My mk 1 focus with a genuine 46k miles
Discussion
Ten years ago I brought a mk1 focus flight as a car I could basically park anywhere and not worry to much. We had a golf anniversary and a tuscan back then. Tuscan still with us but the golf wasn't getting used so it was sold. The golf was my wife's car and her daily but it was a low mileage mint car and we hated leaving it on car parks etc. We basically brought the focus to go to gigs , shopping and leave on hotel carparks over night without fearing dinks. Forward 10 years and the focus has been a brilliant servant but time had caught up with the old boy. It needed a rear subframe, suspension arms, inner rear sills and 1 outer sill. I did the maths on repairs and sadly I decided it had to go. The rear subframe with arms cost £500 plus labour to fit. The car cost me £700 back then so I have had my moneys worth. I was genuinely gutted to see it go to Mr scrapman,I was really attached to it. I started looking at various replacements such as fiestas, fusions etc but deep down I wanted another mk 1 focus. I had spotted a mk 1 focus in red, same model but with 45k miles on the clock. It was up for 2k at the time and been up for sale for while, I figured it wasn't going to sell at that price so I kept my eye on it. This was around November time, at some point in January the price dropped to £1200 so I decided to go and have a look. The car was better than expected and we sorted a deal at £1100 with 10 months mot. I had to get something sorted as the mot on the first focus was up in March. I collected the new focus and stored it in my garage where my tuscan usually lives. The tuscan is away at sportmotive having a body of chassis restoration. I know the weak points on the mk 1 focus so I set about treating the subframes and sills even though they were like new I figured prevention is better than the cure. Today I have given it the big clean, decon, clay bar, machine polished with megs microfiber system and refined. There was some heavy marks on the bonnet, I think it's been washed with a brush at a jet wash. The car has come up really well with a deep shine. Here's some pics, first pic is the original focus going to the scrapyard. I really do love a mk1 focus, they drive really well and are massively reliable. Thanks for reading.
Rough101 said:
My father scrapped his 54 plate Zetec last year at 40,000 miles, always garaged, but rotten underneath, been his since it was an ex demonstrator, so I’d be wary!
This is solid underneath mate, age and miles caught up with my last one. This one looks 5 years old underneath. There was light surface rust on the subframes but I have rubbed them down, sprayed them with hammerited and treated them with bilt hamber sealant. I'm no stranger to buying cars of all ages.This looks a lovely example. Please continue to share your journey with this car OP.
I do love a Mk1 Focus, they are sadly now a very rare sight on the roads. I learned to drive back in 2003 in a 1.6 Zetec then was finally able to buy an RS in 2008 which I loved. Had that for 3 years then bought another in 2016 which I still own and don’t plan to sell. It’s currently on 44,000 and has never been out in winter before which is a relief as my original RS was starting to bubble in the problem areas back in 2008!
My parents also ran a 2004 1.6 Zetec back in 2013 for a couple of years and it never let them down and was a great car to drive.
Looking forward to following your journey with this car.
I do love a Mk1 Focus, they are sadly now a very rare sight on the roads. I learned to drive back in 2003 in a 1.6 Zetec then was finally able to buy an RS in 2008 which I loved. Had that for 3 years then bought another in 2016 which I still own and don’t plan to sell. It’s currently on 44,000 and has never been out in winter before which is a relief as my original RS was starting to bubble in the problem areas back in 2008!
My parents also ran a 2004 1.6 Zetec back in 2013 for a couple of years and it never let them down and was a great car to drive.
Looking forward to following your journey with this car.
Let off some steam Bennett said:
This is solid underneath mate, age and miles caught up with my last one. This one looks 5 years old underneath. There was light surface rust on the subframes but I have rubbed them down, sprayed them with hammerited and treated them with bilt hamber sealant. I'm no stranger to buying cars of all ages.
Excellent!Fathers looked perfect until you went underneath.
A neighbour runs a VAG Indy and MOT’d it the year prior with a load of advisories and said don’t bring it back next year as it’s borderline. So he took it elsewhere and they obviously failed it, so they don’t derust themselves over time.
klunkT5 said:
Nice buy mate, I like the MK1 Focus and they have aged really well, As you have done the hard graft underneath an annual dose of lanogaurd should keep this one going for years!
I used lanoguard on my el camino but tried the bilt hamber this time. It was a large aerosol can and very easy to use. Similar finish to lanoguard Monster Mash said:
This looks a lovely example. Please continue to share your journey with this car OP.
I do love a Mk1 Focus, they are sadly now a very rare sight on the roads. I learned to drive back in 2003 in a 1.6 Zetec then was finally able to buy an RS in 2008 which I loved. Had that for 3 years then bought another in 2016 which I still own and don’t plan to sell. It’s currently on 44,000 and has never been out in winter before which is a relief as my original RS was starting to bubble in the problem areas back in 2008!
My parents also ran a 2004 1.6 Zetec back in 2013 for a couple of years and it never let them down and was a great car to drive.
Looking forward to following your journey with this car.
Thanks mate, I will up date the thread as I go along. I need to get a key cut as I haven't got the remote key with it and the boot release on the dash does not work. They are my next jobsI do love a Mk1 Focus, they are sadly now a very rare sight on the roads. I learned to drive back in 2003 in a 1.6 Zetec then was finally able to buy an RS in 2008 which I loved. Had that for 3 years then bought another in 2016 which I still own and don’t plan to sell. It’s currently on 44,000 and has never been out in winter before which is a relief as my original RS was starting to bubble in the problem areas back in 2008!
My parents also ran a 2004 1.6 Zetec back in 2013 for a couple of years and it never let them down and was a great car to drive.
Looking forward to following your journey with this car.
Always good to see these. I think you've done the right thing by scrapping the first car and finding a mint specimen to preserve, to be honest - not just in terms of cash, but also to have a car that's in good condition throughout and not needing an annual weldathon to keep on the road.
At some point enough of these will have rusted away that the survivors will start going up in value. Anyway, enjoy!
Always loved the mk1 focus.
Dad bought one brand new on a S reg, way back when they were first launched and no one had one.
A 5 door 1.8 Zetec in silver with the climate pack for air con and heated front screen.
One of his best cars and we adored it as a family car.
Now a rare car thanks to rust and values.
Please look after it.
Dad bought one brand new on a S reg, way back when they were first launched and no one had one.
A 5 door 1.8 Zetec in silver with the climate pack for air con and heated front screen.
One of his best cars and we adored it as a family car.
Now a rare car thanks to rust and values.
Please look after it.
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