Nice stereo, nice features, ie., seats, mirrors and interior, trunk. good get-up, looks good.

BRAKES, windsheild, paint chips easily, tires don''t last long, and the MANY RECALLS.

The Focus. Where do I start? Well, I start with what I like about it. I like the color, it''s the red-orange color, looks great in the sun, get many compliments on it. The stereo is awesome. The driver''s seat is great, I''m kind of short, so the raise and lower on the seat is good for me. I like that there is hardly a blind spot on this car. The trunk is very roomy, and the seats that flip down in the back make the car very expandable. I like the pick up on this car. It does well driving in the mountains. Now for my compliants. The first week I had the car, I blew a tire in San Diego. After about a month, I notice significant brake dust on the front wheels, call Ford and ask about, it''s normal they say, it''ll taper off after I''ve driven it for awhile. About 2 weeks later, I ran my car almost empty, fill it up, and the gas gauge reads empty. It was like that for 3 days. Few weeks later, same thing. I call Ford, they say it''s nothing just to keep turning the key about ten times before starting and that should bring that gauge up. I wash my car weekly and still notice alot of brake dust, call Ford they say it''s normal for metallic brakes, just clean the wheels good. I move to CO, while driving, get hit with small rock, now I have a twenty inch crack in my windsheild. Recall on back wheel, take it in to get it fixed, they fix it. Blow another tire, on a one inch curb, buy new tire. Get hit by another rock, another crack. Another recall, A-frame thing, get that fixed. Car smells of oil most of the time, nothings worng I''m told. Feels like it wants to die sometimes, loses alot of power when running A/C or heat. And finally, after 20,000 miles the brake are totally shot on the front. Huge gouges in the rotors, found them a day after I took it in for an inspection, and was told that I was fine for another 2 months. I like the looks of the car, but I won''t keep it unless Ford can fix all of problems with the car. Although, I''m not very keen on the idea of my car being in the garage every other week. I would not recomment this car, just because of the hassles that come along with owning one. I wouldn''t want anyone to go through what me and many others have gone through with this car. I really wished that this was "the car", and if I knew then what I know now I would have spent more and just bought the Jetta that I was originally loo

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NONE

BRAKES, TRANSMISSION, EVERYTHING

THE CAR IA A PIECE OF CRAP. HOW COULD THIS CAR WIN AWARDS? FOUR DAYS AFTER I BOUGHT THIS "CAR", THE TRANSMISSION GOES OUT. THE "CAR" ONLY HAD 400 MILES. BESIDES THAT, THERE WERE NUMEROUS RECALLS CONCERNING ALMOST EVERY PART OF THE CAR (FROM SEAT BELTS TO BACK SEATS). THE "CAR''S" BRAKES IS ANOTHER STORY. EVERYTIME YOU STOPPED, IT SOUNDED LIKE YOU WERE DRAGGING A DYING CAT. ACCORDING TO THE DEALER, "THAT''S NORMAL!", SO THEY SAY. ANOTHER PROBLEM IS WITH THE IGNITION. YOUR KEY WILL GET STUCK IN IT. NEEDLESS TO SAY, THE LEMON LAW WORKS.

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None

Looks, stereo sound, roomy, for the most part handles great.

Power steering pump, wheel bearings, trunk, brakes and rotors and the idea that you aren''t as safe as you thought you would be when you purchased the vehicle.

I used to love driving my car. I loved the thought that everyone was staring at me because of the car. I got the full package, leather interior tinted windows. I started to wonder though, I have never had a brand new car before so I thought the recalls were normal, until I started to have my car in the shop about every other month. If it wasn''t one thing it was another. As a matter of fact it''s in the shop right now with it''s second wheel bearing problem within 2.5 months. Not to mention that I have to add power steering fluid about once a month. I don''t feel safe when I drive my car as much as I should, I bought this car with safety as my first priorty after my 17 year brother died in a car accident. I guess my first clue should''ve been replacing the brakes and having a difficult time with my rotors after only about 23000 miles. Bad things were happening with this car which I am leary about. I wouldn''t recommend the focus to anyone until Ford works out ALL of the kinks. Right now there are too many of them. Lastly the whole trunk thing that everyone is writing about is true, I finally had to get my realigned, but I still have problems with it every now and then.

