FORD FOCUS RS MK2 BUYERS GUIDE! The things to look out for! 

Ah guys I forgot to mention the gearbox oil seal where the driveshaft goes into the gearbox. I had this issue too which was a simple fix. Any more you can think of? Drop them in the comments box for others to see!

Very informative well thought out video.

Great video and a useful guide as to what to look for if you’re lucky enough to be buying a mk2 RS. 👍🏻 Can’t believe it’s 4 years mate!

Very informative!

Great video mate. Owned my RS for 11 years now & kept it standard. Just done 59k miles & love every minute of driving her at weekends. You've pretty much covered it all. One recent issue i had was an engine management light fault, Car was running rich & over revving on start up. The diagnostic machine reported an upstream lambda sensor fault. Replaced that & the fault reappeared. After scratching my head i booked in at Demon Perfomance. Pete Williams is a top guy & knows his stuff. He nailed it straight away, it was the symposer diaphram. He also diagnosed a fault i had last year. All the error codes pointed to the throttle body. He nailed it again, it was actually an issue with the clocks & the solder degrading. I would strongly advise anyone buying an RS, always consult a specialist when you have issues. Otherwise you could spend hundreds of pounds chasing error code faults. The diagnostic tools out there are too generic. Other than that the most enjoyable car I've ever owned & still to this day regularly get people giving me the thumbs up or wanting to chat with me at the petrol station 19:40

Great video, recently bought a blue one which is cp3 mapped. Sometimes it has a rough idle when the car is hot or the weather is hot, think its the throttle body sticking slightly but other than that its a dream

Great vid, this would be extremely useful especially to someone like me with not alot of experience or confidence when buying one of these puppies. Ive just bought one about amonth ago, i had no clue so i paid for a pre inspection service not awell known company but a smaller one who did a great job for me really worth it saved me a fortune. Off the top of my head alternator, battery, battery fixing, key not fitting somewhere, i think steering wheel alignment? and no proof of cam belt/waterpump.The dealership agreed to put all that right including cam belt plus all 4 discs and pads, new tyres all around mot and service. Not bad i thought really. Only issue was on the first day i had it i got an engine light come on. After alot of time and minor ball ache I got it sorted a few days ago. Cat had disintegrated or diy decat 🤪

Good list. I'd suggest checking out corrosion on the revoknuckle because that's the potential for a whole world of pain if it's too far gone.

Just a correction on the head light. The scorching effect is caused by people putting the bulb holder in the wrong way round. It doesn't actually scorch the lense, it melts the inside of the light. The scorching effect is just smoke residual and can be wiped off by cleaning the inside of the lense by reaching in with a cotton bug. I've just done mine.

Front abs cable stretching, dry solder joints on the instrument cluster and where the loom passes from the body to the tailgate, the rubber sock rubs on the body and if you have an earlier car the part where it rubs doesn't have the protective sticker

we had this conversation a few weeks back about daily driving haha i knew i wasnt the only one asking. Great vid

Had a small oil leak from a relief something or other in round the timing belt. Engine mount off to tighten it and all was well.

I'd love a Focus RS but car theft in my city Birmingham is out of control. I had my Stealth Grey 2016 ST3 robbed of my drive not long ago. And one of my neighbours had his Ford Mustang robbed a couple of weeks ago. Beautiful car but I'd be a bag of nerves owning one

Just one question on this one... you mention eBay a few times, just wondered if you can still get parts from a Ford dealer as they must still have to service some mk2 Focus's be it RS or not.....interesting to hear about some of the design faults on the car which I found annoying as well when I ran mine ....but mainly due to the RS being derived from a family car built to a cost budget ...so can be explained...look forward to the next one...👍

Great video bro he’s a question, I’m trying to connect my phone via blue tooth top,ay music through it, I heard there’s some kinda download you can do via a usb to update the stereo system? Any ideas? Also my usb point when I connect my phone always charges and disconnects constantly..again any ideas on fixes 🤝🤝🤝🍺

very good gazza

My dream car

Some good pin points but one you missed, take the oil filler cap off if the inside of it is a milky coloured substance then walk away from it, also with the engine on tickover over you can hear a funny noise then again remove the oil cap if the noise stops then again walk away

❤😊 nice gary

Owned mine over 10 years, no issues othder than a replacement of a battery and 2 keys he didn’t recognized anmore. Loved watching your video and tips. Greetz from belgium

How the hell has it been 4 years already!? The reveal video feels like it dropped last month! 😂

I’ve had the reverse switch issue and the dry joints on the circuit board on the instrument cluster. The dry joints can cause weird and wonderful issues 🙂

Recently see your video regarding fjrs thanks for that took my mk3 to Fred and yeah a few issues that the main dealer ignored…. I see you’ve had both mk3 and mk2 now what’s the pros and cons of both? I have a mk3 but the mk2 is a itch I need to scratch just wary or going to a older model etc.

Is this the particular model where they had the serious misfire from ford fitting incorrect head gasket ?

Do you have the ford part numbers handy for those rest glass trims?

You can apply all of these to the mk2 STs as well, all except for the spoiler rattling issue. Same engine issues, pinch weld issues, same rear bumper/arch rust bubbling, same issue with droplinks and reversing camera (albeit on specced up STs and RS' only), same issues with headlamps and crud catching under the rear lamps, bolster wear on ST seats, handbrake levers, gearknobs and steering wheels. I will point out that you forgot about the ABS cable stretching issues on RS', also thats one thing the ST doesnt suffer.

These mk Focus are a great car but they nearly all seem to leak water inside. Often the boot will be damp, spare wheel well full of water, rear passenger footwells also damp. This is a general Focus thing it appears as my Ghia has leaks, my parents estate also so maybe another consideration.

It’s the same in Ireland.. I sold my car this year and dealer gave me 600 euro back + my new car so my 2nd had car was worth just as much as the new car and it’s a Kia sportage😅

i think mine will need looking at the rad issues you talk about I've felt the sponge at the bottom of the rad its wet and there is what looks like coolant puddles at the bottom in 3 areas left hand side right hand side and middle does this sound like a rad issue?

Could you do one of these for the cupra ?

👍👍

Does the seat lower on the drivers side

Hope u remove them flies asap of the front bumper as they have been known to damage clear cote even if not left outside in the sun to bake.

How’s about a guide for build specs?

How much should I pay for one in good condition?

Final thing to check: Make sure its Ultimate Green

The volvo 5 cylinder engine does have its faults barum engines do a post about this engine and its faults

"Promosm"

I do love my focus's although i will never own an st let alone an rs 😂😂 i find upkeep very expensive and as you say parts are stupid prices.....rs tax !!! Im currently on my 3rd focus which is a 1ltr titanium x and its my favourite by far with a nice kick . I know its weak to most ppl especially rs owners but i love them .