on my vehicle now shifts very smoothly without any noticeable or annoying jerks. Almost like a CVT! Mileage is currently about 5000km. I was at the service centre today and apparently another Focus user with current mileage above 20,000km informed the shuddering on his vehicle is very prominent since day 1 he got the car. He went through a software update earlier but that didn't resolve the jerk, and today he had just gone for another software update. Somehow I think the extent or seriousness of the shudder or jerks vary with different vehicles. Not too sure what causes this though? Most important is my vehicle now drives exceptionally well without any shuddering at low speeds. No more grinding sound too which is great. I hope it remains that way for a long time.

Also, I just complained on the friction sound from the steering wheel again, and the foremen who checked on it were almost certained that the clock spring is faulty, and the part has been ordered. After this steering wheel issue is fixed, my vehicle would be perfect. :-)

The Focus is surely a vehicle for people who enjoy driving. For those who are looking at the Focus, I strongly recommend that you put it highly in your shortlist. The concern on shuddering/jerking at low speeds and grinding sound is something that I cannot seem to explain. But to my knowledge, not every vehicle has these issues.

It is correct the back space is pretty small with limited legroom when compared to other vehicles in the similar class with class-leading legroom, such as the Nissan Sylphy. However, it's not too bad. It depends a lot on how much the front seats are pushed back. At 5'11", if you are the driver, then your passengers at the back seat may feel a bit uncomfortable. However, if he/she is around 5'8" or below, then there should be enough space behind for a decently comfortable ride, even if it is a long journey outstation. The back seat is a a bit straight, but the seats are quite thick and plush, not the thin type.

Of course, don't compare with the likes of Nissan Sylphy or Toyota Altis. These vehicles are built for passenger comfort, but in areas of handling and performance, they are no match for the Focus. It depends on what you are looking for and what criteria are more important to you - back space comfort which is more to your passengers, or handling and driving dynamics which driver-orientated. You should judge on the build quality of the Focus too apart from high levels of drivability. The fit and finish are higher than the rest of the competitors in the similar price range.

Yes, Mazda3, in my opinion, is overpriced. If back seat space is important to you, then you may consider the upcoming new Nissan Sylphy and the cheapest Toyota Altis model, which I think the rear legroom will be larger than the Focus. Both should be less than RM120k. I only have experience with Sylphy. It is a comfortable and quiet car and rear legroom and space is the largest in its class.

However, you mention you have a child. Depending on the size of the kid, perhaps the back seat can accomodate up to 12-year olds fairly comfortably? If large adults, if the driver is 5'11" then passengers sitting at the back will be uncomfortable. For short journeys still okay. Long journeys not recommended.

Noted. Reason I mentioned Sylphy and Altis is because they have the best rear legroom or space in this segment which is important to you with good comfort. The Cerato's interior is ok but the exterior, the front looks weird and the rear especially those seeping tail lights look to feminine for my taste. Most importantly, the Koreans are not known to have good drivability. Anyway, I don't dig the Koreans.

Golf Mk7 is more to a performance car and if I'm not mistaken is >RM150k which is significantly costlier than the Focus. And yes, reliability and service of VW seems to get a lot of criticism. Not many choices if you are looking in the RM110k-140k price range.

Uhm, didn't really know about this, but I cannot see the point or safety feature. If we lock the car and one door is not closed properly(unlocked) while the other 3 doors are locked, and the driver walks away since there is no alarm warning, other people would be able to gain access into the vehicle through that unlocked door isn't it?

Okay. If you happen to test drive both Focus Sport and Mazda3, do let me know your impressions. In the Focus high-spec + models, for me, only two features are desirable to have - the front sensors and auto cruise control. But one can live without these. I have auto cruise in my other vehicle but very rarely use it, even on the highways due to the volume of traffic these days.

Just read on Autoworld in that the Malaysian Automotive Association had revealed the sales of vehicles in year 2013. The breakdown is by brand only as the Malaysian Competition Act disallows car manufacturers to reveal figures of specific models(which surprised some quarters).

