Focus vs Cruze

skoobysGT · 06-07-2012, 05:12 PM

Hi guys

Been a turbo charged car owner all my life but last year purchased my first FPV V8...I love it but honestly, I still miss the rush of a turbo so am looking at replacing my wife's Holden Barina with either a second hand 2011 Ford Focus Titanium Pwrshift LW Hatch (with 7000 kms on the clock) for $31,000 or a brand new 2012 white Holden Cruze CDX for $29,990 drive away.

I've done a bit of research and they both have 2.0l turbo charged diesel engines..the Focus having 120kw/ 340NM and the Cruze 120kw/360NM so pretty much on par.

The Focus has more extras such as GPS, automatic park, 18 inch alloys etc but its still a second hand car (concerned about it being thrashed) and is also in black (I swore never to buy another black car again)...but I don't really like white cars either.

The Cruze is a brand new car...with 6 years warranty and capped servicing..and as I'm writing this, I'm getting even more confused than ever!!

So, without being bias towards the Ford (I know its hard to do since its a Ford forum) but which car would you pick and please give me reasons why!

Thanks heaps
Scott

Neale · 06-07-2012, 05:42 PM

I'd go the focus. It may sound a little bias

- 7000km on the clock, its pretty much brand new
- Better features
- Better re-sale
- not a rebadged dawoo made in Korea
- better looks

Nolz · 06-07-2012, 06:13 PM

I just wheeled and dealed an SRI Cruze for my brother in law. I also test drove the diesel Cruze and own a Sport Diesel LW Focus myself. The difference is noticable the fords diesel donk and DSG seems a little more intuitive and perkier. The DSG is something that takes a bit of getting used to. I came from a buttery smooth auto in an FG XR6T and at first it seemed like the focus had a dodgey box. Not so, got used to it real quick tho.

Build quality, materials and design...I have to favour the Focus also. However that is personal taste. Obviously my sister and brother in law prefer the Cruze styling over the other aspects enough to buy it over a focus.

Nothing beats a brand new car and the cruze is a good drive and decent bfyb. I do think ford service is better (only just)....ultimately drive them both. One should tickle your fancy a little more.

I've got my Focus booked in for a tune next week. If you wan to wait til the week after I'll put up my thoughts on how tweakable these things are ; )

skoobysGT · 06-07-2012, 09:32 PM

Thanks guys...yep, will definitely test drive both this weekend! I agree that the Focus has more features and looks nicer.

I've tried searching but does anyone know the 0-100 times for both these cars..not that it's important...just wanna know out of curiosity.

Nolz · 06-07-2012, 09:50 PM

I'm curious too!

harveyr · 07-07-2012, 09:06 AM

According to this site

http://www.automobile-catalog.com/ca...owershift.html

Focus: 9.5 secs
Cruise: 10.3 secs

WILDB · 07-07-2012, 10:51 AM

The Focus is a superior vehicle to the Cruze.

BTW it is also included under Ford's capped price servicing program.

blueoval · 07-07-2012, 10:59 AM

The cruze still makes me think its a daewoo that's rebadged. the focus would be my pick out of the 2. Better resale. I drove the cruze diesel before and didn't think much of its power. haven't driven a focus td but on paper seems hold the cards over the cruze. let us know how u go.

skoobysGT · 10-07-2012, 04:38 PM

So I took both for a test drive on Saturday morning and I must say the Focus is a much more superior car overall!

Firstly, the Focus looked a thousand times nicer in the flesh...the Cruze is quite an ugly looking car...however, there were some parts of the cockpit that looked too plastic-ky in the Ford but overall, it was a much nicer looking car than the Cruze

Secondly, even though the Cruze has more torque on paper, it was the Focus that felt a lot more torquey...the handling also felt better around corners in the Focus too...the automatic box felt a bit smoother in the Cruze though.

But it was the automatic parking in the Focus that made the wife fall in love with it. The keyless entry, voice controlled bluetooth and sports seats were also great features to have. One thing she didn't like was the fact that the indicators and wipers were reversed (being European built)..but that was no biggy.

So at this stage, we are definitely leaning towards the Focus.

