2005 Ford Focus Idiosyncratic Review

I've had my 2005 Ford Focus for 3 months and 3000 miles now, and it is time for a mini-review. I have a pretty loaded ZX4 SES. All it lacks is moon roof, weather package, audiophile package and leather seats. So when I complain about a missing option, it's because it isn't available at all.

No point re-capitulating the basics (see Edmunds) in detail. It is a fun, well-assembled, well-thought small car. Quite peppy, with the standard engine, and nimble. In short, it performs pretty much as advertised and as reviewed. So, my purpose is to pass on the very particular, idiosyncratic observations that you would typically not pick up in a test drive (even renting it for a day, as I did), but only after owning it for a few months.

SERVICE ISSUES

1. 0 miles (but didn't address till latch recall)...the thermostat mode selector seemed rather sticky and clunky to me (though it seemed to work fine). Compalined about it and dealer, without further questioning, replaced the heating control unit at no cost. Noticeably smoother afterward.
2. 20,000 miles...Recall on the lock latches.

POSITIVES

1. While it doesn't have the built-in garage door opener, it has a quirky-but-effective alternative. There is an overhead console compartment, the top of which you velcro your garage door opener to, buttons facing down. Then, on the swing down cover, there is an actuator composed of single-peg lego-like pieces, that you stack as tall as necessary to just touch the button of the opener, when the cover is fastened. To use it, you just press on the outside of the cover (preferably, right where you know the actuator to be located). Rube Goldberg-ish, but works pretty well.
2. Headroom is very good, even in back. That is a big part of why I bought the car. In fact, the rear seats are pretty reasonable for an adult, so long as the front seat occupant doesn't have the seat all the way back. (I tried them. I always make a point of riding in the back of my own car from time to time.) Avoid the moonroof, though--it is apparently an under-appreciated fact that the drop-roof required for sun/moon roofs devours headroom.
3. Telescoping steering, very nice. I'm accustomed to the tilt option, but adding in the telescoping really helps guarantee a super-comfortable position for any driver. The only hassle is that it is one more thing to monkey with when you change drivers.
4. Additional cup holders in the front-door storage slots. Not very good for a can of soda, cup of coffee, or heaven help us, a 32 oz big gulp. But perfect for a 16-oz water bottle, that I drink alternatively with my morning coffee.
5. The leather-wrapping on the steering wheel is very comfortable, much nicer than I expected.
6. The trunk is as good as you could expect for the size of the car, and it is very square. The 60-40 split rear seat adds a lot of flexibility, though I haven't needed it yet (I have a Grand Caravan for hauling stuff).
7. While on the subject of the trunk--the lid is mounted on these lovely, ingenious, super-compact hinges combined with small pistons. The result is zero impingement of the hinges into the trunk (it is not even physically possible, there is a metal lip separating the hinges from the trunk). Very nice, both for the space saved, and more importantly, no possibility of mashing your trunk contents.
8. In general, the front-seat storage compartments are very convenient: decent glovebox, though that is the least of the options; typical door-side stowage on both doors; sunglasses rack; oddment box to the left of the steering wheel; and best of all, the flip-open compartment in the armrest.
9. This is getting into items of tertiary importance, but the wipers have a very nice, subtle feature...you know how, after you squirt the window wash, the wipers wipe a few times, but then a few seconds after they stop. some moisture is still dribbling down onto the windshield? Well, my wipers pause a couple of seconds, then execute one last wipe to pick up that moisture.
10. Very minor, but a nice touch is that the front drink holders have removable rubber inserts. So you can easily clean them by removing the liners and sending them through the dishwasher.
11. In a similar vein, many of the surfaces, particularly on the door armrests, have curved edges, so as to prevent the buildup of dust and crud.
12. There was a slight re-design for 2005. Most of the changes were to the interior. A handful of very minor exterior changes, the only significant one being the addition of a an attractive, demure oval of chrome trim around the front grille. A big improvement over the homely looking nose it replaced.
13. The antenna is mounted at the centerline of the front of the roof, continuing the angle of the windshield. Looks good---much better than the standard dorky, rigid, unimaginative straight up-and-down mount.
14. I'm familiar with 100,000 mile spark plugs, and this is the second car we have had with those. But I had never heard of a lifetime air filter, which this baby possesses. Assuming it works well--doesn't require an expensive dealer change at 90K--that's a great step forward.
15. The rear seats have a 60-40 split, so they can fold forward to accomodate longer cargo in the trunk. That is a nice feature, common now, I know, but it's the first car I've had with it. And in such a small car, it really improves the versatility. But the seats don't fold flat, they are at about a 30-degree angle, so they don't accomodate nearly as much as I had though when I envisioned them going flat, and also, if the cargo is heavy, is mashes the seats against the seatbelts. Nothing devastating, but the kind of wear and tear, with repeated use, that results in a well-used look in the interior. UPDATE--I found out, from a comment in my blog, that the bottom cushion does flip forward. It requires moving the front seats pretty aggressively forward (my normal position is all the way back), but it would be manageable in a pinch.

