The Choice !!!!!!!!!!

[Teenager2413]

Hey guys im here wanting some advice for my next car
im looking for people opinon on

Ford Focus st3 2007 2.5l turbo 5 cyl 221Bhp OR Vauxhall Astra artic vxr 2007 2.0l turbo 4cyl 237BHP

both 70k millage

insurance i can live with


help i so stuck between them

 

[Aerial Andy944]

Never driven them but I think the Focus has aged better. Vauxhall was a bit to fussy and busy in its styling and the chassis didn't handle that power very well if I remember rightly. Don't know about common problems to look for though but someone in here will be able to help.

 

[HDi fun]

I think I'd go with the Ford. The 5 cylinder turbo engine is a Volvo unit - well proven.

 

[TCJBOLDIE]

Seem to remember the Astra on full lock and going straight ahead on Top Gear

 

[Teenager2413]

very good opinons guys the main fault i heard with the astra is ive they have been driven hard all the time gearbox and turbos fail but the ford im unsure of

 

[HDi fun]

Depends what you mean by driving hard. Hard driving and abusive driving are quite distinct. I'd lean at the Ford for it's lovely 5 cylinder motor. Whoops, I've said this already.

 

[turbonutter69]

The focus is by far the better car to drive out of the 2. And I agree, the engine is a gem.
With either car though I'd want a full, well documented history.

 

[Yugguy]

The Focus will handle way better than the Astra and is a bit less "chavvy" Although the TG "review" was designed to make the Astra fail. You can still make progress in it as long as you don't drive like a helmsmith, but it doesn;t have the quality suspension of the Focus, or the Megane.

Have heard of problems with some of the 2007 Focus STs - have a google.

The same 2.5T is in the Volvo S40 and the C30 - C30 a nice looking coupe.

Have you considered the RenaultSport Megane? Post 2007 they are very reliable, handle superb and can be tuned to superb levels.

 

[andy206]

really no contest in this one, the ford wins in every way.

but best thing would be is if you could go and test drive both of them see which you prefer

 

[HDi fun]

I've not driven an Astra of any type for years but none have really left me invigorated.

I've not driven an unpleasant Ford Focus, even the 1.8 petrol Zetec is drivable and enjoyable. The 2.5T engine works well in the Mondeo, I understand that the Focus installation is worth another 10bhp or so. As such I think it's likely to be the car to have.

 

[andy206]

did they fit the 2.5 turbo to the mondeo?? i know they did the st24/st200/st220 which all used 2.5 v6 engines (220 used 3.0 v6)

the focus was the yardstick which hatchback makers were always trying to emulate, my bro owned an st170 focus engine was a real let down and they never made anywhere near the quoted 170bhp but my god it drove lovely and the chassis was one of the best iv felt out of the box.

the st225 is yet again another brilliant motor from the off plenty of room inside good sized boot so very practical if thats what you require and has plenty of grunt, oh they are also very tuneable very easy to get them to 260bhp

 

[Teenager2413]

I did think about the megane but for me it ether ford or vxr I argree about the ford ideas

 

[Yugguy]

Yep. The mondeo 2.5t is a bargain these days

 

[HDi fun]

5 cylinder engines have always appealed to me for their unorthodox layout. VW's V5 (1998 ish I think) was the winner in my personal oddball category.

Strictly speaking it was an inline 5 with offset bores but I was still fascinated by it.

 

[claymore]

Only problem you will have with the focus is if you try to tune for more power, because it will split it's cylinder liners (this is not a might split, but will split) so it's vital to have them shimmed.

 

[HDi fun]

^ ^ that's something I've not previously heard ^ ^

Then again mose people aren't like Claymore - his Volvo is about 24,000 bhp

 

[T9 man]

 

[claymore]

^ ^ that's something I've not previously heard ^ ^

Then again mose people aren't like Claymore - his Volvo is about 24,000 bhp

It even happens to standard Focus ST, RS and the Volvo S60R S40t5 and The V30's

Here's a split liner on my 2.4 engine.

 

[HDi fun]

Oops - that looks bad

 

[claymore]

Nothing a good shimming didn't fix

 

[Yugguy]

But the mountune 260bhp upgrade is ford warrantied, so it must be able to handle that at least? It does include an upgraded ic to keep the intake temps down.

 

[Teenager2413]

yeah to be honest you can get the standard focus with mountunbe up to a 290 packadge and the touque figure is something quite tasty but with the vxr you can get the courtney packade whcih does the same but i a lot more costly for less per stage upgrade

 

[Yugguy]

The 290 mountune isn't warrantied though - the 260 is.

I think the VX engine is a strong engine - chain driven so no costly cambelt changes but you need to keep the services regular.

It's just a shame the rest of the car is basically an understeering hooligan.

 

[Teenager2413]

yh i didnt know that about the 290 it thought it was but thank you and tbh the vxr is old red top technology which we all know about when the ford is volvo
the understerring side i dont mind because even my car know is horrifc for it in the wet if you try to have a causal bit of fun but it just about controling it right my car if you go in hot ease off the back end steps out so it much of a much ness to be honest

 

[Yugguy]

Yeah if you bob on the mountune site you can see:

http://www.mountune.com/index.php/services/performance-upgrades/focus/focus-st-2005-2011



To be honest I agree with you about understeering - just drive it properly.. Top Gear used to piss me off no end with this - they'd deliberately try and get a high-powered fwd car to understeer by just barelling too fast into a corner and then putting full lock on. Especially if it was a Vauxhall *cough Ford kickbacks to Clarkson cough.. And when they did the Vectra VXR they deliberately nobbled the electronic suspension aids - funny how they never did this for ANY OTHER CAR THEY'VE EVER HAD EVER AT ALL EVER.

And yes, it understeered. Funny that.

Evo mag seemed to like it:

http://www.evo.co.uk/vauxhall/vectr...a-v-vectra-vxr-v-bmw-330i-vauxhall-scares-bmw

Bargains these days and the 280bhp version is even better.

But 99% of people just see the badge and rule it out.

 

[griffindai]

Yeah if you bob on the mountune site you can see:

http://www.mountune.com/index.php/services/performance-upgrades/focus/focus-st-2005-2011



To be honest I agree with you about understeering - just drive it properly.. Top Gear used to piss me off no end with this - they'd deliberately try and get a high-powered fwd car to understeer by just barelling too fast into a corner and then putting full lock on. Especially if it was a Vauxhall *cough Ford kickbacks to Clarkson cough.. And when they did the Vectra VXR they deliberately nobbled the electronic suspension aids - funny how they never did this for ANY OTHER CAR THEY'VE EVER HAD EVER AT ALL EVER.

And yes, it understeered. Funny that.

Evo mag seemed to like it:

http://www.evo.co.uk/vauxhall/vectr...a-v-vectra-vxr-v-bmw-330i-vauxhall-scares-bmw

Bargains these days and the 280bhp version is even better.

But 99% of people just see the badge and rule it out.

The 2.8 v6 turbo's a peach....same engine in my Saab Definitely needs a remap though

 

[Teenager2413]

yeah the issues is im looking at th e2.5 or 2 l lol but if i could afford a animal somethign that size i would but i dont think i would be able to

 

[Guybo]

Just going by the specs (I have no personal experience with Vauxhall at all and most of my experiences with Focuses in the US have been negative) I see that the Vauxhall has more HP, same torque and less weight than the Ford. It all depends on which is the best deal and what YOU want from the car. But from a performance view (engine perf anyway) the Vauxhall is the way to go.

 

[tonytoni]

I'd always go for a Ford