But we have not put pen to paper just yet..going to test drive the Volkswagen Polo GTI this weekend and see how we go from there.

blueoval · 10-07-2012, 04:49 PM

Nice report. Pretty much sums it up then. The Polo's I hear are pretty good although it would be wise to ensure the gearbox is up to scratch and the service intervals on that car are spot on.

But as far as the Polo and Focus is concerned inside, the focus wins. The Polo and Golf for that matter look a bit boring in my opinion. Also the equipment levels of the Focus I believe are higher.

Be interesting to hear your thoughts when you test drive the Polo.

ConradP · 10-07-2012, 05:01 PM

Hmm any reason you're comparing a Polo to the Focus and Cruze? Polo is a smaller car, the Golf should be what you compare it to in reality.

Resurrection · 10-07-2012, 05:27 PM

I can't believe what I am about to say. Buy the Cruze as it is assembled in Australia.

Nolz · 10-07-2012, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ConradP

Hmm any reason you're comparing a Polo to the Focus and Cruze? Polo is a smaller car, the Golf should be what you compare it to in reality.

Yeap!

When I decided to move away from the ute and to something more compact the VW Polo GTI was what I was gunning for. Until I had a good look at it in the flesh. It's not a small car, its a micro car. Certainly in a different category. As far as practicality is concerned it doesn't even compare.

If you wanted a car like go cart and don't mind its itsy bitsy dimensions then it's gold. But it's size, or lack there of made it an instant DQ when I was looking around.

ConradP · 10-07-2012, 08:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Resurrection

I can't believe what I am about to say. Buy the Cruze as it is assembled in Australia.

I'd say this, but if it's not up to the same standard as the foreign made Focus you really can't.. I'd take quality over where it's built any day.

Foconatic · 10-07-2012, 10:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skoobysGT

So I took both for a test drive on Saturday morning and I must say the Focus is a much more superior car overall!

Firstly, the Focus looked a thousand times nicer in the flesh...the Cruze is quite an ugly looking car...however, there were some parts of the cockpit that looked too plastic-ky in the Ford but overall, it was a much nicer looking car than the Cruze

Secondly, even though the Cruze has more torque on paper, it was the Focus that felt a lot more torquey...the handling also felt better around corners in the Focus too...the automatic box felt a bit smoother in the Cruze though.

But it was the automatic parking in the Focus that made the wife fall in love with it. The keyless entry, voice controlled bluetooth and sports seats were also great features to have. One thing she didn't like was the fact that the indicators and wipers were reversed (being European built)..but that was no biggy.

So at this stage, we are definitely leaning towards the Focus.

But we have not put pen to paper just yet..going to test drive the Volkswagen Polo GTI this weekend and see how we go from there.

Which Focus/Cruze are looking at, sedan or hatch? I think the Cruze hatch is bland. It's hard to compare the autos as one is dual clutch and the other full auto. Better fuel economy with the dual clutch and quicker response less slip. After a while you will love the feel of the dual clutch for what it is.

Talking about keyless entry and therefore push button start, Have you compared the quality/look of the one on the Cruze? Looks cheap.

I believe the Thai built ones will have the indicators and wipers as per norm.

As for the for the Polo GTI, I was going to buy one but the wait at the time was 8-12 months for the top spec one. I'm happy I went for the Focus.
For the 20 years I've been in this country I was a Holden man but the Focus has converted me.

Resurrection · 10-07-2012, 10:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ConradP

I'd say this, but if it's not up to the same standard as the foreign made Focus you really can't.. I'd take quality over where it's built any day.

I'd rather keep Australians employed than pay them unemployment benefits.

pmacc · 10-07-2012, 11:00 PM

even though VW make some decent cars, Servicing and Parts prices are way too high and every now and then you get a horror story from vw especially the DSG ones.

Pandemic · 11-07-2012, 12:02 AM

I'm hoping a review based on a Thailand built focus will be released in the coming weeks.

