Yup sure is a great car?

[mowog]

The XR4 is about to go in for its 3000klm check. The longer I own this car the less I like it.

L/H Tail Light falling out. (fixed at delivery doing it again)
Low Power Unresponsive engine. (Note Vortex 98 used)
First run in mornings engine rough prone to stalling
Engine pings under moderate load. (Note Vortex 98 used)?
Fuel venting from filler cap. Car only ever filled to first click.
Aircon is crap under performs on warm days.
Some drivers report Hot/Cold cycle from Aircon.
Engine check light did come on but cleared its self?

I havent had this many issues in a year of ownership with XR6 Turbo!

Other than that after having owned it for a while.

The handling is ordinary.
Seating position to high.
Seems to suffer from body roll to much.
The front seats are uncomfortable after about 30min.
Just about any pair of decent sunglasses make the LCD panels unreadable.

Because of the seating position and the seemingly excessive body roll it does not inspire any handling confidence.

Fuel consumption 9.5-10.0l/100 which is pretty ordinary for the work this car does.

Over all after 3000klm this car gets a 3 out of 10 and it only gets 3 because its better than catching a bus. (but not by much).

[Peuty]

Originally Posted by mowog

Just about any pair of decent sunglasses make the LCD panels unreadable.

Any set of polarised sunnies will make an LCD screen hard to read.

[Steffo]

I can't help but laugh when I read this...

You are the only person I've ever seen to comment poorly on its handling - and that includes professional race drivers (ex F1 for example) who are far more qualified then you can hope to be.

And then I remember the Corolla Sportivo and...

[photn]

Originally Posted by mowog

The XR4 is about to go in for its 3000klm check. The longer I own this car the less I like it.

L/H Tail Light falling out. (fixed at delivery doing it again)
Low Power Unresponsive engine. (Note Vortex 98 used)
First run in mornings engine rough prone to stalling
Engine pings under moderate load. (Note Vortex 98 used)?
Fuel venting from filler cap. Car only ever filled to first click.
Aircon is crap under performs on warm days.
Some drivers report Hot/Cold cycle from Aircon.
Engine check light did come on but cleared its self?

I havent had this many issues in a year of ownership with XR6 Turbo!

Other than that after having owned it for a while.

The handling is ordinary.
Seating position to high.
Seems to suffer from body roll to much.
The front seats are uncomfortable after about 30min.
Just about any pair of decent sunglasses make the LCD panels unreadable.

Because of the seating position and the seemingly excessive body roll it does not inspire any handling confidence.

Fuel consumption 9.5-10.0l/100 which is pretty ordinary for the work this car does.

Over all after 3000klm this car gets a 3 out of 10 and it only gets 3 because its better than catching a bus. (but not by much).

in all honesty, i dont want to start a war here, but if you dont like it just sell it and buy a corrolla or something. if your having troubles with it then do something about it.

i understand and respect that it is not living up to the hype you have hear about it.\, which is fair enough, diff cars apeal to diff ppl. so all i can suggest is to sell it and get a corrolla or a Focus Zetec.

[mowog]

Guys its its feed back like it or lump it. It might save someone from making a wrong buying choice in the future.

Steffo: Come up with something new or get out of the pool.

Sell it? I would love to I would put the funds toward an FG XR6 Turbo Ute. But we need a small car for the kids and it does running around for the wifes business.

The handling yes I too am suprised after all the reviews and reading I did and what the experts had to say frankly I am dumbfounded to explain why I find this car a shocker in the handling department. I dont like its tendencey to excessive body roll tell me no one else has this issue and I will raise it as an item for the service. Is it a product of the seating postion being so high? The old Barina SRi's felt like they were on rails compared to the XR4.

I will use it for what it is a shopping car and have no great expections that it rise above that status.

[photn]

Originally Posted by mowog

Guys its its feed back like it or lump it. It might save someone from making a wrong buying choice in the future.

Steffo: Come up with something new or get out of the pool.

Sell it? I would love to I would put the funds toward an FG XR6 Turbo Ute. But we need a small car for the kids and it does running around for the wifes business.

The handling yes I too am suprised after all the reviews and reading I did and what the experts had to say frankly I am dumbfounded to explain why I find this car a shocker in the handling department. I dont like its tendencey to excessive body roll tell me no one else has this issue and I will raise it as an item for the service. Is it a product of the seating postion being so high? The old Barina SRi's felt like they were on rails compared to the XR4.