Overall, Ford did pretty well this year as the sales of Focus and Fiesta were reported to have increased by 50% last year which is the best sales record (for Ford) so far.

Breakdown of sales by brand in year 2013 by MAA as reported on Autoworld :-
1. Perodua (196,071 units)
2. Proton (138,753 units)
3. Toyota (91,185 units)
4. Honda
5. Nissan
6. Mitsubishi (12,348 units)
7. Hyundai (12,217 units)
8. Isuzu (12,061 units)
9. Ford (10,660 units)
10. Volkswagen (9,538 units)
11. Mazda (9,197 units)

This post has been edited by SportyHandling: Feb 8 2014, 11:19 AM

That is bad. Even my vehicle at 5000km mileage has noticeable mild vibration during idle now. So the guys can't do anything about the serious vibration of your vehicle? Sometimes I just wonder if the typical line of "It's supposed to be that way" or "We can't do anything about it" is just something that is just too common. Have you spoke to the manager about it? If the condition of certain things is too bad to the point of annoying, not only vibration but jerks during low speeds or noisy suspension for instance, that may be classified either as a fault or design flaw?

Currently I do not experience jerks or shudders at low speeds but some of the annoying things that I experience are as follows:-

1) Grinding sound (only when going uphill a steep slope) though sound is tolerable
2) Noisy thud sounds from the suspension when going up a steep concrete ramp with grooves, the sound of some loose metal parts as if something is going to fall out

I understand that the two conditions above are inherent in the "design" of the Focus and something that is normal, according to the service advisor at Sime Darby, but if the extent of seriousness is to the point of annoying then I suppose it can be classified as a faulty part or design flaw? This is something that is debatable. If the sound is so loud to the point of unbearable, the line of "we can't do anything about it" is probably not applicable.

Do keep me updated if there is any solution to the bad vibration of your vehicle during idle if you happen to be persistent on the matter with the Sime Darby guys. Do you experience the two conditions I've mentioned above?

Hi Lowkl,

I appreciate your post. I should mention that jerking/shuddering at low speed with my vehicle is minimal and depends a lot on the footwork. Hence, this is not an issue for me at the moment. However, I take note about the erratic jerking in your vehicle(ie. didn't jerk in the mornings, jerk during evenings) that is getting worse now at 15,000km. Looks like I have to brace for more serious jerking/shuddering when my vehicle is over 10,000km.

In resolving this shuddering at low speeds, so far the TCM update seems to be the easy way out that may or may not resolve the problem. If a TCM update does not resolve the serious judder, maybe a faulty transmission may be the culprit(instead of the commonly reported "It's supposed to be that way"). I've read on Autoworld forum in that one forummer managed to resolve the judder and grinding sound once and for all after some parts of the transmission are replaced (after a series of TCM updates failed to resolve the jerking). If the first step failed to resolve the issue, then we may consider going to the next step..

Yes, most likely we are referring to the same sound in our vehicles with the thud sounds when the car is going up a concrete ramp with grooves. The sound of hollow plastic container(s) knocking against something. It's just a sound that indicates "looseness" and is not very pleasant. Just today I've had my colleagues in my vehicle, and they commented the sound from the suspension is ok and not too loud. Maybe my expectations are higher than them. OVerall the cabin is quiet with low engine sound and vibration. It's only the sound from the suspension that spoils it a bit. But still bearable if one drives slowly on these rough surfaces so that the sound won't be too loud.

Not sure about the excess coolant container or a pipe underneath the car that may be causing the sound.

My service advisor hasn't come back to me on the available replacement part for the faulty clock spring and speaker cover of my vehicle since early last week. I need to give her a call tomorrow to expedite on the order of the parts as I can't tolerate the annoying sound from the steering wheel any longer. The steering wheel makes some noise when it is turned.

