Mk6 Fiesta Zetec Freebie

[MC Bodge]

We received this class-less, image-less, but somehow respectable, car from a family member who fancied a change, for the princely sum of £0.



Low mileage. It has had an easy life so far and is very good condition.

I gave it a good service(2 of the spark plug insulators had cracked, so it was losing power), new cam belt and Italian tune-up. I needed to replace both rear wheel bearings for the MOT.

A full set of Uniroyal Rainsport3 tyres to replaced the mismatched, worn tyres it was on before. It now sticks to the road really well, wet or dry.

The chassis is far better than it should be, given its simple, conventional layout front and rear. The front springs and shocks have been replaced in the past too. The steering has decent weight/feel too

It's great fun to drive, especially on a tight back road and it changes direction quickly. It feels that it wants/needs to be driven hard and it helps that it feels much narrower than modern small cars -which helps it shimmy through small roundabouts well too. Once up to speed, it can cover ground quite quickly.

The 1.4 engine isn't at all powerful, but is fairly revvy/keen up to about 5000rpm. The last 1000rpm are a bit breathless. It reminds me of my old Mk1 Focus 2.0, albeit much slower.

It's reasonably brisk with only the driver on board and the torque spread means that it's not too bad with passengers

-With a better inlet manifold and exhaust manifold design the top end power could be much better, I'm sure. This chassis with the 2.0 ST150 engine would be good.

The headlamps have good, traditionally large, reflectors -which I like- and I fitted some brighter headlamp bulbs. They are quite good down the lanes, although I'd like to fit some extra lighting.

I added a low-tone horn to supplement the feeble, standard, single-tone horn. It is better, but still not quite as "authoritative" as I'd like. I do have a set of air horns in the garage

The car is still on the original brakes, which work quite well, with a firm prod (compared to most modern cars) -When we got the car the pedal travel was long, but a bit of hard use and freeing up the self-adjusters when changing the bearings helped a lot. The brakes will be replaced with some decent discs and some Ferodo Premier pads when they do wear out.

I've added a plug in DAB radio. The front speakers lack mid range and bass. I might seal and soundproof the doors a bit at some point, if I get around to it.

Any other ideas/suggestions welcome.

Edited by MC Bodge on Tuesday 4th October 23:54

[Greendubber]

One of my workmates got given one just like yours for commute duties by his aunt, great little cars and still going after 4 years of him using it. The only issue being a snapped coil in the front nearside, it just keeps going.

[MC Bodge]

Greendubber said:

One of my workmates got given one just like yours for commute duties by his aunt, great little cars and still going after 4 years of him using it. The only issue being a snapped coil in the front nearside, it just keeps going.

This one had a snapped spring too, apparently.

[bungz]

Had one as a rental years ago in puke green, thought it was a fantastic little car.

Mine was the 1.25 which went ok.

[MC Bodge]

bungz said:

Had one as a rental years ago in puke green, thought it was a fantastic little car.

Mine was the 1.25 which went ok.

The mighty 1.4 towers over the 1.25, I'm sure.

[Shappers24]

My ex had one of these with the 1.25 engine. Minimal servicing (when the battery died and the AA man came out he commented there was no oil on the dipstick, that level of servicing ) had 130k on the clock, started and drove better than it had any right to. Used to enjoy taking it for quick trips to the shops etc.

Enjoy your cheap motoring.

[Shiv_P]

I drive my grandads prefacelift (55 plate) quite regularly - a 1.25 and its st slow with 75bhp and a massive huge amount of torque (I imagine yours is equivalent to a mclaren P1) but I agree - they have a much better chassis than they have any right to!
Has been extremely reliable though but ours is a baby at 55k miles. Just make sure cambelt has been done and it's tickety boo. Had front o/s collapsed suspension once (so replaced both front springs and shocks), a new battery and an aircon regas. Also stuck in a bluetooth headunit with a mic for my tunez Otherwise it's been perfect

[MC Bodge]

Shiv_P said:

I drive my grandads prefacelift (55 plate) quite regularly - a 1.25 and its st slow with 75bhp and a massive huge amount of torque (I imagine yours is equivalent to a mclaren P1) but I agree - they have a much better chassis than they have any right to!
Has been extremely reliable though but ours is a baby at 55k miles. Just make sure cambelt has been done and it's tickety boo. Had front o/s collapsed suspension once (so replaced both front springs and shocks), a new battery and an aircon regas. Also stuck in a bluetooth headunit with a mic for my tunez Otherwise it's been perfect

Similarly, this one has 53k miles, new front suspension, a new cambelt and the air con has been regassed a couple of times.

I suspect that the 1.6 Zetec-s,even as no ball of fire, probably has significantly more useful performance. The Mk1 Focus 1.6 wasn't bad. The 1.4 was presumably deliberately kept at lower performance.

Edited by MC Bodge on Wednesday 11th April 07:46

[MC Bodge]

Having now driven this car on a series of more interesting roads, I'm even more impressed.

The car changes direction well.

The suspension is firm, but copes well with mid-corner bumps and the car remains composed.

It could cope with being just a little more lift-off tail-happy, but as it is setup it is very neutral and forgiving.

The pedals are well positioned for heel and toe.

