Why This Mk2 Ford Focus ST is One Man's Dream Daily Driver 

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As an owner of a MK3 ST on North America I have always drooled over MK2s STs and RS! Them 5 pots are awesome! Great review! Thanks!

I had a white 5dr, full black leather with a sunroof in South Africa in 2009, had the ECU chipped and changed the exhaust, great car! I still miss it...

I still remember the Top Gear review of this car when it was new - "The Ford ASBO"

Had one of these. 08 plate completely standard. Pound for pound it was the best daily driver I’ve ever had. Was fun and gave me no bother at all in the 4 years I owned it.

This is still the best generation of Fords made. I've just started the video.

I’ve had 8 BMWs 4 Lexus all big engines etc. but I loved and miss the most was my mk2. Pearlescent white st3. With sunroof re mapped to 315 bhp. Nearly 10 years ago what a car in a time when you could be a proper lad !! If you caught the revs right it would flame 🔥 on boost What an engine ! I just feel so sad for the younger generation who will never hardly experience theses cars as we did thank god I was a late 90s lad Focus st3 ❤

I am fortunate to have owned 2 pre-facelift ST-2 MK2 Focus One brand new in 2006 & several years later swapped my fiesta Zetec-S with my Dad's ST . The 2.5 5 cylinder engine was something else after owning numerous other small engine Fords from Fiestas and a Mk1 Focus ST170. I still to this day love the 5 cylinder engine noise. An Audi RS3 or TTRS would be my point of call if I could afford the latest editions. I currently own a Golf R late 2015 and a Focus ST MK4.5 2023 both manual, I like them both for different reasons and the way they drive. However prior to owning these cars I had a 2017 BMW M240i ZF8 speed and was my favourite car to date.

I own a 5 door pre facelift ST and use it as my daily. Truth be told I was looking for an 8P RS3 however my mk1 mx5 engine blew up so all the money I was going to put towards that went back into my mk1 mx5. And I was hooked on 5 pots so the next option was the ST The 5 pot sounds phenomenal but fuel economy could be better. But I’m more than happy with my ST. Comfy and practical enough. Although the turning circle could be better.

The focus st225 will be a future classic

Your mini series reminds us all of Ford's (extended) golden era when they really did know how to design, build and market some great cars.

My first car was an 1.6L Mk2. Loved it. It never let me down in 100K km. Since then I had an RS 3 and now own the Mk 4.5 ST both great cars but the Mk 2 just had something special. Still haven't sold it.

My 1st company car was a 2006 ST3 in performance blue, brilliant brilliant car. I did 95k miles in it over 3 years and it did not skip a beat, its actually the only car that never let me down. Sound was immense from the 5 pot, but it did feel a bit nose heavy, i preferred the st170 in the MK1. Loved the leather recaro's, lovely gear change and was surprisingly comfy. Fuel economy was bleeding shocking, granted my driving style didnt help, but it was 25mpg on a good day.

My ex had the 1.6 tdci. Fantastic mpg and was never serviced once. It just went on and on and on with zero problems

Hi there, Ford story for you. My family have their own love affair with Ford's and Vauxhalls in particular. My dad for some reason has always respected Ford's as being a reliable daily driver. He hasn't always had them, often having the weird and wonderful, such as a mk3 VW polo in purple, and then following that, a 3rd Gen Mitsubishi Delica. His grandfather had a few Vauxhalls in his time, running bangers, usually a Vauxhall Astra of some sort that would be changed in a few months for another. But my dad has had 4 mk5 ford escorts, 5 ford transits (3x mk6, 1x mk5 & 1x mk7), a mk5 ford orion (mk5 saloon escort) and 3 ford focus (1x mk1 and 2x mk2). I would often find that my dad had changed cars over the past week and the new escort was a different colour. They were the cheap banger at the time and so, he didn't see the point in spending money on them when he could trade them in for scrap, and then ask how much they wanted for the one out front. He's always had a love for the Ford escort Cosworth. But those are unfortunately "unobtainium" as you say. The closest he came to it was an Audi A3 S-Line 2.0 TFSI Quattro with 181bhp. It was a very nice car, almost too nice for him to use. He had it for 1 year, I saw it once and he never used it after it went through 2 oil pumps within a few months. His favourite car he once said was his Ford Focus mk1. He had that for 5 years and it never let him down. Was old enough that parts were cheap, but new enough that it didn't suffer a Ford's fate, of rot and rust. But that Ford Focus he had has left me with a desire for a fast Ford. I currently own a Mk6 ford fiesta zetec s diesel, which i used to use for a daily commute of around 80miles per day. Great runner, good chassis and steering, just not a lot of power and sounds like a bag of nails. Ive had my eyes on Focus St225s and Fiesta St150s for a little while. This video is making me lean towards a mk2 face-lift Focus St3. This example shown in the video is very understated and I love that. It doesn't look too brash and without a second glance, it could just be a normal focus. Loving the Ford content, keep up the good work Jay.