I will use it for what it is a shopping car and have no great expections that it rise above that status.

sorry, i didnt mean to come off sounding agro, but i was making a recomendation not having a go at you. i know your point of view on this car and ware you stand, i also know that you require a small car. but at the end of the day its your car and if your not satisfied with it then you shuld change it. You are the consumer of course.

[TOASTED]

Originally Posted by photn

so all i can suggest is to sell it and get a corrolla or a Focus Zetec.

RUBBISH!!!! Buy An e Series! _2:

[0xyg3n]

Originally Posted by mowog

The handling yes I too am suprised after all the reviews and reading I did and what the experts had to say frankly I am dumbfounded to explain why I find this car a shocker in the handling department. I dont like its tendencey to excessive body roll tell me no one else has this issue and I will raise it as an item for the service. Is it a product of the seating postion being so high? The old Barina SRi's felt like they were on rails compared to the XR4.

Get some coilovers and drop it. Problem solved. :P I have virtually no body roll on mine.

[mowog]

photn

I am a prisoner of my need to provide transport for the family unit. If it was up to me I would just have an F6. Or maybe a BMW 135i.

I am parent I brought this car because of the level of safety features and the fact that its not some underpowered hatch was also important because a level of performance adds some safety as well.

I wont ever buy another Japaness car I have my reasons for this but they are my reasons alone. French cars truely suck why people buy them escapes me. Holden sold out and started importing crap. Any Korean brand is also no go my familes safety is worth more than that. A Golf was too expensive. A Polo GTi I couldnt insure for my kids to drive.

So given that what other small hatch was there to choose from that offers 6 airbags DSC etc... Until Holden get smart and bring the Corsa SRi in the choices are very slim indeed.

[scooby]

Interesting.... my Focus has heaps more bodyroll than my Fiesta, and my Fiesta is only an LX with standard suspension. Maybe you should get yours checked. I have to agree with the comments on the air con though. Both my cars have crappy air con. I guess it doesn't get so hot in Europe.

[Ives]

I know what the problem is... the XR4 needs more cowbell.

[Jess85]

maybe you bought the runt of the batch lol coz my xr4 is just over 8000kms old and i havent had a prob. i love the front seats - comfy as (compared to my old zetec seats which were pretty hard on the bum!)..drives live a dream, is a bit rough first start in the morning coz its cold but when you know how to drive/control a car properly it wont stall, and i had to laugh at the 'unresponsive engine' comment too
BUT..like you said its all feedback and everyone has different opinions..just my 2cents worth

[zetec jim]

buy this then... its got a responsive engine.

I dont know what you're expecting the XR4 to be. maybe you've been to used to the 6cyl turbo power. fair enough on the other quality issues though (tail lights and engine light)

i've got a fever... and the only cure... is more cowbells.

[Go baby Go]

The seats are too high I agree..............first thing i noticed when I got in it. Now, I am used to it, but when someone like mowog who doesn't drive it all the times jumps in, it is still noticeable.

Air con does do it's own thing every now and again - but so does the GTP....
There's been a few notes about cold start issues - and whilst mine still is rough for the first few kms, I have also stalled a couple of times when it's cold- it seriously doesn't like idling low first off. 10kms down the road and it's okay, but not at first.
I don't find the body roll issues you are having- especially compared to a BA- i find they are worse - but i'm the opposite to you - drive my fez daily and BA rarely.
Haven't had pinging, engine light or fuel venting... and I definitely don't find it non-responsive. - and someone must have used clag on your tailight - not good at all.
Your fuel economy IS shocking (I too use vortex)..... should be nowhere near that high...... my my what have your kids been doing...........?


Just because we all own them, does not mean they are the world's greatest car - and nor should we only write about positives and not be realistic enough to understand others do not have the same opinion of our fez's.......

Good luck with the dealer mowog- I hope you get some answers beccause you shouldn't be having that many problems.........

Cheers,

[timz]

Originally Posted by mowog

The handling yes I too am suprised after all the reviews and reading I did and what the experts had to say frankly I am dumbfounded to explain why I find this car a shocker in the handling department. I dont like its tendencey to excessive body roll tell me no one else has this issue and I will raise it as an item for the service. Is it a product of the seating postion being so high? The old Barina SRi's felt like they were on rails compared to the XR4.