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Escort & right now I am driving a ''99 taurus and actually like it a bit more than the focus.

Sporty Style, Best road manners of any Car in it''s class, Handles very well, braking very good, Gas mileage OK on Highway.

Worst reliability rating of any car in it''s class. Resale/trade in value is way below average. It''s a Ford. Wind noise side windows. Engine oders

If I would have written this review last Nov 2000 when I bought the Focus I would have given it 5 Stars and would have recommended it. Best handling car in it''s class, drives almost like a BMW. The Ztech engine gives the car good acceleration. I enjoyed this fun to drive car for the first several months, but than notice the car was not as good of quality as I first thought. The car started to make grinding noises when going over bumps. Brought it back to the dealer 3 times before they found the problem. Strong oders from the engine came into the cabin from time to time especially after an oil change and when driving on wet roads ( I have had this odor problem with other Fords, 2 Escorts and 2 Aerostar this is normal for Fords). After owning the car for a year (18,000 miles) I notice hesitation when accelerating, switched to different brands of gasoline but still hesitation. Rattles in the cabin are starting to become more noticable (normal for most Fords) Gas gauge did''nt work for a day than it worked again. Started having some problems with closing the trunk. The drivers seat has a slight noisy movement when braking. Last week a made the decision to trade it in and today I did. I have always owned Fords but thats over now. Today I traded it in for a Toyota. My wife bought a Subaru Forester last year and it''s much better than any Ford I ever owned. Maybe in a couple of years Ford will improve the quality of the Focus

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Rented a Toyota Corrolla for a week which does not Handle as well as the Focus, but is a better build car and holds a better value

Sporty Style, Best road manners of any Car in it''s class, Handles very well, braking very good, Gas mileage OK on Highway.

Worst reliability rating of any car in it''s class. Resale/trade in value is way below average. It''s a Ford. Wind noise side windows. Engine oders

If I would have written this review last Nov 2000 when I bought the Focus I would have given it 5 Stars and would have recommended it. Best handling car in it''s class, drives almost like a BMW. The Ztech engine gives the car good acceleration. I enjoyed this fun to drive car for the first several months, but than notice the car was not as good of quality as I first thought. The car started to make grinding noises when going over bumps. Brought it back to the dealer 3 times before they found the problem. Strong oders from the engine came into the cabin from time to time especially after an oil change and when driving on wet roads ( I have had this odor problem with other Fords, 2 Escorts and 2 Aerostar this is normal for Fords). After owning the car for a year (18,000 miles) I notice hesitation when accelerating, switched to different brands of gasoline but still hesitation. Rattles in the cabin are starting to become more noticable (normal for most Fords) Gas gauge did''nt work for a day than it worked again. Started having some problems with closing the trunk. The drivers seat has a slight noisy movement when braking. Last week a made the decision to trade it in and today I did. I have always owned Fords but thats over now. Today I traded it in for a Toyota. My wife bought a Subaru Forester last year and it''s much better than any Ford I ever owned. Maybe in a couple of years Ford will improve the quality of the Focus

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Rented a Toyota Corrolla for a week which does not Handle as well as the Focus, but is a better build car and holds a better value

Looks

Brakes. Many recalls

So far I have been directly effected by 4 recalls. And After only 17k miles the brakes had to be completely rebuilt (pads and rotors). I liked the car when I saw it, and it recieved high reviews. However, it has turned into a maintainence nightmare!

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None

Style

Breaks/manufature imperfections.