I absolutely love my MK2 ST /XR5 Turbo, it’s my daily and it’s perfect. Plenty of space for me and some mates, it sounds amazing and they really are a good looking car for their age :)

I owned a 2013 Focus ST3 in tangerine scream for over 100k miles. It was a great car but did have a stiff ride, although not as backbreaking as the RS was. I thought the steering and handling were great for an FF setup, and that the power was just about right. The recaros were wonderful as well. Highly recommend that generation ST!

ive got a mk2 focus st and i reckon it will be one of those cars i look back on in my old age and wish i never sold it, PS : you can change how the steering feels in the settings in the little computer,

Mine look almost identical,3 door with a Rs wing and a decat she pumps 240 HP and 333nm clean clean car I've had her a year and wow just pure practicality,Pure adrenaline and a powerplant

Fords in the family- when I was a teenager, my dad had a Mk7 Fiesta Zetec S (the earlier NA 1.6) back when they were current, and I always thought it was fantastic. I swore if he still had it when I finished uni and started working, I'd buy it off him, but in the end he sold it quicker than that and I never got the chance. When I was 25 I finally got around to buying my first car ahead of moving out of the city, and a Zetec S was starting to look like an ideal compromise from a fun vs frugality perspective. When I searched Auto Trader locally and sorted by price, the first result was my dad's old car- now 10 years old with a cool 99k miles on the clock (roughly double what he sold it with 3 years prior). I bought it thinking it would have stayed in good nick in the intervening years, but naturally it was a moneypit after a busy life with its 3rd owner (dad was 2nd and I was 4th). In the time I owned the car, I spent more than it was worth on maintenance- expensive jobs like a new clutch and brake discs, a new exhaust front-to-back, a new wheel to replace a buckled one, I spared no expense despite how little the car was worth. During the pandemic it was my escape from cabin fever and my favourite source of me-time, something your other viewers (and you) can probably relate to. It was my pride and joy, enough to not care at all when my work mates started up the "McDonald's car park" jokes about my rickety old warm hatch (and that's being generous). Eventually I couldn't justify hanging onto it anymore when every MOT ran me 300+ quid, but I was absolutely devastated to see it go. These days I've got a Mk8 ST (so I'm not totally free of Maccies jokes) and while it's the better car in every way, I don't think I'd love it as much without its older brother kicking off my love affair with dinky Fords. My head still turns for a Mk7 Zetec S and it probably always will. Just in case I see owner number 5 in my old one :)

I had one and so far it's the only car I was truly sad to say goodbye too. Mine had had a hard life before my ownership and was falling apart so it was a frustrating ownership experience, but it had almost all the same mods as this one and when it was working, was the most joyous thing to drive. It didn't take itself too seriously, it wasn't actually that fast but thanks to the big torque down low and the build of the boost at higher revs, with a fantastic soundtrack provided by the cone intake and Milltek turbo back, you didn't even mind that it was like an excited puppy on a slippery floor on anything but bone dry smooth road. In fact, that was the fun off it. You imagined yourself taking some big beast of a group B rally car by the scruff and handling it down the road. Aside from that, it was a fantastic daily, very practical and as you point out, had a really good standard suspension tune for the crappy UK roads I drive. I wonder if the steering in your test car here wasn't set to the 'Sport mode' that was buried deep in the menu on that tiny LCD. I think it essentially dialled back the power assistance, as I often thought it felt quite heavy for a small car at low speeds, but very well judged when you were driving it hard and had plenty of feedback compared to lots of period alternatives.

