2008 Ford Focus Consumer Reviews

Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus S 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

After 9 years of selling fords I finally bought one for myself to drive to work everyday. My wife has 2 of our products, the oppurtunity has just not come around for me. This car blows me away in quality, quietness, and value. I love the manual tranny. It is twice the car I expected it to be. Very low maintenance. Pay attention to the lack of timing belt. I bought a base car because I dont need the frills. A huge improvement over the prior model, although those have been very very good since 2005.

Favorite Features

I like the hankook tires. Got 64,000 miles on my last car with them, with miles to spare. Overall road feel and on center steering stability.

Suggested Improvements

Inside trunk release. Cruise on base model. Lumbar support.

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus SE 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

I think this car has more going for it than any compact car out there. The drivers seat is very comfortable and for the first time in my life I have a new car with no rattles or squeeks. The handling is great, passive rear wheel steering is obviously designed into this vehicle rear suspension giving it cornering ability and traction that I have only experienced in more expensive cars. The engine is very quiet at any speed and accelerates with vigor although passing can be a little taxing on the 2.0. Transmission shifts are perfect with no hunting between gears. Sync, all I can say is that Ford and Microsoft, two companies that sometimes deservingly get a hard time from consumers have a hit!

Favorite Features

Quality, this car has an incredible feel to it, everything seems tight. Sync, this is the best feature in any car on the road today. I was looking for a manual tranny but for deal making reasons with my salesman I ended up with an auto. I really like the smooth shifts, their calibration is spot on.

Suggested Improvements

Back seat headroom could be better although the rear seats are very comfortable as a whole.

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus SE 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

I bought this car about three weeks ago and so far I am very impressed. The Focus is a very responsive, quiet, comfortable and fun to drive car. I test drove a Nissan Sentra 2.0 and a Toyota Corolla Ce and neither were as good as the Focus. It is a small car so obviously fuel economy is great. I am an 18 year old car enthusiast and can tell you that this car is a lot of bang for the buck. I have also noticed that the quality of the interior compared to my buddy's old Focus is much improved. I highly recommend this car to any young buyer who is looking for a fun and affordable small car

Favorite Features

Ice blue interior lighting, responsive steering, large trunk, front facia, front bucket seats, design and layout of the dashboard

Suggested Improvements

Take out the cheesy side fender vents, add rear seat headrests, add grab-handles over every window, offer more interior color options, offer more attractive wheels

2 out 2 people found this review helpful

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus S 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

I have been driving my Focus for about three weeks now and must say that this is a great car. This car is very responsive, comfortable, quiet and fun to drive. I am 18 years old and a car enthusiast. For the money the Focus is a lot of bang for the buck. I test drove a Nissan Sentra 2.0 and a Toyota Corolla CE but wasn't impressed at how exciting the cars were compared to the Focus. Fuel economy is obviously great because this is a small car. I didn't get the sync system because I do not even have an ipod but I hear that it's a great feature. I would highly recommend this car to other young drivers who need a fun and affordable small car.

Favorite Features

Ice blue lighting, front facia, responsive steering, quiet ride, center instrument panel, front bucket seats, large trunk

Suggested Improvements

Get rid of the cheesy side vents on the SE and SES models, offer more interior colors, offer more attractive wheels, add rear seat headrests and grab handles above every window like its competitors, make power windows and locks standard

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus SES 2dr Coupe (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

When I test drove my Focus I was surprised at how well it drove. It accelerates well and the automatic transmission is one of the smoothest I've ever felt. I drove a Mazda 3 automatic and the downshift was quite abrupt. The Focus downshift is controlled and smooth. Also, this car handles curves excellently. You can keep pushing the throttle on a curve and the car stays on it without body roll. Because of the performance, options and rebate I think it was a good purchase. If you are looking for an inexpensive, fuel efficient, zippy and solid vehicle I recommend this car.

Favorite Features

Loving the satellite radio. Traction control. SES euro handling. The radio/dash lights at night are cool and helpful in seeing instruments. Coupe syling with spoiler and rims. electrochromatic inside rearview mirror is awesome.

Suggested Improvements

Getting 24 mpg in mixed driving. Was hoping for 26-27. Rear seat cushions could be firmer. Tend to sink a little.

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus SES 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

I love my new car! I am quite the features addict and everything about this car rocks my world. This ain't your mama's Ford! Give one a test drive and you'll see what everyone else sees. One great little car. I am a former owner of a New Beetle/Turbo and I am not disappointed with the power that this vehicle displays. I was worried about no giddyup, but I worried unneedlessly.

Favorite Features

Sync (got to sit down and set it up yet) only have had the car for 4 days

Suggested Improvements

A little more leg room for the back seat and pockets on the back of the seats for mapbooks etc.

2 out 4 people found this review helpful

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus SES 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

My family always bought Fords until the mid 1980s. Then as we noticed quality was falling we migrated to Hondas and we do still like them. That said we did much research on acquiring a new small comfortable fuel efficient car. We looked at Honda, Toyota, Nissan, etc. The Ford Focus stood out and I have to admit I am really happy. I never understood how we Americans could not build a car as good as the Germans or Japanese. The Sync system is fantastic and promotes safety. Fuel economy is great and the car seems well built.

Favorite Features

This car is unbelievably quiet for a car in its class. Again the Sync system blows away capabilities on cars twice its price. Great car!

Suggested Improvements

Back seat headrests, light in the back seat area, and larger cup holders.

3 out 4 people found this review helpful

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus SE 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

I have owned this car since 1/1 and had nothing but problems with the front suspension. This car has very weak front springs especially the right side bottoms out with every bump in the road, inclined driveways forget about it. The front underside has taken a beating with such a weak suspension. Has been in the shop numerous times but to no avail(so far). Dealership has replaced front strut, aligned it and reposition a strut also to rid itself of a loud popping noise on the left front side. Will go back in the shop next week. Springs are so weak I can compress them with a single hand Fuel mileage I find above average, great dash and readouts, comfortable seats(do not spill on them).

Favorite Features

I love the info gauge it greatly improves my driving to conserve energy. Trunk is huge for this size car.

Suggested Improvements

Better fabrics for the seats stains easily with plain water much less other liquids. Front suspension must be improved.

3 out 4 people found this review helpful

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus SE 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

WRT fuel efficiency: On my 3rd tank averaged 39mpg ( by miles/gallons to refill) on mostly town/rural roads. Best trip was about 40 miles distance, 2/3 of it on Interstate 95, getting 45mpg. Understand, I drive very conservatively, trying to keep tach below 2k. On the interstate it's 55- 62 mph. I watch the average mpg very carefully, resetting on each trip to maintain sensitivity to moment to moment driving behaviors. Accelerate very gradually. As warm weather comes in, mpg has improved on the shorter trips. If I am in the least bit of a hurry, gas efficiency drops 20% - without fail. BTW, I have the automatic transmission.

Favorite Features

Fuel efficiency, mp3 jack

Suggested Improvements

Headrest too far forward. Vent decoration is silly

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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Vehicle

2008 Ford Focus SES 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)

Review

We are big "researchers" when making a car purchase. We looked at all the compact cars on the market in terms of price, reliability, styling, etc. For the money, the Focus was the best. It is fun to drive, nice styling, roomy, and so far, very reliable. Also good gas mileage.

Favorite Features

Gas mileage, room, and styling

Suggested Improvements

No interior trunk release

2 out 2 people found this review helpful

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