I agree with the handling and body roll. I compared the xr4 to the polo gti and its not even close, the xr4 is a POS!

gti polo kicks it in every area except stereo in my opinion.

[Go baby Go]

Originally Posted by timz

gti polo kicks it in every area except stereo in my opinion.

Except for looks- i find the polo loooks like a grandpa car- that was my main reason for going the XR4 - I couldnt get excited about the vw's........ but they do handle faaaaar better.

[MISTA FIESTA]

Originally Posted by timz

I agree with the handling and body roll. I compared the xr4 to the polo gti and its not even close, the xr4 is a POS!

gti polo kicks it in every area except stereo in my opinion.

You need to get your head outta your rear and smell the cowbell.

I have a XR4 and brother has a Polo Gti. I have driven both of them casually and spiritually. The XR4 out handles the Polo in everyway but the polo isnt far off. If you think im bull just check out the motoring reviews from the UK where they test both against eachother. The XR4/ST comes out on top. The Polo has the performance advanatge because of the Turbo and its potential for aftermarket modifcations. Aside from that its a pretty bland car exterior wise but has the balls to back it up. The XR4 is the opposite it look much more aggressive on the outside and the inside isnt toobad eaither but a downside is that it should have been more powerful.

I agree the air con is a bit of a worry as a few owners have a had problems before delivery and after, but seems to be rectified at Ford. Driver ride height can be adjusted so dont see the problem there. And the seats unconfortable?? WTF i bet you are a large sized person = thats the reason. I have a mate who cant even fit in the seat he sits on top of it.

In terms of the car 0-3000kms its hasnt really opened it self up interms of wearing in. I had the engine light come on, stalling on start ups, and felt the car was not peaking as it should be. But after some good synthetic oil and 3000-6000kms it hasnt skipped a beat. This running in period is what i think puts peoples off when they test drive it.

I suggest you obviously just tell the service guy all the problems and it should come out better with more kms.

[mowog]

Originally Posted by MISTA FIESTA

I suggest you obviously just tell the service guy all the problems and it should come out better with more kms.

I understand it will need more klms to give its best I have owned 1 or 2 new cars in my time. Both the Ute and Territory seemed to improve at around 9000klm but even before that they didnt feel any less spritley than I would have expected.

I will report back after the 3000klm check and let you guys know how it has gone. All the issues have been given to the service department.

[crispymk2]

You know there is a leaver on the seat to lower the angle/position?

Nah, just teasing...

Sorry to hear your not happy anymore, I still love mine.

The engine has become more responsive since I first got it (now at 10k) and the handling is great with very little body roll but some understeer when pushed imo.

The quality issues you mentioned are a poor reflection on the dealerships quality control more than anything and unfortunately they often struggle to fix even the most basic of problems first time round from my experience with my old zetec.

Your issues dont sound like they will improve with more k's tho, it sounds like you got a lemon... there was a batch of xr4s suffering from piston slap when cold and rough idle. Get them to check the o2 sensor if it is stalling etc.

I agree about the aircon, some people have reported improvements once checked, most of them seam to have been overfilled with gas.

Good luck with your service + I hope things improve, if not happy car hunting!

[fiesta8u]

i have taken corners at the most stupid speeds while it was stock and have NOT received one bit of body roll, done my springs put 18s on it and still not 1 little bit of body roll, im guess either you dont know what you want or how to drive or just got a screwed up xr4.....

[LeadFoot81]

Originally Posted by mowog

The XR4 is about to go in for its 3000klm check. The longer I own this car the less I like it.

L/H Tail Light falling out. (fixed at delivery doing it again)
Low Power Unresponsive engine. (Note Vortex 98 used)
First run in mornings engine rough prone to stalling
Engine pings under moderate load. (Note Vortex 98 used)?
Fuel venting from filler cap. Car only ever filled to first click.
Aircon is crap under performs on warm days.
Some drivers report Hot/Cold cycle from Aircon.
Engine check light did come on but cleared its self?

I havent had this many issues in a year of ownership with XR6 Turbo!

Other than that after having owned it for a while.

The handling is ordinary.
Seating position to high.
Seems to suffer from body roll to much.
The front seats are uncomfortable after about 30min.
Just about any pair of decent sunglasses make the LCD panels unreadable.