Had mine for 9 years now, a 2010 model, absolutely my favourite daily drive I’ve ever had

Mines same colour seagrey,ST3,2008 , owned for 14yrs, still love it. Sounds brilliant.

I've had two Mk2 STs and been driving them since 2008 and current one since 2012. Waaay longer than any other car bcs they are just so great. A true all-rounder and fun to drive every day, plus super reliable. Great video, thanks.❤

Got a 2006 st3 and bloody love it,so comfortable and plenty of power for me standard.Great fun

Glorious sound from that engine

20 years. Exactly the same reason I've picked up a Clio 182 just the other month. It's the same thing happening to hot hatches of the 2000s, grab and appreciate them now and if you really do appreciate them now, you might find yourself with a future classic worth 3x they are currently worth.

Have mine in metallic Black with Rs wing now for a year picked it up from a St club member treated the car like a diamond.I treat her like a diamond the car treats me like a diamond!!! 5pot Powerhouse fun and still damn quick!!!

i always loved these cars. 5pot 20Valve Volvo turbo engine. One of my favorit engines ever. Soundtrack never gets old. Great Ford chassis/suspention. I would love to have one in orange! Dutch police used some of these (not orange LOL) as unmarked highway patrol cars. They also used Seat Cupra R btw. I've had Volvo's with similar T5 engines. These have gob smacks of torque and to be able to use it off the line they need good grippy summer tires. Like Michelin Pilotsport or some type similar tyres. My T5-R came on Pirelli Assimetrico's.

Im very familiar with this engine, so just a couple things to note: 1. This car is mostly well modified, but the cone filter usually loses power on these (unless you permanently run in cold weather under 10C). Its better to run a spacer in the stock intake system and that improves the performance more reliably. 2. The steps in power you are feeling is the torque limting system in the lower gears, basically it limits power to a certain percentage at certain wheel speeds. It works okay on stock setup but once you start tuning the car the system starts going a bit wonky.

I remember seeing the mk2 Focus for the first time when I worked as an engineer for Jaguar (they were part of Ford at the time) and I saw an uncamouflaged one at Dunton. It was a smoother looking more grown up car than the Mk1. I wasn't quite sure at the time of the looks. But I always liked the ST its very understated. it's a performance ford that suits the more grown up among us. An Old mate I worked with at Jag bought one when he retired. I bet he still has it and it will be immaculate as well!

Present day Ford take note. We love these cars.. The current crop of ford vehicles are f###### awful

This looks exactly like my old Focus ST - seems to have the exact mods mine did as well, even down to the Kenwood apple car play system I fitted 😂 I wonder if he bought it in Crawley from the Focus ST specialist and if it still has the underseat subwoofer?

At least one member of my family over 3 generations had at least one Ford at some point: I recall my grandad owning a Ford Sierra (Though not a Cosworth) My dad had a Mk4 Cortina My mum once had an Orion And currently, my sister and I own a Mk6 Fiesta, and a Mk3 facelifted Focus respectively.

i had this car for a few weeks in 2007 it was so great. sad it did not have AWD but great car great engine great vibe. a true collector. the 5 cylinders is crazy nice.

Glad you re reviewed the MK2 st

My best mate's dad had a glorious rally-spec RS200 back in high school. Having lived in Cheshire at the time, people showed up in all kinds of supercars for prom; brand-new Aston Martins, Audi R8s, 458s, and even an Aventador SV showed up after they'd only just been released. But trust me, the RS200 blew them all away. Easily sub-zero on the cool wall.

I have a mk4 mondeo, 2.2 txs, 63 plate facelift, loads of extras, best car ive ever owned

Currently the owner of a 2017 ST in Kona Blue with a stage 1 tune & added bits. I owned a variety of Ford V-8 Mustangs in my younger years & this car is by far the most powerful & fun Blue Oval product I have ever owned/driven. Everything just works together. Need to go to the shops for supplies? The clutch, steering & temperament will step up to handle that mundane task. Going to the twisty mountains for a getaway? Saddle up because that turbo is ready to spin & put a goofy grin on your face as the car practically begs you to drive it harder into the next turn because it can handle it. A bit fast entry? The brakes will slow you down almost as quickly as the turbo gets you going. I'm never selling this car.

Thanks again for another interesting video. Current cars are so very dull, fast but dull.

