Question 1

Battery problems with my 2012 Ford Focus

Accepted Answer

There are lots of potential causes for this sort of behaviour, starting with an alternator that is not working properly or even a body computer that is on the way out. But these symptoms are also a classic indication of a very simple problem; a poor earth somewhere on the car. A modern car has multiple earthing points, and if one is a bit sketchy, it can throw the whole car into chaos. Flickering lights and gauges and warning lights on the dashboard are classic indicators of a bad earth. If that’s the case here, an auto electrician should be able to chase down the fault and fix it permanently.

Question 2

What do I need to know about replacing the rack and pinion in my 2007 Ford Focus SE?

Accepted Answer

This generation Ford Focus was the first to use electro-hydraulic power-steering. As such, you can’t transpose the rack and pinion hardware from any other model; it would need to be this exact version of the Focus for everything to be compatible. Once you’ve swapped the hardware, the electronics would also need to be coded and matched to the car’s body computer, as this is what controls the speed-sensitive variations in the steering assistance as well as functions such as the self-parking facility.

Question 3

Can I get replacement air conditioner pulley/bearings from a salvage yard?

Accepted Answer

You could scour wrecking yards (as they used to be known) for the bits and pieces you need to replace, but you would potentially be buying parts with the same – or more – wear than the ones you already have. Some things, like rubber belts, globes, tyres and filters, you just can’t trust unless they’re brand new. Pulleys and their bearings are considered service items meaning they will eventually need to be replaced. When that time comes, the best advice is to replace them with good quality replacement parts, as that’s the only way to make sure the same problem won’t reoccur in a short space of time. Be wary, too, of really cheap replacement parts you can order online from no-name suppliers. That’s not to say cheap parts can’t be good parts, but quality is sometimes pretty sub-standard and you won’t know that until you’ve paid for them to be fitted and they’ve subsequently failed. And getting your money back from an online seller can be next to impossible in many cases.

Question 4

2012 Ford Focus won't start after performing maintenance

Accepted Answer

Unless you’ve been the victim of a cruel twist of fate where something else has gone wrong at the exact moment you fitted the new neutral safety switch, it stands to reason that the new switch is not playing the game. You say you’ve tightened the selector linkage, but did you make sure the new switch was located precisely so that it could detect when the car was not in neutral (and, therefore, prevent it from starting)? By tightening the linkage, you may have moved the trigger for the safety switch to a position where it isn’t allowing the switch to make contact and let the engine crank. In the meantime, try this: If the engine won’t turn with the gearbox in Park, move the selector to Neutral and see if that changes anything. If the car suddenly starts, you know that the new switch is working but needs adjustment to get it into the correct position.

Question 5

Is there an issue with the fuel tank in my 2008 Ford Focus?

Accepted Answer

I'd say you're looking at two different problems here, neither one of which involves the actual fuel tank (which is, indeed, 55 litres). The first problem is more likely to be the calibration of your fuel gauge that is out. If the gauge isn't reading accurately, it will tell you the tank is emptier (or fuller) than it really is. Your car is actually doing what most fuel gauges do, which is to be a bit pessimistic, suggesting there's not as much fuel still in the tank as there really is. You could have the gauge recalibrated, or simply know that even when the needle is at empty, you've still got a buffer zone of fuel remaining. The fuel consumption, meanwhile, is another issue and it's true to say that 20 litres for 140km of driving is too thirsty. A basic tune up might help, starting with fuel filters, air cleaners and spark plugs. But don't ignore things like correct tyres pressures and whether there's a roof rack fitted; these things will affect fuel economy more than you might imagine. And never under-estimate the affect driving style has on fuel use. A driver who smashes the throttle from every green light will soon start using more fuel every kilometre.

Question 6

Can I put the motor of a 2016 Ford Focus in a 2012 model?

Accepted Answer

The short answer is no. Ford changed from a range of normally-aspirated engines in late 2016, to a newer, turbocharged 1.5-litre engine for the 2016 model year. In theory, any engine can be made to fit any car, but there's no chance of this swap being an easy or inexpensive one. You'd also have to change the transmission to suit the newer engine and then there are the thousands of modifications to things like heater cores, radiators, engine mounts, steering and suspension components, exhaust systems and anything else that could be in the wrong place to suit the newer engine. And that's before we get to the different computers the newer engine will have to run it properly. You'd probably also need to have this conversion signed off by an engineer to ensure its legality and safety, too. The simple solution (particularly ion a relatively inexpensive car like a second-hand Focus) is to simply buy the version you want in the first place.

Question 7

Are there any known transmission issues with a 2012 Ford Focus manual?

Accepted Answer

By buying a manual Focus, you neatly sidestep the biggest problem with this car, that of the perennially faulty DCT transmission. As a rule of thumb, the advice is to never buy a Ford with this transmission, purely because its failure is a question of when, not if. The irony is that the rest of the car was actually pretty reliable, so as long as the recall for a potential fuel leak caused by a blocked carbon-canister has been attended to, you stand a good chance of buying a reliable car.

Question 8

Can I fit a boot release latch from a 2005 Ford Focus LS to a 2006 model?

Accepted Answer

This all depends on whether the 2005 Focus is a Mark 1 or Mark 2 version of the Focus. So that's the first thing to ascertain. If they're both Mark 2 cars, then there's a very good chance that the boot release will be the same in either (and, therefore, interchangeable) as we're talking about the same car. But even if the 2005 Focus is a Mark 1 model, it would still be worth physically checking to see if the release latches are the same. That's because even though the Mark 1 and Mark 2 Focuses were different cars, many manufacturers (Ford included) carried over some mechanical parts (such as latches and cables) from previous models to save on development costs. A good example of Ford doing this was the succession of 1980s Falcons including the XD, XE and XF models which all used the same exterior door handles. So compare the latch you have with the latch on offer and make sure it operates in the same way and direction, uses the same mounting points and will connect to the same cable. If so, you might just be lucky.

Question 9

Is the wiring harness on a 2005 Ford focus ZX42.0 interchangeable?

Accepted Answer

Just for starters, the ZX4 is a four-door sedan, while the ZX3 body is the three-door hatchback. At the very least, that will mean differences in the wiring loom as regards door-courtesy and boot/tailgate lights. Cars will have different wiring looms depending on their transmission, too, so even if the engine is the same in both cars, the loom might not be. Then there's the more basic question of whether they're actually the same model of Ford Focus. Ford Australia switched to the all-new second-gen Focus in April 2005, and if your 2005 Focus is that newer version, the wiring will not be compatible with the 2001 model. But even if they're from the same generation of Focus, swapping a wiring loom from one car to another involves many, many hours of work.

Question 10

Will the transmission from a 2008 Ford Focus fit a 2018 model?

Accepted Answer

They might both be Ford Focuses, but they're a couple of generations apart meaning that they are not only physically different, they also used different transmissions to each other. Even if, by some miracle, the older gearbox would bolt to the newer engine, the car still wouldn't have the correct electronics to make the transmission work properly. Even if the transmission in question was a manual which requires much less in the way of electronic control, the unit in the 2008 Focus was a five-speed, while the later car used a completely different six-speed. Even things like the clutch and flywheel would be incompatible. You'd probably even find the gear-shifter for each transmission enters the cabin in a physically different spot, meaning the interior trim would no longer fit.

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