Because of the seating position and the seemingly excessive body roll it does not inspire any handling confidence.

Fuel consumption 9.5-10.0l/100 which is pretty ordinary for the work this car does.

Over all after 3000klm this car gets a 3 out of 10 and it only gets 3 because its better than catching a bus. (but not by much).

We have an 06 Zetec, and its been a joy to own since we got it. Re:

Tail light: Inexcusable, but I'm surprised its happening!
Low Power Unresponsive engine: Are you sure you're not just used to driving far more powerful cars? (in your case XR6T) My Mrs' Zetec doesnt quite have as much torque as my '8 but is still lively enough for pulling out into traffic etc, not too bad on kickdowns if you turn off the overdrive (auto). These things are N/A 4 pots though.
First run in mornings engine rough prone to stalling: Yeah get that checked out.
Engine pings under moderate load: Try BP Ultimate, I've never heard good things about Vortex. We've used Shell V Power since new and the car runs great (altho most people in the know recommend Ultimate)
Fuel venting from filler cap. Car only ever filled to first click: Ford should check that, I've filled to 2-3 clicks and never had a drama.
Aircon is crap under performs on warm days: We've never had a prob with the aircon, it works fine, another Ford check there.
Some drivers report Hot/Cold cycle from Aircon: Do you mean having your feet blasted with ridiculously hot air when the aircon is on? We've had that happen.
Engine check light did come on but cleared its self: No worries then! lol get Ford to check out, but tell them its on all the time!

The handling is ordinary: Our car has Zetec suspension with XR4 wheels/tyres and the handling is excellent!
Seating position to high: We like the seating position, gives you a commanding view of the road.
Seems to suffer from body roll to much: Nope tyre grip is a problem long before the body rolls.
The front seats are uncomfortable after about 30min: The Mrs doesnt have aprob with the XR4 seats we installed, but I too find them uncomfortable after a while (and how about the door trims? The hard plastic and sharp edge make them a nightmare to rest your elbow on!)
Just about any pair of decent sunglasses make the LCD panels unreadable: I find this happens with just about any LCD screen/sunglass combo.

Yeah Fiestas aren't perfect but it seems like you've gotten a troublesome example. That fuel consumption is pretty woeful (and the pinging, and the no-power thing) try BP Ultimate and get Ford to check out your other niggles first.

Re: body roll (and also maybe fuel consumption) are you sure you're not over driving this thing?

Hopefully you can resolve your issues quick smart and get to enjoy your time in the Fez.

Cheers, Rob.

[photn]

Originally Posted by fiesta8u

i have taken corners at the most stupid speeds while it was stock and have NOT received one bit of body roll, done my springs put 18s on it and still not 1 little bit of body roll, im guess either you dont know what you want or how to drive or just got a screwed up xr4.....

More like you dont know what bodyroll is. Every car has some sort of bodyroll. i have no doubt that your fiesta has bodyroll, you just probably dont know what it is.

He has explained what he wants and why he needs the car, and i can assure you any1 who knows how to handle a half decently modded Turbo Falcon has more than enough criteria to handle the Fiesta. Think about how much bodyroll a standard XR6T has and think about how much bodyroll a fiesta has and there you go.

Mowog - i would put my money on you possibly getting a lemon XR4 or/either that you are so used to driving the XR6T and have driven many better cars that the fiesta doesnt stack up in your books.

[LeadFoot81]

Originally Posted by photn

Mowog - i would put my money on you possibly getting a lemon XR4 or/either that you are so used to driving the XR6T and have driven many better cars that the fiesta doesnt stack up in your books.

Id say the problems hes had have caused him to 'over think' about the cars weak areas (these can differ from person to person) If everything was hunky-dory, Im sure he could overlook this that and the other, and appreciate the overall package.

[mowog]

Update..

Taillight looks better we will wait and see how long it stays in place this time.

New fuel cap on order.

They "The Ford Dealer" are blaming fuel quality on the engine issues take note here they dont deny its happening. Blaming the fuel quality possibility to me its most unlikely like I said it runs on Vortex 98 now I know some of you claim to have problems on this fuel. But! my XR6 Turbo gets filled from the same pump on the same day (most of the time) the XR6 has no problems at all that would indicate a fuel problem and I would think it would show issues more quickly than the XR4. So this issue of engine problems isnt over.