skoobysGT · 18-07-2012, 10:19 PM

Early Saturday morning I returned to the Holden dealer to test drive the Cruze CDX diesel sedan (the last time I was there, I test drove the hatch version but found it too ugly)…the sedan did look a lot nicer in the flesh but after test driving it one more time, it confirmed how I felt about the Cruze after the first drive – its just simply too sluggish and boring!
So it was straight back to the Ford dealer for me….my first preference was a titanium hatch but there are not many of these available in Perth that fell within our budget of $32k so the dealer where I bought my GT from said that he could do a titanium sedan for me for that price! Side by side, the hatch looked a lot sportier and refined to me but the sedan was a great price….however, it was ink blue and it looked absolutely horrible!!! I could not let myself buy it no matter how good the price was!
There were several silver sedans that looked stunning but they were only available in the petrol version for $29k but were 2011 plated and had no GPS.
So I left the Ford dealer and drove to the Volkswagen dealership to test drive the Polo GTI….long story short, immediately after the test drive, I put down a deposit and signed for a red one!!!!! I know that it’s a small car but we already have a GT so we really didn’t mind it being small…this is a second car which will be used for grocery shopping and to zip around town etc so size really did not matter.
I was so impressed with the test drive… these things are really pocket rockets!!!! The engine is very responsive and has so much grunt and torque…being super light with a twin charged motor, the Polo GTI has heaps of low end power and also heaps after 3000rpms…it also has a fantastic sound track – I can’t believe these things are only 1.4 litres!!! And the 7 speed DSG compliments the car really well too…and you can’t go wrong with a combined fuel consumption of 6.1 per 100kms.
The worst part is having to wait a whole month for it!!! Anyway, just wanted to say thanks to everyone for their help on this…I know we would have been completely satisfied with another Ford in the garage but I guess it wasn’t meant to be.

In Focus · 19-07-2012, 12:00 AM

Hope you enjoy the new car, mate.

I think I know both cars, the ink blue is at McInerney's, right? And I've been keeping half an eye on the Polo's, trying to decide if I want to risk the (alleged) issues of combining three separate complex bits of engineering: supercharger, turbocharger and DSG gearbox.

skoobysGT · 19-07-2012, 12:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by In Focus

Hope you enjoy the new car, mate.

I think I know both cars, the ink blue is at McInerney's, right? And I've been keeping half an eye on the Polo's, trying to decide if I want to risk the (alleged) issues of combining three separate complex bits of engineering: supercharger, turbocharger and DSG gearbox.

Thanks mate...its for the missus but I'm sure I'll be grabbing the keys off her once in awhile!!!

Nope...the ink blue one is at Lynford Motors...hope I don't come across any problems with it but that's what warranty is for!

blueoval · 19-07-2012, 11:04 AM

The vw's are a cool bit of kit. nice job. make sure you maintain it to the book and you should be fine. enjoy.

johnydep · 19-07-2012, 11:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skoobysGT

Early Saturday morning I returned to the Holden dealer to test drive the Cruze CDX diesel sedan (the last time I was there, I test drove the hatch version but found it too ugly)…the sedan did look a lot nicer in the flesh but after test driving it one more time, it confirmed how I felt about the Cruze after the first drive – its just simply too sluggish and boring!
So it was straight back to the Ford dealer for me….my first preference was a titanium hatch but there are not many of these available in Perth that fell within our budget of $32k so the dealer where I bought my GT from said that he could do a titanium sedan for me for that price! Side by side, the hatch looked a lot sportier and refined to me but the sedan was a great price….however, it was ink blue and it looked absolutely horrible!!! I could not let myself buy it no matter how good the price was!
There were several silver sedans that looked stunning but they were only available in the petrol version for $29k but were 2011 plated and had no GPS.
So I left the Ford dealer and drove to the Volkswagen dealership to test drive the Polo GTI….long story short, immediately after the test drive, I put down a deposit and signed for a red one!!!!! I know that it’s a small car but we already have a GT so we really didn’t mind it being small…this is a second car which will be used for grocery shopping and to zip around town etc so size really did not matter.
I was so impressed with the test drive… these things are really pocket rockets!!!! The engine is very responsive and has so much grunt and torque…being super light with a twin charged motor, the Polo GTI has heaps of low end power and also heaps after 3000rpms…it also has a fantastic sound track – I can’t believe these things are only 1.4 litres!!! And the 7 speed DSG compliments the car really well too…and you can’t go wrong with a combined fuel consumption of 6.1 per 100kms.
The worst part is having to wait a whole month for it!!! Anyway, just wanted to say thanks to everyone for their help on this…I know we would have been completely satisfied with another Ford in the garage but I guess it wasn’t meant to be.

Happy motoring.

