any of u think this is a decent car and can i get some tips about modding it?
thnx

 

what kind of engine/trans do you have? the focus world has ALOT of mod room.. i have a 2000ZX3 im working on..

 

Its a 2.0 I-4 with an auto... sadly enough. an auto. what you thinkin?

 

Auto is the biggest downfall of that car, unless you have alot of cash for something like a LenTech tranny then don't expect to be real fast in an auto =/

 

Whatever you do, DO NOT get the autotragic. Even with minor engine modifications that tranny starts to hiccup. Although EscortLvr will disagree, the ZTS has the better motor with the Zetec instead of the lethargic SOHC 2.0l.

Tons of mods for the Zetec 2.0l. Being that the car is fairly light weight (with a manual trans), the car feels quite peppy even with merely full exhaust and a conical air filter. Cams really wake the motor up, and are very easy and cheap to swap (Crower Stage II's cost under $300).

You may also want to shy away from the 1999-2001 Foci. By far the WORST car as far as recalls go. My 2000 was plagued with problems. You'll be much better off with a 02+ Focus. No recalls, no issues...just a great car.

 

sweet. but the 2000 is ok other than recalls?

 

I totally agree with you man, ive been on focus sites that all they talk about is the mainly 2000 year recals.
I made sure i at least got a 02 model.
But yea, the 2.0 Zetec motor has tons of parts. Idk about da AUTO tranny though :\

 

sweet. is it worth a turbo? and would it be hard to turbo? this new zTS of mine is goner be a

 

A few turbo kits are readily available for the Zetec (Precision, Pectel, Gude (boom), Tom (a guy up in NC)...just to name a few). There are also quite a few blower kits available as well (JRSC, Vortec, Procharger, and VF/FocusSport). Stock Zetec bottom end can handle up to around 300hp. Most stick around the mid 200's to be on the safe side as the bottom end is quite fragile.

If you have an auto, it isn't worth anything more than simple bolt ons. Unless you dump TONS of money into a PA or other built automatic the stock autotragic can't handle much more than the stock output of the Zetec. Go 5-speed if you want to fiddle with the car. Go automatic if you want a stock daily driver.


Other than the recalls, the 1999-2001 Focus is an okay car. But just remember it is the first model year for full production for the US and more recalls are likely. 2001 was obviously the second production year, but Ford still had problems getting it right. FYI...another recall for the ZX3's of this vintage was just announced the other day...this is almost 5-years after it was built.

IMO I'd stay far far away from the 99-01 Foci. Ford fixed everything after the first two years and the 2002+ Foci have proven to be quite reliable vehicles. Just stay away from the 2002+ SVT Focus which is another Focus problem child.

 

if you have the money drop in a 351W .....and you will turn some heads...
click here to see the swap..... http://www.kugelkomponents.com/focus/focus.html