My GS just got jealous...

cummuterguy · April 17, 2005, 06:02:35 PM

Well, I went out and bought a new (to me) car. I had decided to get a cheap newer vehicle (under 14k) cause I''m racking up the miles on the GS way too quickly.

I was looking around and found this car. It's a 2002 Ford Focus SVT.
170hp, 6 speed manual trans!!. 31 mpg (hwy). Factory 6 disc in-dash CD player, factory integrated 8" powered sub in the back, black leather seats with blue cloth center inserts.

I couldn't resist. It had 19k miles on it, and I even liked the color. Ended up costing 12k. Now the question will be each morning, which to take to work?

mastrind · April 17, 2005, 06:12:40 PM

....nice looking car there.....sometime this summer I'll be pickin up an old VW Beetle.....we almost bought one of those focus's 2 years ago....but we ended up getting a better deal on a honda element....

'04gs500f · April 17, 2005, 06:19:22 PM

at the moment i have a focus 2000 5 speed, they arent bad vehicles, mine was about $6500 when i got it, enjoy the new ride

LEVO · April 17, 2005, 08:33:46 PM

Ditch the car ride the bike. I have two BMW's (328 and Z3) and a carrera 993 and I still ride the GS anytime I could. Nothing like fresh morning breeze on your face.

weaselnoze · April 17, 2005, 08:43:53 PM

amen to that

. but yea, lose those wheel gaps

Jake D · April 18, 2005, 07:36:43 AM

That is a good looking SVT. Ford really did a good job on the styling.

Slap a cold air intake on it, a mellow exhaust, and your in bid-ness.

Nice choice!!!

cozy · April 18, 2005, 08:18:48 AM

I hope you did some donuts while out there on the grass!
Boy, to think the little Escort morphed into that. Finally someone at F**cked Over Rebuilt Dodge took an aesthetics class.
Enjoy it dude!

cummuterguy · April 18, 2005, 05:59:09 PM

Quote from: Jake DThat is a good looking SVT. Ford really did a good job on the styling.

Slap a cold air intake on it, a mellow exhaust, and your in bid-ness.

Nice choice!!!

Yeah, I have a few mods in mind, but while it's still under factory warranty, I'm keeping it stock. After that... well, they do make a supercharger for it.... hmmm

rizp · April 18, 2005, 07:49:29 PM

cummuterguy,
Dude, that's a sweeeet ride. I think it's totally analagous to a GS. might not be the fastest thing in a straight line, but still a total thrill ride. Here's a great article comparing different "featherweights" including the SVT focus.

The Featherweights: Serial Thrillers

I've gotta say one of my favorites in the category. and A HATCHBACK! I'm totally jealous. not only is it sporty, it's versatile. Nice pick. If I had my druthers with one, I'd focus (ha!) on finetuning the handling to bias it even further toward the sport side (Although I bet it's already a BLAST in the corners). To hell with the HP. Better a scalpel than a sledgehammer.

Regards
Riz

p.s. diggin the dubs too...any other mods already done?

cummuterguy · April 18, 2005, 08:46:55 PM

other than the wheels (by the way, tire size is still stock... 215-45-zr17's) it has no mods (ok, it has a K&N drop in filter, but that's not a real gain for this car)

I kinda thought along the same lines... gs is a small bike with a sporty nimble ride, the SVT is a small car with a nimble chassis. Both are 6 speeds, both are really fun in the twisties, and both are underrated by the general public. Neither of them are accelleration monsters, but either of them can hold their own on a road course.

Anyway, I have no intention of getting rid of the GS, but it's nice to have an alternative to riding on bad weather days, with something that's fun to drive.

cernunos · April 18, 2005, 08:57:09 PM

Nice car Cummuterguy. SVT used to be SVO...had the SVO Mustang, Turbo T-Bird, Supercoupe, Taurus SHO, Tempo GLS and then when the lightning came out was when they decided to go with SVT. Had a 1st Gen Lightning in red and it was an incredible handling vehicle...speed limited to 110. Ford has all kinds of goodies and doo-dads to make your Focus into a screamer of a higher order. Good show, congrats. Love the Baby GS and the forum.

C.......

That guy · April 18, 2005, 09:59:16 PM

am i mistaken or is that the ocean behind where you took the picture?(looking at the refliction on the car)

Jeppy · April 18, 2005, 10:13:56 PM

Sweet car...you need to let me know how it holds up. I plan on getting one myself sometime this summer or will put one under the xmas tree this year. Sweet Sweet ride

Jake D · April 19, 2005, 08:12:12 AM

Quote from: cernunosNice car Cummuterguy. SVT used to be SVO...had the SVO Mustang, Turbo T-Bird, Supercoupe, Taurus SHO, Tempo GLS and then when the lightning came out was when they decided to go with SVT. Had a 1st Gen Lightning in red and it was an incredible handling vehicle...speed limited to 110. Ford has all kinds of goodies and doo-dads to make your Focus into a screamer of a higher order. Good show, congrats. Love the Baby GS and the forum.

C.......

C, I used to drive a SHO. That car was sooo sweet. Super fast, super smooth. I miss it!

Focer · April 19, 2005, 08:35:13 AM

Ah yeas the Focer's... I was in to the whole Focus deal deep. Heres a few pics of my X!

http://www.imagestation.com/album/index.html?id=4289754565

cernunos · April 19, 2005, 09:19:15 AM

Yeh, the SHO was a really big step forward in sedans for Ford at the time. The 3.0 used was mostly designed by Yamaha and was way underpowered in relation to it's capabilities. Stock HP was around 220, but with head-work and cams, exhaust and intake messaging, it's easy to get well over 300 HP...at over 9000 RPM! Shifting was a joke because the system was cable operated and the cable had too big an L/D ratio with high hysteresis figures. Handling was pretty good once you got used to the cars tendency to plow...just use that throttle and it would pull you right around. Funny thing was the handling would actually improve as miles were put on the machine. But that motor is the thing, a real diamond in the rough. Love the little GS and this forum.

C.......

Jake D · April 19, 2005, 09:29:39 AM

Yeah, that Yamaha motor was amazing. A V6 that didn't even start to get wild until you got over 6000 RPM. And then it was a torque steer monster.

secondgen7 · April 19, 2005, 02:28:02 PM

Congrats, CG, sharp little car you've got there.

cummuterguy · April 19, 2005, 06:40:38 PM

Quote from: That guyam i mistaken or is that the ocean behind where you took the picture?(looking at the refliction on the car)

Nope, it's an airstrip that we use the surrounding access roads for twisty practice. lots of 60 to 120 degree turns, good run-off area in most places. Usually a lot of bikes and a few cars zipping around in there each weekend. Good Fun

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My GS just got jealous...