NEGATIVES AND QUIBBLES

1. The blinker makes a bizzarre popping sound, like a suction cup un-sticking.
2. The sunglasses console is nice, but prone to rattling (on a higher-end car, it would be lined with velvet probably (I just rode in my sister's Altima, the sunglasses thingy is lined) ).
3. The remote audio control, on the left-hand side of the steering wheel, is superfluous--the car is small enough that it is really no trouble to reach over to the main console.
4. This is a weird one. There is a semi-circular hump in the dashboard, above the instrument panel. Its outline creates a reflection in the windshield. Weird, and just slightly distracting (more so if you start noticing it).
5. The door handles have a "clunk" in their action (not a defect, it's the way they are). They work fine, just a bit jarring.
6. Gas mileage has been disappointing. 26 at best. That's with a light load and little A/C. Granted, I haven't taken it on a real highway trip. 70% of my mileage is highway, but that involves waiting for 10 minutes to cross the bridge, then driving, ahem, reasonably fast on the wide open highway the rest of the way. I'm hoping it will get better as the engine "breaks in".
7. There is no dome light in the center of the roof. Just in front, above the rearview mirror.
8. The rear mats are a joke, only slightly better than nothing. They are barely big enough to fully accomodate the foot of a 10-year old, if rested carefully upon the mat. And they never stay in place (why can't they anchor all the mats in a car, like they commonly do now for the driver's front?).
9. The radio doesn't keep playing when you take the key out, but don't open the door (that is a really nice feature--clearly can save you locking yourself out of the car--and several cars I have been in, including our 2002 minivan, have it).
10. Similar thing with the power windows--in our van, they can be raised for about 45 seconds after removing the key from the ignition. Especially handy if you have kids who roll the rear windows down.
11. No compass.
12. No split driver/passenger heating.
13. The exception to headroom is the front passenger seat, if you can't recline it a notch or two. The reason the passenger seat is worse is that it doesn't have the seat-height adjustment that the driver's seat has. So it's fine if you have nobody behind you, but if you have 3 adults in the car, a tall passenger would not be so comfy (can't imagine what it would be like if you also had the moonroof).
14. The cloth seatcover material is mediocre in appearance and feel. There is some flannel-like stuff, prone to "pilling", on the vertical front of the back seat, that is just weird in a car.
15. You can't see the level of the windshield wiper fluid.
16. The visors, when folded down, obscure too much of my vision. Now, you might say, well, it's a small car and you are tall, there's no getting around that. And there might be some truth to that analysis. However, the fact is that the roofline impinges on the visor, such that it can't fold out all the way.
17. 22,000 miles...the upholstery is not wearing tremendously well. The driver's seat has a "hook" where the upholstery has stretched. Wish I got the leather seats!