I bought this car June 2nd, nice looking car, inside and outside. Lots of style, however, as I was reading other reviews, it seems like i''m not the only one having problems with the BREAKS! After a month of driving it, I started noticing this loud noise everytime I used the brakes, for a brand new car that most not be the usual. I try to hear a Honda or Toyota doing that and its not happening. One of the reasons I bought a Ford car was because is an American car and I expected quality. Now that I hear about the recalls on all 2000 and 2001 ford focus models, and going back to the SUV''s Ford Explores recalls, now that makes me think that I''m not getting what I''m paying for with the FORD car. I''m also afraid of what can happen to it, I recently hear the sound of the motor (idle) of another focus probably a 2000 LT/SE and I didn''t like it. Was that, what I bought? Well, besides the breaks, the manufacture recall for imperfections, and the motor weird sounds, I think a Ford Focus its just a nice looking car. I''ll take care of it but if it start causing me problems, I''m going to exchange it for a Honda civic or Toyota Corolla, although the corollas for me, have no style, on the other hand, Hondas have work their way up and I like to get what I pay for.

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None, but might use a Honda civic or Toyota Corolla, even though I''ll feel bad because it will not be an american car.

As I said above - it''s an expensive looking car and unique in it''s appearance. That''s about all that can be said good about it.

From the first I have had problems. The first thing that happened was approximately 2 months after I bought it - the ignition went out. And don''t get me started on the wait for parts. Second, and of course this is after the warranty ran out, the air conditioning/heater now only works on one speed and that''s high. The clearcoat is coming off. The trunk NEVER has closed properly. A flat tire can mean a three-day (minimum) loss of the use of your car. The list can go on and on and on. In conclusion, I would NOT recommend the Ford Focus to ANYONE.

To put it mildly, I am NOT happy with my Focus. I do love the look and the looks I get around town. I''ve had people stop me and ask what my car was. People have walked out of their way to look at the back of it to see what kind of car it was. If only looks were all that mattered.

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I''ve never owned a new car before my Focus and after my experience with this product, I won''t again. I''ve owned 30+ cars in my life and this one has had the most problems of all these combined.

none comes to mind

recalls that I haven''t recieved from Ford yet.

In May, 2001 I purchased a Ford Focus SE Wagon fully loaded. Since then I have had numerous complications with the vehicle. The rear brakes are going out and it only has 4322 miles on them, the rear passanger window fell off its track, the car alarm works 60% of the time, the Z-Tech engine stalls, and the paint falls off. An important factor is the rear hatch opened while I was driving on the freeway. And sometimes it is hard to secure. The gas milage in the city/highway is not very good at all as depicted in the Ford blue-oval plan. I contacted the dealership and I have made several complaints. After having it in the with them for a total of 5 days, their mechanics said there is nothing wrong. I have contacted Ford Corp. and had negative results. I guess that Ford is satisfied with the 5% to 15% with dissatisfied customers. But why can''t all customers count?

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Peppy, fun to drive, good but not as great gas mileage as experienced in the Focus I rode in Brasil. Sleek, interior has roomy feel for small car. Stereo CD sound system is great.

Ford''s attention to this customer''s needs. First, I was told, it was 2.9 % finanacing. Then after I have the car, your wonderful dealer, calls me back in to tell me I only qualify for 4.3 % financing? Did you "lie" to get me to buy? Then 1 day later you offer 0% financing? Why can''t I have 0% finanacing like everyone else??? I get 4.3 %? After buying 3 Fords in a row? Where is my Ford to the customer loyalty? After all I have been through, I still gave you another chance! Yes, the Dealer really tries, but service, after the sale and repeat business is very much at risk for the all Ford Dealers I have experienced! Why can''t such a great car company see this???Please look into this. Ask me!!! I serve my customer everyday. I must hear that I may have to change the way I do things to keep a customer. Ask me what I think? Actually mean it when you say you want to satisfy me. So far with this Focus, things have been pretty good overall. But, I am still living in major debt for 3 vehicles, due to Ford not being willing to let me trade in a ''95 Windstar, as I did the same with a ''93 Taurus. Due to recalls and issues with the 2 previous vehicles engines. The trunk

Attractive small car. Four door. Roomy for such a tiny car. Wanted to buy a Honda Accord, but am trying to be loyal to American Car company, being a Detroit native. Stereo sound system awesome! Color is cool in sunlight, grey looks like metallic or metal flake. Absolutely amazed by how many people on freeway with other small cars, stop to look at this car!

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