Okay, do let me know if the sound from the suspension is reduced or eliminated completely during the appointment. Thanks. If it does, then I will ask them to look at the suspension too when they troubleshoot the "other problems" in my vehicle. I will need to leave my vehicle in the service centre 1 to 2 days just to let them replace the clock spring and change the speaker cover at the dashboard. I don't know, but I think these tasks can be completed within half day. Maybe they don't do things very quickly.

I suspect the sound from your steering wheel is different from the one that I am experiencing in mine. In your case, you are getting knocking "kluk kluk" sound when going over uneven road at low speeds. I don't get this. I only get a soft "friction sound" when turning the steering wheel akin to plastic rubbing against plastic. That may be the reason why you are getting the steering rack replacement whereas I am getting the clock spring replacement.

Just found out that the whole dashboard may need to be dismantled in order to replace the faulty front speaker cover. A bit disappointed as I thought the dashboard need not be dismantled having the impression the speaker cover can be pried open. Hopefully won't get any rattling sound after the replacement of the faulty bits.

Yes, grinding sound in my vehicle is still present at low speeds especially when going uphill with speed bumps. Not to the point of annoying and I think I can live with it, unless it gets louder.

The power and handling of the Focus continue to impress. Cornering with the low body roll is excellent without having to apply brakes, and the acceleration after exiting a corner is just so powerful if one slams on the accelerator. It's a joy to drive the car if you love a bit of speed and sporty handling. My other car, the Proton Preve Turbo feels underpowered and lethargic in comparison to the Focus, though the former has the advantage in overall space, front passenger seat and back seat.

Anybody had the dashboard of your Focus dismantled by the service centre for some reasons?

You can ask your sales guy who sold the car to you. Basically before they deliver the car to you, they have already serviced it by changing the engine oil. Hence there is no first 1,000km service unlike other Japanese or Proton vehicles.

Not too sure about vehicles having their engine oils replaced more than the standard 6 months. I think the 6 months duration is something that is imposed as a general guideline. Ford/Sime Darby allows up to 7 months actually for the periodic servicing to keep the warranty intact. IN real life, maybe there is little harm to have the engine oil replaced at longer durations say up to 8 or 9 months, though not recommended.

Perhaps others may have a better idea. Or if you have doubts, you can write-in to Sime Darby.

Not only handling but acceleration power is superb. The combination of handling and power of the Focus makes up for a thrilling experience.

Just yesterday on the highways managed to have some fun when some tailgater was attempting to push my vehicle off the road on the fast lane. Sometimes it is just irritating as these people don't really understand that there are cars in front all along the fast lane, so it makes little sense to drive at very close distances to the vehicle in front, as even if you manage to overtake one car, you will be blocked by another slow car in front.

Well, just when the slow car in front finally moved to the left, that's it man. I am continued to be impressed by the handling and power of the Focus when the need arises. As the car accelerated along the curving stretch of the highway, it held its composure very well and stability is rock solid. In just a matter of seconds I can't see any vehicle when I looked at my rear mirror. The acceleration is just so powerful it felt like a sports car, well, at least for me. This car is surely built for speed and handling.

It is difficult to imagine what kind of "rattling" sound you are getting from your suspension, whether it is the same sound we are getting with our Focus. As far as things are concerned, after I sat in colleague's Focus, the sound from the suspension when going up and down concrete ramps with grooves is the same. It's a sound that indicates "looseness", the sound of hollow plastic containers hitting against each other. The suspension of the Focus when going over concrete ramps or bad roads is certainly not very quiet when compared to the suspensions from Japanese sedans in the equivalent segment.

I am not sure if the suspension in my vehicle is supposed to sound that way, ie. normal, or something is wrong. Hence, I am not sure if I want to highlight this to the service centre in my next scheduled appointment next week.

Just stumbled upon this Table. Not too sure how accurate are these figures though the Focus registered 9.5s in a 0-100km/h dash. Surprisingly the new Toyota Altis 2.0 goes quicker than the Honda Civic 2.0 VTEC.