My wife and I were in the same situation as you, we/I wanted a Focus or a Cruze. http://www.fordforums.com.au/showthread.php?t=11354263

In the end we ended up with a Honda Accord Euro. The wife loves it so much, I'll be in her good books for a very long time

skoobysGT · 19-07-2012, 02:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by johnydep

Happy motoring.

My wife and I were in the same situation as you, we/I wanted a Focus or a Cruze. http://www.fordforums.com.au/showthread.php?t=11354263

In the end we ended up with a Honda Accord Euro. The wife loves it so much, I'll be in her good books for a very long time

My neigbour drove home a brand new black Honda Accord Euro the other week - it looked absolutely stunning! congrats mate!

skoobysGT · 19-07-2012, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by blueoval

The vw's are a cool bit of kit. nice job. make sure you maintain it to the book and you should be fine. enjoy.

Thanks bud..We are over the moon with our choice in the end...I know you said in one of your earlier post that the interior of the Polo and Golf is quite dull and boring...I somewhat agree with you but the GTI versions for both these cars are quite nice!

Yep will definitely maintain/service it on time...from what I've been told, servicing for VW's are quite expensive compared to a Ford or Holden but I guess it aint so bad considering it only needs yearly servicing.

Foconatic · 19-07-2012, 10:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skoobysGT

Early Saturday morning I returned to the Holden dealer to test drive the Cruze CDX diesel sedan (the last time I was there, I test drove the hatch version but found it too ugly)…the sedan did look a lot nicer in the flesh but after test driving it one more time, it confirmed how I felt about the Cruze after the first drive – its just simply too sluggish and boring!
So it was straight back to the Ford dealer for me….my first preference was a titanium hatch but there are not many of these available in Perth that fell within our budget of $32k so the dealer where I bought my GT from said that he could do a titanium sedan for me for that price! Side by side, the hatch looked a lot sportier and refined to me but the sedan was a great price….however, it was ink blue and it looked absolutely horrible!!! I could not let myself buy it no matter how good the price was!
There were several silver sedans that looked stunning but they were only available in the petrol version for $29k but were 2011 plated and had no GPS.
So I left the Ford dealer and drove to the Volkswagen dealership to test drive the Polo GTI….long story short, immediately after the test drive, I put down a deposit and signed for a red one!!!!! I know that it’s a small car but we already have a GT so we really didn’t mind it being small…this is a second car which will be used for grocery shopping and to zip around town etc so size really did not matter.
I was so impressed with the test drive… these things are really pocket rockets!!!! The engine is very responsive and has so much grunt and torque…being super light with a twin charged motor, the Polo GTI has heaps of low end power and also heaps after 3000rpms…it also has a fantastic sound track – I can’t believe these things are only 1.4 litres!!! And the 7 speed DSG compliments the car really well too…and you can’t go wrong with a combined fuel consumption of 6.1 per 100kms.
The worst part is having to wait a whole month for it!!! Anyway, just wanted to say thanks to everyone for their help on this…I know we would have been completely satisfied with another Ford in the garage but I guess it wasn’t meant to be.

I was going to buy the Polo GTI with all the bells and whistles inOctober last year,but had to wait at least 9 months. A guy I know ordered his May 2011 and is picking his up next Tuesday. So I went for the Focus with a 4 month wait and I love the car. One month for you is nothing.....enjoy!Yes it is a pocket rocket.

In Focus · 22-09-2012, 11:17 AM

How are you going with the Polo GTI? Is it using oil at a high rate? Still tossing up whether to get one of those...

skoobysGT · 24-09-2012, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by In Focus

How are you going with the Polo GTI? Is it using oil at a high rate? Still tossing up whether to get one of those...

The Polo GTI is awesome!! I'm having more fun driving it at the moment than I am driving my GT!!! It's done nearly 2,000kms already and I have brought it back to the dealers twice to get an oil top up...but no biggy as they don't charge me for the oil..just a bit of my time that's all.

The dealer told me that its very common in these cars up to about 3-4,000kms and the dust should settle by then and oil consumption should be normal.

The DSG is a brilliant kit but if you can stretch your budget a bit more and after a manual, I would suggest getting a GOLF GTI for $39,990 drive away..that's a sensational price VW Australia are offering at the moment!

blueoval · 24-09-2012, 02:47 PM

great to hear your enjoying the little beast