The gearshift throw is quite long, but the gear stick is within easy reach.

As a point to point car, it punches above its power (and value), although overtaking ability is a little limited.

Edited by MC Bodge on Tuesday 17th April 10:26

[8IKERDAVE]

We have one of these for shorter journeys, school runs, etc. I absolutely love it, proper honest little car and as you say they handle better than they should, I've been known to lift a wheel from time to time

[MC Bodge]

8IKERDAVE said:

We have one of these for shorter journeys, school runs, etc. I absolutely love it, proper honest little car and as you say they handle better than they should, I've been known to lift a wheel from time to time

Yes, I might have tested out the 3 wheel grip myself. It's all very adjustable through a turn.

The ride/handling compromise seems spot on for a small, brisk road car. Old school hot hatch-esque, even if the straight line performance isn't quite as brisk.

Edited by MC Bodge on Tuesday 17th April 13:53

[yellow cento tom]

I had a pre facelift three door one of these a few years back. I ran it from 98k to 120k with no problem at all and sold it on for what I paid for it. I changed the rear shocks on mine and I remember it making a huge difference. Other than routine servicing and a drop of redex now and then it ran faultlessly.

[MC Bodge]

yellow cento tom said:

I had a pre facelift three door one of these a few years back. I ran it from 98k to 120k with no problem at all and sold it on for what I paid for it. I changed the rear shocks on mine and I remember it making a huge difference. Other than routine servicing and a drop of redex now and then it ran faultlessly.

That's good to hear.

Ours has half the mileage yours started with and new front supsension. It feels nice and tight as it had an easy life until we (I) got our hands on it.

What was the Redex for in particular?

[MC Bodge]

It would be great to release a few more horses, but hardly worth it on the 1.4.

An engine swap for a 2.0 or ST turbo would be good, but an ST150 would make a better starting point.

[JakeT]

I had a mk5 'Freestyle' with a 1.25 and loved it. Dependable, and the small engine pulled an under a ton car around fine. The A/C even worked very well. Mine needed Cataclean running through it every so often to keep the emissions right for an MOT. Took it from 90k to 125k. It needed a clutch, but that's why I got it cheap. It always did about 42MPG, too. No matter how I drove it. The original rear tyres lasted it until it went to the scrappies too. Rust killed it.

The 'Sigma' engine is one of Ford's finest. Smooth, happy at 1,000 or 6,000 RPM, and very reliable. The timing belt recommendation of 100k/10 years was suitable too. Hopefully it provides many miles of happiness.

[yellow cento tom]

MC Bodge said:

yellow cento tom said:

I had a pre facelift three door one of these a few years back. I ran it from 98k to 120k with no problem at all and sold it on for what I paid for it. I changed the rear shocks on mine and I remember it making a huge difference. Other than routine servicing and a drop of redex now and then it ran faultlessly.

That's good to hear.

Ours has half the mileage yours started with and new front supsension. It feels nice and tight as it had an easy life until we (I) got our hands on it.

What was the Redex for in particular?

I use Redex every 3k on all my cars no idea if it actually does much but every little helps !

[MC Bodge]

An update after 3 years of ownership.


The car is still going well. The handling is great and it is so much more responsive than many modern cars: Throttle, steering, brakes and gear change all feel good. The ride is firm, but controlled -brilliant for such a small, simple torsion bar/McPherson strut car. It encourages you to press on. The narrow width continues to be a plus point. Uniroyal Rainsport 3 and now 5 seem to suit the car.

I fitted a deeper, louder horn alongside the OEM high tone and relayed them via heavier cables. It now sounds much more suitable.

The one tatty looking aspect was one of the headlights was becoming a bit cloudy at the top. I made it worse when I tried to do a DIY rubbing and polishing job. I replaced the whole unit with an excellent quality pattern part.


There is a small amount of rusting under one lower sill -this seems unusual for these cars, so there may have been a blocked drain or damage in the past. i've treated and filled it, but will probably weld in a patch at some point.

My wife bemoaned the lack of Bluetooth phone connectivity so I added a bluetooth hands-free device.

We will keep this for as long as we can.


These were a high point for Ford quality and endurance -there are 3 others in our road -the only cars of that vintage amongst the usual Kia, Audi, Mercedes, VW, BMW etc. cars and SUVs.

Edited by MC Bodge on Friday 11th December 16:19

[miken2k8]

You kept this for 3 years why? You could have tried any number of interesting cheap cars in that time I usually swap cars like this every few months.byou could swap this for a puma 1.7?

[MC Bodge]

miken2k8 said:

You kept this for 3 years why? You could have tried any number of interesting cheap cars in that time I usually swap cars like this every few months.byou could swap this for a puma 1.7?

It does the job we need it for, 4 seats and a boot for family use, my wife uses it for work and it has cost almost nothing to run/repair. It isn't a hobby (the headlight was a cheap Indulgence) It is invisible and can be left anywhere. As a bonus it is good to drive and isn't disappearing into a pile of rust like a Puma or older Fiesta would.

[mealmond]

Just wondering what hands free you used, I have the same car, fitted my Parrot unit and is proving unreliable, so thinking of changing it, just not sure what to get.

Thanks

Martin