Strangely the engine feels a bit more responsive after its visit so we will see if the other issues have gone away.

[da_ilks]

Your family must be flogging the ring out of it - even since I've started driving peak hour traffic I'm still returning 7.6L per 100km's. Having said that I've also sufferred some of the things you mentioned

Poor air-con performance on hot days: This annoys me too, re-cycling rather then using fresh air helps
Poor idle on startup: I've stalled it a few times, can be very rough at times and very erratic when using the throttle. Apparantly a non-issue according to Ford Service Dept
High seat position: Agreed, annoys me as well. Still, whilst the seat position is high, there's hardly any body roll noticed and handling is top notch.
Motor unresponsive: Haven't found that at all, for a small 2L it's pretty zippy and has a nice amount of torque. A nice enough amount that I can putter along at 60km/h in 5th if I want... Sure, it's no V8 or turbo6, but for what it is it's very nice.

Sounds like you are trying to find faults with it, and dare I say, trolling with comments like "I'll treat it like the shopping car it is"....

[kiwijohn42]

Originally Posted by da_ilks

I can putter along at 60km/h in 5th if I want...

I pull 50 km/h in top in my Zetec no worries. Depends on the road of course, but it certainly doesn't struggle.
Just trying to eke out the economy, average about 7.2L/100km.

[mowog]

Originally Posted by da_ilks

Sounds like you are trying to find faults with it, and dare I say, trolling with comments like "I'll treat it like the shopping car it is"....

Now that comment is a troll. So I will treat it as such. By saying that a shopping car is its most obvious postion in life. Its not a Grand Tourer by a long shot.

My XR4 is not happy in 5th at 60k/h even on level roads. put a slight uphill grade in and forget about 5th.

Maybe the high seating postion produces a feeling of excessive body roll and maybe I am making an unfair comparisson due to much lower seating position in my XR6.

"Your family must be flogging the ring out of it"

Its easy to make assumptions isnt it? I do drive this car a bit mainly to keep the k's down on my Ute. On one highway trip I reset the trip computer and at 100klm/h it settled at 8.5/100 I can get that from my Ute? As soon as we hit the burbs it went back to 9.5/100.

As I said in my update there seems to be an improvement in how responsive the engine is. When I drive this car I dont expect XR6 Turbo levels of performance. I have had a fair bit of experiance with hot hatches and I was able to enjoy the drive in the 2 Barina SRi's we had the engines were responsive but the cars were not rockets it was just a good package.

As for the rough running if you as a customer are willing to accept it then it will never get any better. If enough owners complain then something will get done on your and pick your nose and nothing happens.

A modern 4 cycl engine with EFI should not run like a hairy goat. Hot or Cold

"Sounds like you are trying to find faults with it"

More like I am expecting the car to at least perform and run to what I see as normal small car standards. Again if you are will to accept less then you are not doing yourself and the community of XR4 owners any favors.

[Steffo]

That's some shocking fuel economy there...

My Sport Clio gets 7.8-8.4L/100 city and 5.0-5.2L/100 highway. It does run like a when its cold though, because of the aggressive cam grind they have. The solution is easy... start it 3 minutes prior leaving.

[zetec jim]

My 1.6 2004 zetec gets up wheelers hill VIC (20 degree incline probably) with no hassle in fifth. provided you keep it upwards of 2500 revs.

[mowog]

Originally Posted by Steffo

That's some shocking fuel economy there...

My Sport Clio gets 7.8-8.4L/100 city and 5.0-5.2L/100 highway. It does run like a when its cold though, because of the aggressive cam grind they have. The solution is easy... start it 3 minutes prior leaving.

Your what? Sorry but I dont ever recall that car coming up in an XR4 thread :

Try an agressive cam in Mini Cooper S with higher compression than standard. Trying to come to life thru 2 cold SU's on a winter morning in Brisbane. Now that was a car I was happy to wait for it warm up. She had a single Lukie Muffler being feed by a set of LCB extractors.

I had an even more aggressive setup in a Mini Moke at the same time. Both cars were pigs until they where warm. The XR4 is quicker than both I would imagine but the XR4 or some french <fantastic piece of engineering> will never come close to sound of a hot A series or the pure driving fun.