it looms!

[mrbaxr6t]

I have placed an order of a white stripe on blue focus xr5t with leather for my wife, own a BAXR6T and the thing has mods and is quite awesome, so much so that the wife wanted a better car, she chose the focus and the colors - should have it in 6 weeks or less!

as one cannot be test driven for love or money around here (sell as soon as they hit the dealer) I havn't driven a turbo one - how bad is the torque steer on the basemodel one I did drive even when you are quite harsh with throttle application it doesn't seem to suffer at all with torque steer - doesn't have anywhere near as much hp as the xr5 tho so will be interesting



just so you know what I am talking about

I must say for the overall size of the car being a hatch and the like it accommodated (the ones i could get hold of) my rather large 6 ft 3 inch frame with plenty headroom and legroom! and with the seat adjusted to where i liked it for the test drive I STILL was able to fit in the back behind the drivers' seat and ontop of all that the rear cargo space is quite large for a hatchback - quite an impressive little car if the wife don't like it I will be most ****ed off

[casabonka]

Great stuff - they are a sweet looking ride! Hope its not like my dads Xr8 Ute which he got last year, dealer told him 6 weeks, took 11...

We are looking forwards to piccies!

[BrisVegas]

nice one mate. If your wife is like mine, you'll end up driving it plenty anyway, so good stuff on buying something with cred like that.

[YUSLOW]

Hey mrbaxr6t,
Where abouts in OZ are you? There are dealers out there with stock that you can test drive.
I hope you took advantage of the 09 plate XR5 sale that's currently on. $34,990 drive away is dam cheap!
Like yourself I also have a XR6T but I was bitten by the XR5 bug after a test drive. Mine is white with the blue OTT stripes and leather.
Check out the XR5 forums for info and mods.
They really are a great little car to drive.

[mrbaxr6t]

Originally Posted by YUSLOW

Hey mrbaxr6t,
Where abouts in OZ are you? There are dealers out there with stock that you can test drive.
I hope you took advantage of the 09 plate XR5 sale that's currently on. $34,990 drive away is dam cheap!
Like yourself I also have a XR6T but I was bitten by the XR5 bug after a test drive. Mine is white with the blue OTT stripes and leather.
Check out the XR5 forums for info and mods.
They really are a great little car to drive.

I am in victioria and yes I am taking advantage of the plate deal, thing is tho the car I want in terms of options and stuff does not exist, getting a '10 model soon I hope - you got one as evidenced by the pic - how bad is torque steer? please do tell

[YUSLOW]

Where in Vic are you? I know a few dealers that have stock.
The torque steer is not as bad as I thought it was going to be, but this also depends on if you leave the ESP on or not, the road condiction/surface and just how hard/fast you but the right foot down.

[warren77]

I have the Mondeo XR5 Turbo, with a few slight mods.
The Torque steer isn't too bad. Yes you can notice it but no where near as bad as it was when I test drove both the MPS 3 and 6.

[Tj-zetec]

As has been mentioned torque steer is there (it was there in my LR zetec with a mind bending 70 odd killerwasps at the wheels)
But once you get the hang of a HiPo front wheel drive you learn to work with it.

It's also worth mentioning that the recaro's do have a slightly different seating position to the normal seats.
I've heard others complaining about the seat being too high (i'm 5ft naught so it doesn't bother me) so i'd check just to make sure you can sit in it comfortably if i were you.

They're a fun little car, and with a few tweeks it'll give a stock XR6T a genuine scare! (you shouldn't have that problem i'm guessing )

[mrbaxr6t]

OK an update : the dealer has found an unregistered sep 09 model already here in australia with the options on it we wanted that will be got in a week or so, and he claims that the wait on a 2010 model will be mid February he is slashing the price of the 09 model to sell it to us, what should I do get the 09 and pocket the change or wait for the 2010 one

they ARE the same car and there have been no changes between the 09-10 model ones (or so he says) wife wants the car and wants it now so wants the 09 one unless I get concrete evidence that the 10 model has something the 09 dont...

advice please focus people :

[mrbaxr6t]

I would say that THAT is a bit different to the 09 mdl, if that arrives in 2010 I will be very ****ed off, what should I do?

[casabonka]

Apparently thats the 2011/12 model though. Tough call. If u dont mind me asking, how much is the saving for the 09?

[Velociraptor82]

Weather it is an 09 or 10 plate it is still an LV so I doubt there there will be any changes until the 2011 focus (pic above).

The only thing I can thing of, is making sure the ECU has the latest updates.

[Tj-zetec]

Pfft, you'll last 3 months before reflashing the ECU with dreamscience so it won't matter :P
Don't bother waiting. At the end of the day, it will make stuff all difference in resale and you'll kick yourself for waiting and paying more for the same car.

Save the cash and grab the 09 plate.

[mrbaxr6t]

09 plate it is thank you people for your posts they have been very helpful 2 weeks or less says the dealer

[mrbaxr6t]

just heard from the dealer this morning was told Friday the 22nd of jan should have it (if not a couple days before) can't wait and neither can the wife : :

apparently car is confirmed to be in melbourne somewhere at a ford dealership

[mrbaxr6t]

here it is!!








steaming hot from the dealership : : :

a bit miffed about not being told recaro sports seats + leather == 4 seater but damn is it a fine automobile!

sorry for the lack of pix but between driving it and showing it off there wasn't much time for taking pictures, but I did manage to get a couple

[Tj-zetec]

mmm, Love perf blue on the LV's.

First mod, Get on eBay and buy a kit to complete the stripes on the lower part of the front bumper. Trust me, looks a squillion times better.


The leather = 4 seater set up, as far as i'm aware is to make the rear seats more "buckety". Meh, backseat passengers are just freeloading excess weight.

