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If you're looking for a suspect in the killing-off of the large sedan segment in Australia - beyond the obvious SUV, of course - look no further than Ford's chameleon Focus, a small car that fulfils so many briefs it should be its own car brand. Available as a sedate, $43,450 city car (ST), a practical sedan (Sport), a warmed-over hatchback (ST) or a $55,330, fire-breathing performance vehicle (ST X) - and even as a wagon in some markets - the Focus wears a lot hats. Fortunately, then, it wears most of them well, and is traditionally a strong performer in Ford's Australian lineup.
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Can I put the motor of a 2016 Ford Focus in a 2012 model?
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.
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Are there any known transmission issues with a 2012 Ford Focus manual?
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.
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Can I fit a boot release latch from a 2005 Ford Focus LS to a 2006 model?
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.
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* Price is based on Glass's Information Services third party pricing data for the lowest priced Ford Focus variant.
The Price excludes costs such as stamp duty, other government charges and options.Disclaimer: Glass's Information Services (GIS) and CarsGuide Autotrader Media Solutions Pty Ltd. (CarsGuide) provide this information based on data from a range of sources including third parties. Whilst all care has been taken to ensure its accuracy and reliability, GIS and CarsGuide do not warrant or represent that the information is accurate, reliable, complete, current or suitable for any particular purpose. You should not use or rely upon this information without conducting an independent assessment and valuation of the vehicle.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, GIS and CarsGuide exclude all liability for any direct, indirect, special or incidental loss, damage, expense or injury resulting from, arising out of, or in connection with your use of or reliance upon this information.