Absoutely loved my MK 1 Focus, most reliable car ive owned. Also such a super fun car to drive too, handles so well. Since then Ive got a MK3, which is a brilliant car, very fun to drive, but not as reliable as my MK1

I have a mk4 Focus ST , Stage 1 revo. It feels quite fast to me. I came across an 08 plate Focus ST like this one , after a bit of playing cat n mouse sizing each other up, yup it turned into a race , now whether the mk2.5 st was remapped or not ? Idn i suspect it was it held me off much to my surprise. On a dual lane road i would been able to pull away but i doubt by much unless it went for a long distance . It was very good at Lower rpm compared to mine .

Mondeo ST V6 then an Astra Coupe Turbo then a Ford Mk2 ST2. I tried the new Astra VXR and it was just rowdy, wheelspin like crazy but still an option for the new next car. Then I drove the Focus and it was worlds apart from the Astra. Took the Focus out in the rain and it was so much better to drive and handle over the Astra. Went to local Ford dealer a few weeks later and ""ordered"" me a brand spanking new ST2, not a fan of leather, and waited a few months from it to arrive. It was an awesome family of four everyday and only car apart from the fuel consumption but whatever. The 5cyl sound was just lovely. I can see now why the interior looks a bit dated and have to agree, but at the time is was perfectly fine. I kept it exactly one year before selling and moving to the other side of the world.

Ford made quite nice suspensions back then. I've an '04 C-Max and it is just wonderful to glide through bumpy road parts and smaller potholes. I had a Korean before .. my kidney stones are gone. Yet, body roll is controlled, even if the rubber parts are old. An ST put into order like this car is more than enough for a grown man to have some boogie. I saw only a couple of STs in Hungary recently .. guess they will be classics sometime? The light switch is retro, basic. Can not do/be wrong, where to look for lights. Before being taken apart (oil consumption issues - had to stop it before catastrophe), I made 51 MPG outside of cities, roughly 35 during winter inside cities. Looking forward to it after the redoing. Expecting a bit worse, would not really be surprised if it improved. (among the many grannies and small time ricers, I tend to be timid .. aside the few times when the boogie takes over).

Our 'family Ford lineup' is almost identical to this... The Mrs has a mk4 Mondeo Tit-X Business Edition (albeit with the 163 oil burner) and myself with a mk2 FL Focus ST-3... absolutely do not want to change things for a very long time! The Mondeo is great for hitching a trailer and driving the family 300 miles to make camping memories and the Focus is great for throwing them round bends and making them giggle 😅

Thing that got me with the mk2 ST was the running costs. I just refuse to pay the high tax on cars now. With the high tax, MOT, inflated insurance and fuel costs its a 4 figure sum a year before you even turn the key.

The turbo on a Taycan is the electric fan behind the air con condenser. I hope the Focus wheel bearings are strong. 20 mm is quite noticeable.

Interesting about the traction control, must be the same as the mk2 1.8 zetec I used to have. Even in that it was quite intrusive and I would tend to switch it off.

Great car these 😮 just got an ST150 (again) for the memories but this is the daddy!

It’s not quite a six, but more than a four, which gives it a unique exhaust note…

The one car I regret selling - loved that 5-pot, had it for nearly 10 years. Also had the Mountune upgrade, iirc magazine reviews at the time said power levels were considerably higher than the stated 260 bhp. You can change the assistance of the steering via the dashboard controls. Also remember forums at the time saying if you push and held T/C button instead of just cycling through modes it turned everything off - just pushing it meant there was still some assistance

would love to see a video on a saphire cosworth 2wd.... the one car i wish i never sold..

My pal jr has had hers for 20 yrs still going strong and very little gone wrong touch wood

To me that 5 cyl sounds amazing

Have you seen the new capri 😮it’s a joke maybe they can build a new escort Mexico in the form of a double decker bus

Just wish they made them 4wd, the chassis begs for it. I owned one for 4 years loved that Volvo 5pot. I was running about 330bhp. Lovely pull but torque steer was crazy.

