2005 Ford Focus 1.6L Petrol · EO55 PXH

Chronic front suspension wear sits at the heart of this 2005 Ford Focus's MOT record. Across the 2019 and 2021 tests the nearside and offside front suspension arm pins or bushes were flagged repeatedly, culminating in a 2021 failure with both sides marked as excessively worn, the point at which they crossed from advisory to major defect. The component has been a persistent concern for at least seven test cycles and was unresolved at the most recent assessment on 15 June 2022, which passed with no defects recorded but which provides no confirmation that replacement work was actually carried out between the 2021 fail and the subsequent pass. Other recurring items include a steering rack inner joint noted with play in 2021 and a rear anti-roll bar linkage that appeared both as corroded in 2021 and as having ball joint play in 2019, alongside a fractured rear exhaust hanger. Steering and anti-roll geometry faults on this model tend to be progressive rather than self-correcting, so a buyer should treat the 2022 clean pass as a snapshot rather than proof that these wear items have been remedied. Mileage accumulation is low for a vehicle of this age. At 116,714 recorded miles over 21 years, the car has covered roughly 5,558 miles per year, well below the typical annual figure for a Focus of this vintage. Five tests are recorded between 2018 and 2022, indicating fairly consistent use over that period, but nothing earlier than 2018 is shown, so any usage before then cannot be verified from the data. The repeated short gaps between annual tests, with no stretches of dormancy exceeding a year, suggest the car has been in regular rather than occasional use, although the modest annual mileage still points to lighter-than-average loading on consumables. The caveat with low annual mileage is that standing periods accelerate corrosion in areas such as brake pipes, suspension subframes and underbody seams, so a physical inspection underneath remains worthwhile even where the recorded odometer reading looks reassuring. Front suspension condition is the priority area for any prospective buyer. The lower arm rear bushes, or pivot bushes, are a known wear point on Mk1 and Mk2 Focus models and the wording on the 2019 and 2021 advisories aligns closely with that component. On a test drive, listen for clonking or knocking from the front end over uneven surfaces, particularly over speed humps, pothole edges and cracked tarmac, and feel for vagueness or a slight delay in steering response that suggests the rack inner joint noted in 2021 has progressed. With the car raised or viewed from underneath, look for cracking, splitting or separation in the front lower arm bushes, any lateral play when the wheel is rocked by hand, and movement at the anti-roll bar link joints. The rear anti-roll bar linkage ball joint play flagged in 2019 should also be rechecked, as the component is small, inexpensive and prone to seizing or wearing further if left. Brake and underbody condition deserve close attention even though only one brake advisory has been recorded. The 2019 entry for worn, pitted or scored front brake discs was repeated across the fail and pass of that year and has not reappeared in later tests, which leaves open the question of whether the discs were refurbished or replaced. On test, expect a firm pedal without excessive travel, and check for brake judder or vibration under firm application that would suggest disc runout or uneven wear. The 2021 advisories for a corroded offside outer suspension component mounting area, a deteriorated rear number plate and a damaged offside non-obligatory mirror are minor individually, but the mounting corrosion note is the one that warrants a torch-and-knees inspection of the strut turret and inner wing, because surface corrosion in that area on a 21 year old Focus can progress towards structural significance. Finally, confirm the operation of the front passenger door from inside the vehicle, as the 2020 failure citing the door could not be opened from inside must have been rectified for the subsequent pass but the underlying cause, whether a linkage, cable or latch fault, should be verified by operating the door several times during the viewing.