Bro,

Which SA give u 7k discount? It is for sport or titanium model?
currently get 5.5k highest...

Car rolling back on steep slopes or ramps - I haven't really been in these situations many times but the car does roll back slightly when the brakes are released. I am not sure if the car will continue to roll backwards down the slope if the brakes are not re-applied. Perhaps others can comment on this.

Transmission "issue" - this is more to shuddering/juddering/jerking and grinding sound at low speeds. I believe the extent of the jerks vary with vehicles, some minor, some more serious. The same applies to the grinding sound as well. So far, I think it's inherent in all Focus, and there is no permanent solution as far as I am aware of. It's not exactly a "problem" but a claimed characteristics of the design of the Focus, though it may be annoying for some people who are used to smooth transmissions of the Japanese makes.

Have you test drive the car?
I wouldn't worry about the juddering.
If you can control you foot instead of just step and go, juddering wouldn't be much of a problem.
After all its a real car, not a video game car that you can just step and go.
U need to be able to control the accelerator abit.

Any thoughts on the comparison between the Mazda 3 and Ford Focus? Is the Mazda 3 model you had test driven the 1.6 or 2.0? At a price close to RM140k the you might as well consider a cheaper D-segment rather than the Mazda 3.

Yes, I agree the interior of the Mazda3 is cleaner than the messy dashboard of the Focus. That's only the dashboard where the Focus is less desirable when compared to most vehicles with cleaner and neater dashboards. However, the trimmings on the door panels of the Focus (the Titanium sedan) look higher quality and more solid than the Mazda 3 to me.

Noted on the slightly better handling on the Focus.

Handling of Koreans are certainly sub-par. The Cerato is probably good in areas of interior refinement and clean design, features and quietness, though drivability and performance are usually not up to par. I doubt it could even match Altis or Civic, not to mention the increased levels of handling of the Mazda M3 and Ford Focus. It is easy to assess the performance of the car once you test drive it. THe steering feel that is precise, the stability of the car when cornering, the firm suspension that enables the car to stick to the road with little body roll. The differences will be apparent even with a short test-drive.

So it depends on what you want in the features and nice dashboard layout of the Cerato, or the performance and handling and the messier dashboard layout of the Focus. Not too sure if back space is important to you. The back passenger space and rear legroom is rather limited in the Focus. Not too sure about Cerato.

Well, there is a life span to all things mechanical when you mentioned about the dual clutch causing problems. It's not only the dual clutch transmission of the Focus but other conventional transmissions as well. It is just a matter of how soon the problem crops up in which the owner needs to spend a considerable amount of money to maintain the car.That is one reason some people change cars in every 5 or 6 years to avoid these problems once the warranty period is over.

No experience with the Cerato(Koreans are not my cup of tea) but in summary, if you are mostly driving alone, and handling and driving dynamics are important to you, then I don't think there are much (or any) vehicles in the similar price range that can rival the Focus. I read that the Proton Preve's handling is better than the Cerato, and if that's the case then I am sure the handling of the Focus is on another league in comparison to the Cerato. I own both Preve Turbo and Focus, and as good as the power and handling of the Preve Turbo gets, it cannot match the Focus when you want a bit of excitement and thrill in your drive. When on sharp bends, the Preve Turbo may wobble a bit sideways with a little body roll(your body will tend to move sideways) whereas the Focus does not wobble and is rock solid, and you don't feel your body swayed to one side. This is where the Focus scores very high marks. The suspension of the Focus is tuned to stick to the road like a leech and you just feel a solidity to the drive especially when on corners at higher speeds. The stability is fabulous. Although this is a comparison between the Focus vs. the Preve Turbo, I feel this apply to other cars as well, since the Preve Turbo is no slouch when it comes to handling. It's a pretty solid car on its own, though its shortcomings become apparent next to the Focus.

The messy dashboard of the Focus is indeed a pertinent point. A matter of preference though, but most of my colleagues who have sat in my Focus share the same observation. Personally I prefer the neater layout of (even the) Preve Turbo over the Focus. Yes, the Cerato's dashboard looks neater than the Focus too.

Space. If you frequently ferry passengers in the back seat, then I think the Focus may not be too suitable. In my mind, the back seat of the Focus can only fit 2 adults. It cannot fit 3 adults comfortably, in my opinion. On long journeys, the rear passengers of the Focus may not be too comfortable due to the limited rear legroom, especially if the driver or front passenger seats are pushed back too much.

That's about it. The suspension of the Focus may not be too quiet when going over concrete ramps with grooves or bad-surfaced roads, only when compared to Japanese vehicles. Somehow the suspension of Japanese vehicles is quieter when on bad roads. Even the Preve Turbo's suspension is quieter than the Focus(though engine and transmission noise during acceleration are much louder). How does the Cerato fair in these areas? Is the Cerato's engine fairly quiet during acceleration, or the suspension quiet when going over bad roads?

If you like to drive fast occassionally, the Focus. As mentioned by others, it is true that at higher speeds, the Focus is very stable. In comparison, you may feel other cars losing control at the same speed. Also, it's a CBU from Thailand and the price is very competitive if you compare with other CKD locally-assembled models.

How much is the Cerato 2.0? Personally I would not consider Korean and will take any Japanese over Koreans. I don't like the exterior looks of the Cerato though I understand it's all personal.

2013 model?