Ok, so I needed a economical car with a bit of room for work and decided on a Focus wagon. It's an auto (don't know if they even offered the wagon in a stick, sure couldn't find one), and SE trim level. What can I do to make this little thing more fun to drive? Any secret little power adders (getting rid of resonaters, or simple little bolt-ons) to wake it up a bit untill I can drop in an SVT drivetrain? It has the ZTEC motor.
Im not a blue oval guy at all, so YMMV, but I have heard that swapping the drivetrain, interior, chassis and bodywork for a 02 wrx wagon really yields some nice performance upgrades
In other words, I dont know
I would talk to Hal:
http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/reader-rides/376/
he really seams to like his.
A good transmission cooler and some nitrous? 
Trans cooler, and rally tires
focaljet.com
Add a trans cooler then don't drive it and it will not break.
The Brown Stig wrote: Add a trans cooler then don't drive it and it will not break.
Are you (not) saying these have trans problems? Man I hope not.
An underdrive pulley is the best bang for the buck. A chip in the ECU helps. Unplug the knock sensor. Cat back exhaust.
SPEC FOCUS RACING!!!
DrBoost wrote:The Brown Stig wrote: Add a trans cooler then don't drive it and it will not break.Are you (not) saying these have trans problems? Man I hope not.
No, I typed it.
Flaming bull horns?
find another focus badge/emblem and replace the "o" with a "u"
Actually, the wagon is not permitted for spec focus...
damnit, over-read the wagon part...
I'm tempted to get a ZX3 as my "winter car" just so it can eventually turn into a spec Focus...
It does cost a lot, but will make it go. Not too sure about stopping or turning, but it will go
I believe the wagon uses an entirely different rear suspension from the other cars. So a lot of the handling goodies don't transfer over. I don't know if the front is the same or not.
Tell me more about the transmissions.....
Don't abuse them or let them get hot and they last long enough, I have seen quite a few bad from even minor abuse.
I have seen a guy running a spin on filter adapter with a Saturn spin on filter adapted in line as well as a large cooler.
My sister got 91K miles on her transmission, a former coworker had over 228K miles.
Is that only an issue with the Auto trans? Or is it also a problem with the manuals? (Sounds like they should be two totally different beasts.)
Ok, here goes:
Best source of info: Focaljet.com as mentioned by Eric
Automatic Trans: Not the strongest in the world but very capable if you use it as an automatic (put it in Drive and go). All the people I know who have had problems were doing "neutral drops" and trying to manually shift it.
Wagon suspension: The front suspension is the same as other models. There were changes made in later years (2005 and up). The wagon uses different springs and shocks in the rear. At one time there was a suspension kit available for the rear of the wagon but I don't think it is in current production. I'm sure you could find some model of Koni that would fit and have custom springs made. Whatever, don't drop it more than 1.5" as the handling gets screwed up with more drop than that.
Engine mods: Forget the SVT swap. It will probably cost you more for the parts (even at JY prices) than you paid for the car. You will need the engine, ECU, and lots of other wiring, cables, etc.
Exhaust: Biggest restriction is the catalytic converter. Best thing to do is replace the header and catalytic with one of the type used on the SVT. Best way is to buy the kit made for the Zetec engine. If you get one at the JY you will need to make sure you get the dipstick, one PS line, and make up an extension for the O2 sensor wiring. All those extra parts come in the kit. I went with a "shorty "header and a Random Tech cat which was all bolt-on and almost as efficient. "Cat-back" exhaust is good to do. Most of the aftermarket stuff available now will have to be modified to fit the wagon. "No big deal" it is just a 6" extention in front of the rear muffler. I recommend the Borla SS unit, good sound and 1/4" larger than stock diameter.
Intake: Get the intake manifold from a 2000 MY Zetec. Much better flow than later years. Then a 65mm TB and a intake setup. AEM CAI will give you the most power gain but it puts the air filter down in the "water puddle" area. I like the Volant which IMO is a better design.
Then some good tuning to make use of the mods and you are set. If you want to go further a set of Ford Racing Stage 2 cams will bump you up from the normal 110 WHP stock to the 130 range.
In reply to Salanis:
I had an ST (manual gearbox) and it had a lot of weird issues. It would pop out of gear, while going 65 mph on the highway, never wanted to go into gear, as if the synchros were bad and a whole host of other tiny issues. Of course, when we took it in to be looked at (still under warranty) they told us these were all "normal" problems.
Normal PROBLEMS should be repaired. Performing to manufacturers specification is a whole other animal.
Get an IB5 5 speed from an SPI engined LX or SE Focus. Rod actuated instead of the sloppy cables on the MTX75. It also doesn't have the "Ford got cheap and went with a single synchro on third" issues like the MTX75. Add a decent clutch and boost.
Edit: Remove the resonator from the side of the airbox and seal the hole shut for a better intake note.
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