Skid Marx
25-12-2011, 10:42 AM
I just swapped an 18 month old LV Ford Focus XR5 (turbo) for a new Civic VTi auto and I couldn't be happier. Yes the reduction in grunt is noticeable to say the least but that's about the only thing I miss so far.
Here is what I didn't like about the Focus:-
Slow gearbox - double clutching made very little difference going into 2nd and 4th. It just took ages no matter what you did. The box has a rubbery, non-positive feel to it.
Sharp variable clutch - it was pretty 'sharp' as you'd expect in a powerful car but this thing grabbed at different points randomly making smooth takes offs often impossible.
Brakes too sharp - don't get me wrong, the Focus brakes had fantastic stopping power but in dawdling peak hour traffic they took a lot of practice to avoid 'jerky' stops.
Huge turning circle - 11.7 metres in a car only 4357mm long!
Air Conditioning/Ventilation system utter crap - unbelievably weak air con. Even on a 34 degree day with air at 100% and on recirculate it barely lowered the temperature. On a really hot day, I used to switch it off and roll the windows down like I use to on my old Holdens. On cold mornings, the so called demister was even sillier. No matter what settings you tried, you got a foggy windscreen for at least 3 or 4 minutes. Fully cold didn't work as the air-con refused to switch on if it was cold. Fully hot even after the engine temp began to rise hardly cleared a patch bigger than your hand for quite some time.
Fuel Consumption - OK, in a car with 166 Kw and 320 Nmts you expect it to drink a bit but I couldn't get better than 11 ltrs/100ks no matter how gently I drove it. On premium fuel this feels expensive. Ford claims 9.3 combined but I guess most manufacturers are pretty optimistic.
General lack of reliability - it often just wouldn't start for a few minutes. It uses a keyless system with a start button and if things got 'out of sych' you'd have to wait until it righted itself. Just what you want if you stall on a level crossing eh!? Other minor features appeared never to work - like the steering settings 'Sport', 'Standard' and 'Comfort' made no noticeable difference and the sound system would suddenly start sounding like badly over compressed digital music at random times (even on standard analog radio). General shoddy short cuts in finish and minor rattles.
What I like about my Civic:-
Everything feels much better quality than you'd expect from a car in the mid $20Ks. The switches feel 'just right' and they all work!
The air con will snap freeze you if you so desire.
Much roomier foot well. This is something that car reviewers never seem to cover and I find that after an hour or so of driving, if the foot well is cramped I get really restless. The car is generally very roomy for a small/mid sized car.
Great driving position - Honda just seems to get this so right. My first Honda was a '99 Prelude and that thing was such a joy to be in. I'd still have it except for a prang in '05.
Automatic not so bad - All autos are slush boxes but this one seems better than the Prelude and noticeably better than my '04 Subaru Impreza RS Hatch which used to hunt around quite a bit.
Side visibility - again something that car reviewers often forget but I find the new trend of very wide 'B' pillars annoying to look around when turning left and checking for traffic. In the Focus and the Subaru these things are right in my line of sight and require you to crane your head forward or back to see around them. If you're entering a busy road, this gets tiring. Somehow, Honda have made a car where a 178cm tall man can find a comfortable driving position and still see clear glass when looking left.
Tight turning circle - as car park designers all seem to drive Nissan Micros they think everyone can park their car like a wheelbarrow. The Civic can still squeeze around multi-story car parks (but I'm sure they'll work out a way of stopping this soon!)
General build quality - Looking under the hood, the quality and neatness of the motor fittings is way ahead of either the Focus or the Subaru. Again, on a $25k car this is well above the pack.
I am very happy with my 'grandma's car'. If Ford had spent just a bit more time getting the Focus right I'd have kept it and loved it but it seems they just can't do it.
Here is what I didn't like about the Focus:-
Slow gearbox - double clutching made very little difference going into 2nd and 4th. It just took ages no matter what you did. The box has a rubbery, non-positive feel to it.
Sharp variable clutch - it was pretty 'sharp' as you'd expect in a powerful car but this thing grabbed at different points randomly making smooth takes offs often impossible.
Brakes too sharp - don't get me wrong, the Focus brakes had fantastic stopping power but in dawdling peak hour traffic they took a lot of practice to avoid 'jerky' stops.
Huge turning circle - 11.7 metres in a car only 4357mm long!
Air Conditioning/Ventilation system utter crap - unbelievably weak air con. Even on a 34 degree day with air at 100% and on recirculate it barely lowered the temperature. On a really hot day, I used to switch it off and roll the windows down like I use to on my old Holdens. On cold mornings, the so called demister was even sillier. No matter what settings you tried, you got a foggy windscreen for at least 3 or 4 minutes. Fully cold didn't work as the air-con refused to switch on if it was cold. Fully hot even after the engine temp began to rise hardly cleared a patch bigger than your hand for quite some time.
Fuel Consumption - OK, in a car with 166 Kw and 320 Nmts you expect it to drink a bit but I couldn't get better than 11 ltrs/100ks no matter how gently I drove it. On premium fuel this feels expensive. Ford claims 9.3 combined but I guess most manufacturers are pretty optimistic.
General lack of reliability - it often just wouldn't start for a few minutes. It uses a keyless system with a start button and if things got 'out of sych' you'd have to wait until it righted itself. Just what you want if you stall on a level crossing eh!? Other minor features appeared never to work - like the steering settings 'Sport', 'Standard' and 'Comfort' made no noticeable difference and the sound system would suddenly start sounding like badly over compressed digital music at random times (even on standard analog radio). General shoddy short cuts in finish and minor rattles.
What I like about my Civic:-
Everything feels much better quality than you'd expect from a car in the mid $20Ks. The switches feel 'just right' and they all work!
The air con will snap freeze you if you so desire.
Much roomier foot well. This is something that car reviewers never seem to cover and I find that after an hour or so of driving, if the foot well is cramped I get really restless. The car is generally very roomy for a small/mid sized car.
Great driving position - Honda just seems to get this so right. My first Honda was a '99 Prelude and that thing was such a joy to be in. I'd still have it except for a prang in '05.
Automatic not so bad - All autos are slush boxes but this one seems better than the Prelude and noticeably better than my '04 Subaru Impreza RS Hatch which used to hunt around quite a bit.
Side visibility - again something that car reviewers often forget but I find the new trend of very wide 'B' pillars annoying to look around when turning left and checking for traffic. In the Focus and the Subaru these things are right in my line of sight and require you to crane your head forward or back to see around them. If you're entering a busy road, this gets tiring. Somehow, Honda have made a car where a 178cm tall man can find a comfortable driving position and still see clear glass when looking left.
Tight turning circle - as car park designers all seem to drive Nissan Micros they think everyone can park their car like a wheelbarrow. The Civic can still squeeze around multi-story car parks (but I'm sure they'll work out a way of stopping this soon!)
General build quality - Looking under the hood, the quality and neatness of the motor fittings is way ahead of either the Focus or the Subaru. Again, on a $25k car this is well above the pack.
I am very happy with my 'grandma's car'. If Ford had spent just a bit more time getting the Focus right I'd have kept it and loved it but it seems they just can't do it.