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Used 2005 Ford Focus Consumer Reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
328 reviews

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4 out of 5 stars

Great Car

colorsendinink, 06/03/2011
2005 Ford Focus ZX4 SE 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
9 of 9 people found this review helpful

My family bought this car new in 2004, and its given us very few problems since then. After making the mistake of buying a 1996 cavalier ( died after 4 months of driving with 78000 total miles)...me and my dad made a deal where i would make the down payment on his new car, and i would get his 2005 focus. best descion i've made. since 2004, we've only replaced the brakes once, which was last year, replaced sway links, and we had a minor electrical problem with the windows. the car works great in our buffalo winters, and currently has 150,000 miles and still drives great.

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5 out of 5 stars

220,000 Miles and still starts right up!

Shadow2450, 08/07/2018
2005 Ford Focus ZX3 S 2dr Hatchback (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
9 of 9 people found this review helpful

I bought this car back when i was in highschool my senior year used for a fairly good price, now since im looking into getting something else I thought I would share my experience with my focus and I want to start out by saying I loved it. I have the 5 speed manual transmission and while theres not much power under the hood its still very fun to change the gears and hear the little car go. reliability is nothing short of amazing. when I purchased the car It had close to about 80,000 miles on it. the only issue that left me stranded was an alternator that needed to be replaced at around 160,000 miles. small things such as the mass airflow sensor ar about 195,000 miles and the rear wiper motor at 215,000 miles. I live in the northeast so I have my fair share of terrible winters, but if you throw on a set of good snow tires the traction is nothing short of great! I would be on the highway on my way to work passing jeep wranglers and other AWD cars because of the confidence I had in my car. I am beyond happy with my focus and I think its nothing short of an excellent car to own.

Safety
5 out of 5 stars
Technology
3 out of 5 stars
Performance
4 out of 5 stars
Interior
3 out of 5 stars
Comfort
3 out of 5 stars
Reliability
5 out of 5 stars
Value
5 out of 5 stars
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5 out of 5 stars

Great college car

no noburt, 08/20/2015
2005 Ford Focus ZX4 S 4dr Sedan (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
20 of 22 people found this review helpful

Im in college. I was gifted this car. It was the bare bones model. It had an engine and tranny with the stock radio. The manual windows and locks were annoying but they worked. I replaced the radio and drove from 88K to 120K until i was rear ended and totaled. It gave me 0 mechanical problems. It ran and had A/C. It was great. It looked like shit(due to previous owner) but it got me everywhere with no problems. It was loud when going 80 on the turnpike but I didnt care. I had a radio to listen to. My passengers dealt with the the rear seats so I cant vouch for them. Comfortable, fun, great steering, great brakes, good mpg, good on tires. Would buy again

Safety
5 out of 5 stars
Technology
4 out of 5 stars
Performance
5 out of 5 stars
Interior
5 out of 5 stars
Comfort
5 out of 5 stars
Reliability
5 out of 5 stars
Value
5 out of 5 stars
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2 out of 5 stars

Electrical system sucks

Terry, 01/08/2016
2005 Ford Focus ZX3 S 2dr Hatchback (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
31 of 35 people found this review helpful

I bought the car used. The battery light came on intermittently. The dome lights and signals would go on for no reason in the middle of the night. I went through 3 batteries in less than 5 years. The electrical issues became worse as time progressed. It was determined that the "cluster" was bad. There was an unidentifiable drain on the battery that got to the point that a brand new battery was burnt out in a matter of months. When a new battery was installed, the car was dead the next morning. Getting rid of the ghost in the electrical system would be a costly repair -- more than the car is worth. My mechanic found that these cars are notorious for electrical/cluster problems.

Safety
3 out of 5 stars
Technology
3 out of 5 stars
Performance
2 out of 5 stars
Interior
2 out of 5 stars
Comfort
2 out of 5 stars
Reliability
3 out of 5 stars
Value
3 out of 5 stars
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5 out of 5 stars

Bang for your buck

dumbblonde8, 08/21/2010
2005 Ford Focus ZX5 SE 4dr Hatchback (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
13 of 14 people found this review helpful

Bought this car because my family has always bought Fords, and I have been impressed with it 4 years later. It's a dream for maintenance. I've NEVER had to had anything major done to it, just the oil and filters changed. I rallied the crap out of it too and nothing has happened. I hadn't gotten a wheel alignment since I bought the thing and just recently got one (yeah, been kinda broke lol) and it was BARELY out of alignment. Doing home maintenance on it is so easy a caveman can do it. The Hatchback gives plenty of room. All in all a very sporty car. HIGHLY recommend.

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