When you turn the tc off in the mk2 it stays partially on. You have to hold the button until the orange light shows up on the dash then goes away again. Then it's fully off 👍

My dad had a 1979 (T reg) Ford Granada 2.3 GL, in metallic gold, full colour coded body kit, it really did look good, people looked around and pointed when you drove past them, we even got pulled over by a policeman on a motorbike just so he could have a look around it, the Mk 2 Granada was very much one of Ford's best models and a car that never got replaced with a better model, the Mk 3 wasn't better, the Scorpio they definitely dropped the ball and handed victory to the Vauxhall Omega

Turbo flutter makes me smile

Goodwood Festival of Speed Supercar paddock, meh. Ford Focus ST3 on open roads, bring it on! The afFORDable dream car. Lovely review, Jay.

Considering you made note of the rarity of the sunroof then straight on to the heated screen, you missed the fact that's an IR screen, with its own rarity in itself 😉 A little fun fact for you, the Focus ST/RS has a full Ford ECU tune, the Mondeo i5 is an hybrid ECU, a mongrel of both Ford and Volvo combined. For this reason they need a different process to tune them. Mine is 19 in December 🥳 There's 3 settings for the steering, the owner has it in "comfort" mode, try "sport" 100% a classic status inbound. I'd love to see the embarrassment on your face driving my car 🤣🤣😛

Friend of mine had an 08 ST not sure which it was but my mate really loved the car he replaced it with a 120d the 2 door Coupe which he never got on with, he replaced it with a MK3 ST 16 plate which he adores and claims it does 50mpg without trying & been the 185bhp diesel is dey quick enough Someone in my street has an 18 plate Focus RS with around 90,000 miles he's that worried about the mileage he's recently bought a cheap runabout to keep mileage down. My Dad had 3 Ford's over the years my mum 3 on the Trott an A reg 1.3 Ghia replaced by an 18 months old D reg XR2 that me best mate nagged her for 4 or years until she sold him it cheap as she had known him since he was 11 she even put 12 months road tax on it , she replaced it with a Mk4 H reg Escort XR3i . Then an N reg Saab 900 Turbo. My brother had at least 4 Capris & a 2 years old W reg Cortina 2.0 Ghia that was a company car he worked for which had 80000 miles on it. My brother is 11 years older than me my 1st and only Ford car was an E reg Mk4 Escort 1.6DGL with 50 bhp because it was a GL it had a rev counter but was so underpowered it had no red in the rev counter I replaced it after 2 years with a G reg Astra GTE 16V followed by a J reg Cavalier GSi 2000.

Absolutely love these cars

The first gen cars had superb hydraulic steering. The later cars, it places the car precisely, but a lot less of feel. I have a 2008 C-Max diesel which is fun to drive, along with a pre-facelift 2016 Ranger. Good driving experience, I drive both the same, despite the 1 ton difference in weight.

I had a 15 plate ST2 TDCI and it was fab. Ok the heavy engine made it porpoise, clutch was all in or all out, and the ride was "firm" but it did 50mpg when ragged and I got 55mpg on motorway runs. It did not like European diesel, higher bio content caused egr issues. On super diesel it used to purr. I always left a big gap pulling away from lights as it used to be so quick plus the tricky clutch necessitating lots of gas.

Great cars. Sold my Escort Cos four years ago and bought an ST. It’s been brilliant. The power delivery issue on the one you drove could be down to faulty boost control solenoid or weak actuator.

I've always found the Fusion to be the car Ford should have continued beyond the Focus and Festiva. It had good proportions, but still only a mid-size car with much better looks. After learning about 5 cylinders here recently, and always thought them to be an "odd" engine. But it sounds like (and literally they have a good sound to them) they are an interesting and capable alternative to 4 cylinders when a 6 cylinder isn't an option (with an inline 6 cylinder just about my favorite engine design.). And thanks for the video, I had no idea Ford made a 5 cylinder engine.

Ahh the Ford Asbo, fantastic

I do like the MK2 st fl. I do like a good cup of liber-tea 😜😁👍

The focus needed a windscreen heater because the screen demister didn't clear it! I think aST is a better daily than the RS - notwithstanding the ridiculous premium a RS commands 😅

I've got a mk3 focus at diesel at 230 brake never skipped a beat. Good on fuel and 20 quid a year tax. Been toying with getting a mk2 but think it may be a step back in terms of interior etc for the sake of just a noise

The carbon centre console is OEM believe it or not. I had one and so did many of my friends. Absolutely amazing cars, mine was orange, best colour in my opinion but ford paint is awful and the lacquer peel was terrible plus no one wanted to touch it due to the 3 stage paint.

straight onto Autotrader....

