Y-reg Focus 1.6 Zetec 3dr auto with 20k on the clock - seen it in the flesh and it is mint cond, nice history, looks like a good-un. Its up for £3495 ( its on autotrader so have a look if you like ) which I think is a bit steep in this current climate.
Misses wants to trade in her 35k Picanto LX auto (54 plate ) for the lowest cost to change poss, any ideas where she should aim?
Reason for change? Well its not my doing - she said yesterday she now feels confident on the road and since she saves about £400 a month, she now wants something a bit faster and more torquey than the Picanto.
We looked at insurance which isnt too bad, road tax would be ultimately about another £15 a month which she said was no problem, economy is by official figures, about 4-5 less than her current car but we did wonder if her gentle driving style would work better with a more torquey motor and the difference would be smaller.
Any views on the car appreciated? We think there is a deal to be had with the dealer as they are a Kia agent and her car would be a retail job as they stock older stuff, plus they seem really keen to trade smaller cars in against bigger.
{ typo in header corrected }
Edited by Dynamic Dave on 04/11/2008 at 10:26
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"Its up for £3495 ( its on autotrader so have a look if you like ) which I think is a bit steep in this current climate."
Agreed - very steep - I doubts it's worth more than £2.5k, and the mileage suggests very short shopping trips by an elderly owner.
30 mpg tops in daily short run usage, 37 mpg on long motorway runs - we've had one for three years.
Edited by oldnotbold on 03/11/2008 at 12:39
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Well I looked on Autotrader and similar cars seemed around the £3k mark.
It does have full history which is nice at that age, not sure yet if its all Ford, will be looking later.
How keen would one predict a dealer would be to sell it?
My misses does her long runs at 60 mph - would the economy be better than 37 at this speed? Oh and are they reliable?
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They might be asking £3k, but I can't see them getting that, TBH. SWMBO's 51 reg was £5k three years ago with 50k, FFSH, and from a Ford dealer ex Motability, and immaculate at the time.
My 37 figure is based on just one long run - 400 miles Oxford-Liverpool-Oxford at a steady 70 both ways and no hold-ups, and I brimmed it twice that day. 60 mph might improve it a bit, but it won't be more than 40 mpg, I'd guess.
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Reliable - yes, 100% to date. Only fault has been one rear wheel bearing, which never last more than 50k - it's an £80 job which takes one hour or less.
It'll come with a basic radio/cassette which is easily swapped for a Ford 6006 radio/6 CD unit which stores all the CDs in the unit, no boot-mounted changer. About £100 on Ebay.
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It already has the autochanger. Just discovered that the sump gasket on my misses Picanto has sprung a leak... I wonder if it heard her mention the Focus!
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FIL had that model Focus, although his was, I think, 54 reg. Certainly a 1.6 auto.
Took us on airport runs and it seemed to go adequately, and that's pretty fully loaded. He didn't have any probs with it. Don't know the mileage but he does a 50mile round trip commute 4 days per week so it was well used.
Doors (being 3dr) are pretty big - he liked having the B post further back, but was starting the find the car hard to get out of in tight spots.
He's just swopped it at a local car supermarket type place (where the salesman remembered him by name from 3yrs ago when he bought the Focus!) for an Astra 1.8VVTi Design auto (5dr). 57 reg and I was astonished that these go for under £8K (£18K new list). He thinks the Astra is way better, but is a bit unclear why -I think it just feels a lot faster.
Edited by Bill Payer on 03/11/2008 at 14:50
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Well the misses has sat in it now and she likes it rather alot.
It was bought by a fella for his personal carer and he has just bought her a new car, hence this one was traded in. So not owned by someone elderly in the near past.
Are there any specific reliability issues with the 1.6 and autobox?
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We have had to decide against it since the Picanto has sprung its oil leak - its leaking so bad now in 10 miles it managed to use enough oil to leave the dipstick dry - I just stuck 2L of oil in it and that only just got it up to the mark. As such, we cant trade it in without fixing it and I dont see the point of fixing it for someone else to benefit!
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Why is the sump leaking Stu? Corrosion or a knock? i`m assuming it`s pressed steel and not alloy?
Edited by oilrag on 05/11/2008 at 12:19
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Neither - the sealant that they use to seal them has failed and its blowing out all along the gearbox end of the sump.
Nobody seems to have ever heard of it happening, but you can clearly see where it is coming out and making quite a mess of the underside of the car.
It would seem the sealant isnt full-proof. My mech hasnt seen it on a Picanto but he has on other makes who use the same method. It is steel as far as I know.
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"As such, we cant trade it in without fixing it and I dont see the point of fixing it for someone else to benefit! "
How expensive to fix? If it's a cheap job then tell the dealer who takes it in.
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Been quoted prices ranging from £170-£220 and since my misses was only looking to spend an extra £750 or so over her cars trade in value, doesnt seem worth it.
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