Sunday, July 24, 2016
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@Bobinott; is the rear suspension in your wagons the same as in the rest of the line?
ReplyDeleteYes, the 1st Gen Focus wagon has more-or-less the same IRS and the sedans.
Delete"same IRS as the sedans" - bad typist, worse proofreader.
DeleteThanks! I've been wondering that for quite a while. I know Ford went to a lot of trouble to make sure it was fun to drive, because of that. I tell you, I find that very intriguing. It is true Richard Parry-Jones was involved?
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ei9_3EdWR8E
ReplyDeleteOK K2,now that you have thrust the knife, why don't you give it a twist? ;-)
ReplyDeleteYeah, there have been Focus estates in Europe all the way through the several generations (even the Gen 2 that we never got - the 2005-2007 and 2008-2011 Focus refresh in NA was still based on the original platform from 2000)
Thanks for these videos, as they give me something to think about as I cry myself to sleep....
From the second video "...over half of buyers will opt for the station wagon". Did you hear that, Ford? There was a similar pattern here in Canada, until they STOPPED SELLING THE WAGON!!!! OK, OK I will take my meds now.
ReplyDeleteI share your pain. It'd ridiculous. I mean, seriously, how hard would it be to bring a couple of these into the country and slap a good price on them as a crossover alternative? They've already done all of the engineering and design work.
DeleteHere are some random thoughts...it appears that most if not all of the US Focus wagons had the 2.0. A swap to a 2.3 and adding a turbo would require an additional swap to the manual. Hmm...that's a bummer and wouldn't be the way I chose to go. What's confusing me further is that it appeared that you could get the 2.3 in the wagon in 2004...but no other year?!? Weird.
ReplyDeleteAs I recall, the 2.3 is the Mazda 3 motor. I have never come across a stock 2.3 wagon. In fact, when I tour the scrapyards, I am amazed to find so many wagons equipped with the SOHC 2.0, which traces its heritage back to the Escort 1.9. The DOHC 2.0 Zetec is such a nice motor that I can't imagine why anyone cheaped out with the older engine.
ReplyDeleteI have seen a couple of wagons that people converted into SVT Wagons. Those have a breathed-upon 2.0 Zetec (170 bhp, as I recall) as well as four-wheel disc brakes and better suspension. They are pretty cool. Unfortunately some of the SVT parts are no longer available new, so the conversion is tougher to do. Wrecked SVT sedans are rarer than unicorn pooh these days.
Is it possible Americans only got the DOHC? As you noted, that 2.0 got used in a wide variety of cars, including turbo Volvos. Ever heard of that as a performance upgrade?
DeleteWell...I guess they do exist, there just aren't many of them. When I did a quick search, I found half a dozen. Here's one with the 2.3 with only 51K and an ask of $4.5K, for example. Sweet. Very, very tempting.
ReplyDeleteI also noted that FSWERKS has a turbo kit for the 2.0, which supposedly yields 200+ hp. This would address pretty much the only problem that I'd have buying a Focus wagon. EXCEPT...that particular kit won't work on an automatic, which would be a requirement for me.
Here's an interesting comparison between the 2.3 and the SVT.
ReplyDelete