u/musicallymotivated93

As the title says, I have a new to me mk7 Zetec S. It's mechanically sound and what was initially going to be a runaround is going to be more of a long term thing. I have a couple of questions to ask that hopefully the community can help with though...

- Is there a way to make the cigarette lighter socket turn off when the ignition's not turned on? It's not a life or death thing but I do have a dashcam plugged into it, just every time I get in and out of it, I'm unplugging it and plugging it back in.

- Any efficient ways of getting Android Auto? In my old car I installed a double DIN head unit which I still have at home, but looking at the factory unit with the hazard light switch and door lock button built into it, I'm not sure that's a viable option. If anyone's got any suggestions for UK-based solutions, I'm all ears.

Any answers and suggestions would be much appreciated.

My current car ('08 Mazda3 2.0) is on it's last legs. More hungry for oil than the US government, buggered front suspension, and tinworm. Going to go and have a look at this (hopefully) next Tuesday.

It fulfills 3 of my 4 main criteria - sub-£1,000, petrol and manual. Being Japanese was ideal but not essential. The one thing it doesn't have is a long MOT (runs out on the 28th of July), however... Almost everything it's either failed or been advised on is wear and tear with the exception of the horn. The advert also doesn't have any info regarding the service history (naturally I will be asking), like pretty much any dealer ad I've looked at, the description is a load of drivel spat out by ChatGPT.

I'm mechanically minded enough to know what to be looking and listening out for with regards to things it could fail an MOT on, what does everyone else reckon?

To add, mk1 Focuses (Focii?) are a car I'm pretty familiar with already, I've owned 2 in the past, 1 of which was another 1.6, and this particular car is just about the only thing in my budget which is really sticking out to me. I'm going to assume there's a fair chunk of people out there more familiar with them and the Sigma engines than me, so any input would be appreciated.

*Edit: a link to the AT ad page.

*Edit 2: Facebook Marketplace looks like it's coming through with a much better option. Watch this space...

Hi all, as the title says I'm looking at changing my car soon thanks to a mix of mine being a bit tired these days and a bit of a windfall coming soon. Eyeing up some manual 3rd gens with the 2 litre lump.

Are there any notable differences in the trim levels aside from the wheel sizes? I've been focusing mainly on the Sport Navs, have also seen a fair few SE-Ls around the same price range.

Looking at the 120bhp models and getting it mapped to make what it should've made from the factory because it's cheaper than buying a 165, if anyone's done this, do the gearboxes hold up well? (Also if anyone knows any reputable tuners in the UK, particularly in the south-east, that'd be massively helpful too)

Is it much of a chore to get Android Auto up and running on one, and is anything lost by removing the factory system? It's the one modern-ish day luxury I have to have.

Have they fitted an unnecessary amount of electronic crap that could very easily either be mechanical or not be there at all (eg handbrake), and was there some kind of 'switch' in this area during it's life cycle? I have seen that earlier models at least have a proper manual handbrake, have the later ones retained it or did they change to electric?

Is the rust situation any better than it was on the Ford platform 3s? Being in the UK I know it's an absolute shitter with pretty much anything, but it'd be nice to not have to worry quite so much.

Apologies that this ended up being a bit long winded, just want to be as up to speed as I can. Pic of what I currently have, just because.