I adored my 2007 mountune ST. I will never love a car like I did that one. I travelled 200 miles to buy it, but it wasn't ready to drive away the same day and I needed to go home for work. 1 call to my dad, an old school ford guy, and he abandoned my mum on her birthday trip to go and pick it up for me. One day I get it back. I still stalk it's mot history. It was a blue 3 die and the reg ended HDY of anyone sees this comment

Wonder if you can get a hold of an Australian car called the falcon

I considered an mk3 RS a few years back, I do like the last RS. But time will tell, been seriously into the Alfa Romeo 159 for some reason, 3.2liter V6. Not sure about the reliability though.

Hi James, love your videos, your are the most relevant automotive content creator for normal people that want to buy attainable cars! Please can you do a video on the L322 Range Rover Sport?

Great video - I had a 2015 Zetec S was my second car, really enjoyed it not a hot hatch by any means but was still enjoyable, you could use all of it. Bloody unreliable master cylinder and Cat went on it 🤣

Great video, stunning car, definitely a future classic, don't make them like that anymore 🙄👍👌

Honestly, i wish they'd given the wagon the 2.5 Power plant aswell. Granted it might have cannibilized the V50's 2.5T Sales then, but honestly, MAN it would have been awesome to have two unassuming small five-pot wagons!

I have always wanted a Ford Focus either a 1.4 or 1.6 petrol. I was put away from hearing friends having problems with camvelts, headcaskets. Still I wanted one...

Still my favourite generation st because of the Volvo engine

14:45 Back in The Mondeo 😂

I agree completely about the screen. In certain light conditions it’s quite trippy!

Interesting the aircon works - it’s a known fault and a fiddly fix!

I'm wondering if buying a lovely 10k plus example would actually be a reasonable investment, kinda like buying a mint mk1 R32 Golf would have been 10yrs ago...

Had one of these until about a week ago when it was stolen. If you're gonna get one of these bare in mind it's not a matter of if people try to steel it but when. Had it for 9 months and there were 2 attempts to steal it and on the third time they finally got it. Great cars though and i will miss mine.

The pretend carbon on the console is standard, those knobs however, are not. I own a 2010 ST-2, 3 door. My 3rd Focus. My first car was a mk1 facelift 1.4, my second car was a ST 170.

These are the cars that made Fords desirable back in the day, but present day ones are questionable

TY J 🙏🙏

My neighbour had a pre-facelift ST a few years back. He was a bit surprised when he couldn't at all keep up with my 1995 Saab 9000 (not stock, duh).

My family has been a ford family for a large amount of time. My dad owning a number of fiestas including xr2s and fiesta STs amongst a few ford focus's and my mum owning a few ford Ka's all from the same dealer in Sheffield. Unfortunately after my dad's mk7 fiesta ST was stolen he moved away from the brand as the new fiesta ST (mk8) had a three cylinder which he wasn't interested in, he then moved to a Toyota GT86 and lastly a BMW M240i and hasn't looked back. When my mum was ready to replace her mk2 Ka she saw the mk3 Ka and saw that it had become incredibly ugly compared to the previous generations and moved over to driving an Abarth 595. Ford was not able to keep them interested as in the brand as they simply don't make interesting or desirable cars anymore.

I had a black 1.8 zetec mrk 2....loved it. Had a mrk 5 golf before that and it was prob the worst car I ever owned....

The same engine was fitted in the Kuga and S Max. Better find another Ford family and review them because they are very interesting to drive, particularly the AWD Kuga

14:40 someone mixed mondeo with the focus there 😅

He needs to bring it to me at JWRacing we regularly build mk2 ST and RS’s with 500+bhp and they can actually put the power down

Considering the Toyota Yaris GR, Ford missed a trick not building a Ford "Kasworth".

You really do need to road test a completely standard edition, like mine. But I also own a mk2 MG ZS180 which I’m in the midst of deciding which one I need to get rid of, ST or ZS, and for the life of me can’t decide.

The Mk2 Focus was my favourite. I don't want any current Ford

So they actually made st's for the facelift mk2s.