Has it started "popping" yet? when it does, you'll love it even more.

[mrbaxr6t]

popping? what do you mean, it makes induction and blowoff noises sedately it is a new everything and hasnt even done 150kms it was melting new when i picked it up ODO read 71 kms

<<EDIT>> what really impresses me is not just how it goes, but now it STOPS the anchors on this car are beyond belief! eye popping even, almost scary how fast it stops, it feels asif when you hit the stop pedal it drives steaks into the ground to stop it on the spot! nobody told me how crazy good they are at stopping :

[More revs]

SO how is the torque steer?

I drove a Renault Sport Cleo a while ago and nearly snapped a wrist. What a ride though.

[casabonka]

Nice mate, well done. Im sure you will have HEAPS of fun with her!

[DBourne]

awesome!!

How good are they to drive!!!

First up, get a rear anti roll bar (can be had for $250 delivered) couple o bolts and done, firms the car up through corners nicely without compromising ride comfort.

The pops are awesome, between big gear changes, and also if you clutch in and stab the throttle @ ~2,000rpm you'll get nice big pops..

But maybe wait till it's run in before those shenannigans

[Tj-zetec]

mine seems to pop when i pull in the driveway, conveniently at the moment i pass the front door.

It's like a manlier way of saying "honey!, I'm home!"

@mrbaxr6t:
To explain properly, when you accelerate hard, the car will Pop between gears. It also does it on occasions when you're down shifting, more often when you're rev-matching.
What's going on is the ECU goes a little spaz in those instances and the engine will dump unburnt fuel into the exhaust. Not sure if its the variable cam timing or the air/fuel ratios that cause it. Some one will pick me up on it i'm sure.


Either way, it sounds orsm.

[Kryton]

Do these have cruise control yet?

[Tj-zetec]

Not factory.

There are aftermarket ones getting around tho.


Seriously, you don't need it.

[mrbaxr6t]

ok popping huh maybe thats what it did - took it down melbourne to go scienceworks with kids anyway wife was driving and she took off from lights and you could hear it inhaling pretty hard I might add when mr.dumbass strolled right out onto the road ipod buds in and all, so she got off the accelerator and before she braked the engine braked and a strange (and rather loud) noise was audible from the front of the car - she swore she hit something (and so did the pedestrians in the area judging by the looks) but the ride was unchanged and from the sound you would have felt it had we hit something large enough to make that sort of noise maybe this is the "pop" which you describe, also she reported to me that it made a similar noise and she was certain again that she "hit something" she described the noise as something plastic popping under the tyre and was flipping out and wanted me to have a look so I did just to ease her fears, not a scratch or blemish or any other visible signs of damage or debris seems that yes its popping I have yet to make it do it I am showing massive restraint and mechanical sympathy.

on the topic of torque steer when I have put the pedal to the floor (twice so far) it is nonexistent - it just isn't there at all I really do mean not at all so much so that my wife asked me just today "what is that torque shear thing you were on about again" so she hasn't noticed it either??? only explanation I can come up with for it not having any is that ESP/ESC/EMS whatever the thing is that makes your car "turn the way you intended" is activating and removing it, when I figure out how to turn it off (if I can) I will see if it torque steers with it off.

now the bad news : It appears that when the striped were applied it was washed first (duh) and it looks to have substantial swirl marks on the bonnet roof and tail, I havn't super closely inspected/washed it so I can't be certain, also how are the stripes applied are they a water transfer deal or are they a strip of like truck decal vinyl with adhesive? if they are the water ones it is possible the blemishes I thought I saw are just the remainder of the adhesive.

on the topic of cruise control - no it doesn't have it and my wife (its her car after all) wants it to have cruise - thing is will installing it void the warranty anybody know? (yes given it is professionally installed not some backyard job)

[Velociraptor82]

My stripes were appield aftermarket and it appears they can be applied both with spoappy water and without. I've only seen them applied dry so far adn when this is done the body has to be clean of all dirt and wax / polish to ensure a good stick. The place that put mine on went over the body with metho.

I've noticed that if only a little metho is applied to the cloth, it does leave swirl marks however these easily washout.

Congrats on the new purchase~

[DBourne]

ESP can be turned off by pushing down the little button in the middle of the dash, under the stereo with the car and 2 lines coming from it, hold it till the word OFF glows orange and you get an orange light on your cluster.

Wait 5 seconds then press the reset button on the left hand stalk once and it'll get rid of the ESP OFF warning display.

Now you get to enjoy the power a bit more.

And yeah your description of the pops is bang on (excuse the pun) You'll learn to love it.

[XR5-Boy]

Nice purchase! I just bought one myself, but without stripes and leather. I was, however, told by the dealership that leather would make the rears buckets and only have 2 seats, so the person selling the car should have known their stuff!

Personally, I wanted the cloth interior. I had leather in my Cougar and I hated the steamy hot seats on a warm day!

[YUSLOW]

The leather seats can get rather hot if the vehicle is left in the direct sun, but if you know it's going to be hot either; park in the shade where you can, use window sun shades or throw a loose fit seat cover over the seats.
The leather seats are so good. The rear bucket seats are way more comfortable and front electric seat warmers are the best for cold days!

[Bucknaked]

Originally Posted by mrbaxr6t

popping? what do you mean, it makes induction and blowoff noises sedately it is a new everything and hasnt even done 150kms it was melting new when i picked it up ODO read 71 kms

<<EDIT>> what really impresses me is not just how it goes, but now it STOPS the anchors on this car are beyond belief! eye popping even, almost scary how fast it stops, it feels asif when you hit the stop pedal it drives steaks into the ground to stop it on the spot! nobody told me how crazy good they are at stopping :

The popping will destroy your cat. Hard acceleration then back off gives backfiring or popping.